DID YOU KNOW
DID YOU KNOW FAREWELL TO FATHER STEVE For many years, at the close of the academic year and just before commencement, President Stephen Sundborg, S.J., was interviewed for a Q&A touching on a range of topics from university matters to popular culture and everything in between. With his departure from Seattle U and his welcoming of new president Eduardo Peñalver, Father Steve was interviewed for this annual tradition but this time, it was more of an exit interview than the usual fare. Here are a few excerpts from this fascinating discussion: Q: What is something you’ll miss most about being president? Father Steve: My image of Seattle University is the stream of students when there’s the class break. I’m going to miss seeing that and being able to say hello to students or ask them a question. Another thing I know I’m going to miss extraordinarily is I’ve had people who have supported me—senior staff, administrative staff—all the way through these 24 years. They’ve rendered me totally helpless on my own. I’m going to have a rude awakening and will miss
being taken care of in that kind of way. As president, I’ve based a lot of what I do around the relationship with the cabinet and I’m really going to miss having a team like that. Q: Would you do it again? Father Steve: You bet I would do it again! I look at myself and I’m almost 30 years older than Eduardo Peñalver. If I was 30 years younger, I’d do it in a moment. It’s a rich, varied, challenging thing to do if you throw yourself wholeheartedly into it, but you’ve got to have the youth and you’ve got to have the energy to be able to engage in it. Q: What were your favorite books from this past year? Father Steve: Two books really stood out for me. One is Isabel Wilkerson’s The Warmth of Other Suns about the great migration. Phenomenal book. I think The New York Times once said it was one of the 10 best nonfiction books ever written. And the other one I liked was former President Barack Obama’s A Promised Land. Read this interview in its entirety here.
COLLEGIA PROGRAM EARNS INNOVATION GRANT Gretchenrae Campera, ’08, and Seattle U’s Collegia Program have secured an Innovation Grant from the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) in support of a new Reuse & Upcycle Program. The grant will provide educational workshops on sustainability by collaborating with on- and o -campus partners, promote equitable opportunities for students to participate in sustainable practices by alleviating 3nancial barriers and incorporate various programming on sustainability that encourages community involvement. 6 S E AT T L E U N I V E R S I T Y M AG A Z I N E | FA L L 2 0 2 1
