Alumni lled the Boxer Pause on Saturday, Oct. 15, where they had anticipation for the breakfast that was to be served and the speech president Lesley Hallick was going to give regarding the current progress of the university.
Hallick called this forum to allow alumni to ask questions about what the future of the campus looks like since many are not able to keep up with everything happening here.
Many have also not been to campus for several years so when they return for Homecoming, a lot of things might have changed for them.
To begin, breakfast was served while many alumni saw friends that they had not seen for years and caught up with some small talk before Hallick got started with her discussion and opened the oor for questions.
The rst thing brought to the attention of the group was the football game, since the Homecoming activity was taking place that afternoon at Hanson Stadium. The topic transitioned into the idea that the university is a Division III school, therefore academics come before sports.
Many of the participants at the breakfast were football players themselves when they were students, so they were pleased to hear the football team was thriving, touching on the record for the season and also discussing the historic football game that took place in Hawai’i this past September.
“We had 104 students in Hawai’i and we had staff and coaches to support that group,” Hallick said. “We had about 500 tickets sold and we ended up with over 2000 in the stadium. It was really an amazing experience.” Many alumni were focused on asking questions on what the university plans to change in the near future.
One of the topics brought up by Hallick was the idea for the relocation of the optometry program and if that was going to happen anytime in the near future.
As of right now there is no set decision, but the option is still on the table.
Another idea that was brought up was the use of technology in the classroom.“ We are still working hard to make sure that whatever we are doing still has a learning outcome and still has the closeness and personal touch that is valued so highly by people,”
Hallick said. The alumni that attended the breakfast were on campus before the wave of technology set in, allowing Hallick to explain that the university is continuing to advance in technological ways inside and outside of the classroom.
Alumni were pleased to hear from Hallick that the university is continuing to grow and excel in all areas of education and student life, just as when they graduated from Pacific.
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