On the evening of December 9, Student Life hosted its annual, 'Twas the Night Before Finals. This event gave students a break from studying, with breakfast served by staff and faculty, pictures with Santa and prizes. To find out more about future Student Life events, check out facebook.com/fpustudentactivities.

The FPU community ended the semester's College Hour series with a time of Christmas caroling and music on December 7. Crosswind Choir, Pacific Bronze Bell Choir and Pacific Brass shared seasonal musical selections and Dina Gonzales-Piña, assistant dean of multicultural ministries, shared about Fresno Pacific's giving project with Mennonite Central Committee.

To celebrate the end of the semester, the Fresno Pacific Crosswinds Choir and Jazz Band performed a concert on December 7 at Butler Church. The two music groups played swing pieces as well as some seasonal selections. To find out more about the FPU music department, visit their website at fresno.edu/music.

The grand opening for new Commuter Lounge took place December 7.

The lounge is on the first floor of East Hall in an area that was originally a lounge but has recently been used for storage. Conveniences include a refrigerator, microwave and running water. Indirect lighting and bistro-style tables will gave the 680 square feet the feel of a coffee shop.

More than 400 students will graduate during fall commencement.

Ceremonies will be Saturday, December 15, in the Special Events Center on the main FPU campus, 1717 S. Chestnut Ave., Fresno. Students in the traditional undergraduate, seminary and other graduate programs will graduate at 10:00 a.m., and students in the bachelor’s degree completion programs will graduate at 1:30 p.m.

The speaker at both events will be Pete C. Menjares, Ph.D., president of FPU.

Fay Nielsen, Ph.D., associate dean of retention; Shirley Warkentin, M.A., policy analyst and director of operations for degree completion; and Melissa Kent, M.A., student success coordinator; attended the National Symposium on Student Retention October 29-31 in New Orleans. Warkentin won the Director’s Award for her paper "Approaches to Serving Under-Resourced, Undergraduate Adult Student Populations." Nielsen participated as a poster session judge. The symposium was sponsored bythe Consortium for Student Retention Data Exchange (CSRDE).

FPU's College Hour chapel service, which is held twice a week on the main campus, offers an online streaming option for students, faculty and staff that cannot normally attend. Viewers can catch the live streaming, or watch a recorded event at a later time. It was created especially with our regional centers in mind. Information about College Hour and the live stream can be found at experiencefpu.com/spiritual-life, or in the Office of Spiritual Formation. 

Coffee Stop, hosted by Women's Residence Director Becca Rhodes, is a time of worship and fellowship for Fresno Pacific women. Every week, several women lead worship and a different FPU staff or faculty member shares an inspirational story or message.