Pacific Lutheran University
Motto	Educating for Lives of Thoughtful Inquiry, Service, Leadership, and Care
Established	1890
Type	Private Coeducational
Religious affiliation	Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
Endowment	$67.3 million[1]
President	Thomas W. Krise
Provost	Steve Starkovich
Academic staff	283[2]
Students	3461
Undergraduates	3195
Postgraduates	266
Location	Parkland, Washington, United States 47°08′41″N 122°26′34″W / 47.144854°N 122.442809°W / 47.144854; -122.442809Coordinates: 47°08′41″N 122°26′34″W / 47.144854°N 122.442809°W / 47.144854; -122.442809
Campus	Suburban 156 acres (630,000 m2)
Former names	Columbia College Spokane College Pacific Lutheran College Pacific Lutheran Academy
Colors	Black & Gold
Athletics	Division III, Northwest Conference
Sports	20 Varsity teams
Nickname	Lutes
Mascot	Knight
Website	plu.edu

Pacific Lutheran University (PLU) is a private university offering liberal arts and professional school programs located in Parkland,^[3] a suburb of Tacoma, Washington, United States. Founded by Norwegian Lutheran pioneers in 1890, PLU is sponsored by the 580 congregations of Region I of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. PLU has approximately 3,500 students enrolled. As of 2012 the school employs 236 full-time professors on the 156-acre (630,000 m2) woodland campus.

PLU consists of the College of Arts and Sciences (including of the Divisions of Humanities, Natural Sciences, and Social Sciences), the School of Arts and Communication, the School of Business, the School of Education and Movement Studies, and the School of Nursing.

History [edit]

Early years [edit]

Pacific Lutheran University was founded in 1890 by Scandinavian immigrants. Classes first began in 1894 with the student body consisting of 30 students. Tuition at the time cost $1 per week.^[4] Bjug Harstad was the school’s first president. The entire university was housed in one building from 1894-1912. This building was formally known as Old Main but has since been renamed Harstad Hall in honor of the school’s founding president.

In 1898 the university's name was changed to Pacific Lutheran Academy and Business College. Attempting to eliminate the debt plaguing the school, Bjug Harstad left for Alaska to search for gold. He spent one and one half years there but was unable to discover any gold.^[4] In 1902 the PLA athletic club celebrated its first victory in men's basketball with a 15-12 win over the University of Washington.^[5] Five years later women would be allowed to play basketball.

In 1912 a second building, a gymnasium, was constructed on the university campus. It included a track, a stage, and a science laboratory in the basement. Two years later students built a tennis court in what is now Red Square.^[6] By 1914 PLA received full accreditation meaning students could transfer to universities and retain their credits. The school ran into severe financial troubles in 1918 as the result of a Norwegian Lutheran synod imposed merger of PLA with Columbia College. PLA was forced to close for two years.^[7]

Pacific Lutheran College [edit]

In 1920 the school merged with Columbia College in Everett, Washington, and reopened as Pacific Lutheran College. The reopening of the school also saw the construction of a new building, the Chapel. Classes were held in the Chapel until 1967. The Chapel was also the home of Trinity Lutheran Church until the congregation built its own church in 1937.^[8]

The school's first football team was launched in 1926. They were originally known as the "Greyhounds", then the "Gladiators" (although they are unofficially referred to as the "Lutes").^[9] That same year Polly Langlow, a member of PLC's women's basketball team, scored 270 points in 12-games setting a national record.^[10] A year later in 1927 the college's great musical tradition, the Choir of the West, was founded. The Choir acquired its name on a trip to the Great Lakes region.^[9]

Another merger occurred in 1929 when Spokane College, another Northwest Norwegian Lutheran school, closed. Its academic records were merged with PLC's, and several of its faculty members came to PLC.^[9] In 1937 the university acquired the golf course through a generous donation. The same year the cornerstone was laid for the new library.^[11] 1939 saw the first of several visits by Norweigan royalty when Crown Prince Olav and Crown Princess Märtha came to PLC's campus.

During the early 1940s PLC's student body was almost all female as most men were fighting in World War II. This resulted in the school's first female president being elected in 1945.^[12] People returning to college post-war, specifically veterans using the G.I. Bill, caused a boom in enrollment. The student body at that time was half veteran and no longer mostly female.^[13] A number of new buildings were completed in the following years including Ramstad Hall, Memorial Gymnasium, and the Student Union Building (now renamed as Xavier Hall). In 1952 the new Chapel-Music-Speech Building was constructed (now renamed Eastvold Chapel). Chapel became mandatory for the first time with attendance being taken and seats being assigned.^[14] Two years later North and South Halls, the first dormitories, were built. Until that time students had lived in Old Main or boarded with Parkland families.^[14]

University status [edit]

Pacific Lutheran College became known as Pacific Lutheran University in 1960. Along with the name of the school being changed the PLU mascot was also changed from the Gladiators to the Knights.^[15] The 1960s saw decade-long construction boom as ten buildings were built by 1970, almost as many as had been built in the previous 70 years.

The 1960s and 1970s were a time of great change on PLU's campus when restrictions on student life began to loosen. Chapel was no longer required and two dormitories become coed. Girls' dormitories' restrictive hours were replaced with a card-key system, and opposite-sex visitation was allowed 3 times a week instead of 2 times a year.^[16] Dancing was allowed for the first time on campus in 1964.^[15] Several well known entertainers performed at PLU including Louis Armstrong, Ray Charles, The Steve Miller Band, The Righteous Brothers, B.B. King, Ike & Tina Turner, Bill Cosby and Bob Hope.^[16][17]

Throughout its history PLU has remained close to its Scandinavian roots. In 1975 the school played host to King Olav V of Norway. Three years later in 1978, 14 members of Stortinget, the Norwegian Parliament, visited PLU.^[18] In 1982 King Carl XVI Gustav and Queen Silvia of Sweden visited PLU and the following year Princess Astrid of Norway also paid a visit to the university. That same year a monument was erected in Valle, Norway, to honor the Rev. Bjug Harstad, founder of PLU.^[19] By 1989 a Scandinavian Cultural Center would be completed on the lower floor of the University Center. King Harald V and Queen Sonja of Norway came to PLU in 1994 with Queen Sonja receiving an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters.^[20] Crown Prince Haakon of Norway visited PLU in 1999.^[21]

Presidents [edit]

• Rev. Bjug Harstad (1894–1895, 1897–1898)
• Rev. Ole Grönsberg (1895–1897)
• Nils Joseph Hong (1898–1918)
• J.U. Xavier (1920–1921)
• Ola Ordal (1921–1928)
• Oscar Tingelstad (1928–1943)
• Seth C. Eastvold (1943–1962)
• Robert A. L. Mortvedt (1962–1969)
• Eugene Wiegman (1969–1974)
• Richard P. Jungkuntz (1974-1975)
• William O. Rieke (1975–1992)
• Loren J. Anderson (1992–2012)
• Thomas W. Krise (2012–present)

Admission and financial aid [edit]

Tuition for the 2012-2013 school year is $32,800 with room and board costing $9,620.^[22] More than 90 percent of PLU student receive some sort of financial support.^[23] The 2012 U.S. News College and University rankings listed PLU as the sixth best value university in the west region.^[24] The 2011-2012 student body is as follows: 62 percent female, 38 percent male; 21 percent are students of color; 74 percent are from Washington state; 23 percent are Lutheran; 4 percent are international students representing 24 countries.^[25]

Academics [edit]

The academic calendar at PLU is divided into two semesters, fall and spring, with a one month term during January known as J-term. Summer classes are also offered. During J-term students take one class for the entire month of January which counts as a normal 4-credit class one would take during a semester. PLU offers 35 undergraduate degrees in a wide array of disciplines as well as the following graduate degrees: Master of Arts in Education; Master of Arts in Education with Initial Certification; Master of Arts in Social Sciences, Marriage and Family Therapy; Master of Business Administration; Master of Science in Finance; Master of Science in Nursing; Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing.^[26]

Study abroad [edit]

Prominently highlighted in all academic programs is the opportunity for international education. PLU holds the distinction as being the first American university to have students studying abroad on all seven continents at the same time ^[27] In 2009 PLU became the first university is Washington state and the first private university on the west coast to receive the prestigious Senator Paul Simon Award for Campus Internationalization.^[27][28] In the same year PLU matched a $1 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to create a $2 million dollar endowment to assist low-income students to participate in study away programs.^[27] The Wang Center for International Programs opened in 2002 as the result of a $4 million donation from Peter, a 1960 PLU graduate, and Grace Wang.^[29]

Campus [edit]

The Pacific Lutheran University campus is located six miles south of Tacoma, Washington, in suburban Parkland, on a 156-acre woodland campus. Two military bases are located near PLU. McChord Air Force base is across Interstate-5 in nearby Lakewood and Fort Lewis is seven miles south of Parkland. The campus is unofficially divided into two sections, upper campus and lower campus.

Upper campus is home to many of the academic and administration buildings including the Phillip Hauge Administration Building, Mortvedt Library, Ramstad Hall and Xavier Hall. The Mortvedt library offers over 260,000 volumes of books as well as over 23,000 full-text journals. The oldest book in the PLU collection is a psalter by Johann Bugenhagen published in 1524.^[30] Built in 1937, Xavier Hall served as the library until the Mortvedt library was built in 1967. Since then the Division of Social Sciences has been housed in Xavier. In 2000 Xavier underwent a $5 million renovation project that saw the addition of the Philip Nordquist Lecture Hall.^[31] The University Center is also located on upper campus. This building houses the all-campus cafeteria, called the University Commons, and the Old Main Market. In addition it houses the offices of Campus Ministry, Student Involvement and Leadership, Residential Life, the Diversity Center, the Scandinavian Center, Student Media, Resident Hall Association, the Associated Students of PLU (ASPLU), Dining Services, Conferences and Events, and the Chris Knutzen Lecture Hall.

Eastvold Auditorium

Along with the academic and administration buildings upper campus also houses PLU's art programs. The Mary Baker Russell Music Center was built in 1997 and is the home of PLU's Department of Music. The acoustically impressive and well-known Lagerquist Concert Hall houses the Gottfried and Mary Fuchs Organ (the largest University-based mechanical action organ on the West Coast)^[32] as well as state-of-the-art practice and performance facilities. Ingram Hall is home to a communication computer lab, a digital photography/graphic design lab, and studio art classrooms for painting, ceramics, sculpture, photography and printmaking. Ingram boasts two galleries: the University Gallery (which houses major shows and exhibitions) and the Wekell Gallery (which generally houses student and class work). Eastvold Auditorium, formal called Eastvold Chapel, seats 1100 and is the home of PLU Theatre. Eastvold hosts all main stage productions as well as a range of smaller productions throughout the year. In October 2011, PLU Theatre premiered a new addition to its arts department, the Karen H. Phillips Black Box Theater. Named after the former Regent, this space is a symbol of the completion of phase one in Eastvold Auditorium's renovations. Eastvold is set to reopen with a new performing arts center in the fall of 2013.

Lower campus is home to many of the university's athletic facilities. These include Olson Auditorium, Memorial Gymnasium, Names Fitness Center, and the university swimming pool. Also located on lower campus are the Rieke Science Center, Morken Center for Learning and Technology, Martin J. Neeb Building, and the Keck Observatory.

Additional buildings off campus are also used for University purposes, including offices, the Wang Center for International Studies, East Campus, the Women's Center, the Faculty House and Trinity Lutheran Church.

Resident halls [edit]

PLU requires that all students under 20 years of age or junior status on or before September 1 live on campus or at home with their parents, spouse or child. Approximately half of all students enrolled at PLU live on campus. There are ten resident halls at PLU, with six located on upper campus and four located on lower campus.

Upper campus [edit]

• Harstad Hall, built in 1894, is the oldest building on campus and housed the entire university from 1894 to 1912. It became a residence hall in 1960. It is an all-female hall, the only single sex hall on campus. Harstad is five stories tall and houses approximately 2000 female residents. In 1984 the building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
• Hinderlie Hall, built in 1954, Hinderlie Hall was first named South Hall but changed to Hinderlie in 1966 in honor of Berent and Ragna Hinderlie, university staff members between 1923 and 1955. The hall is four stories tall, with resident rooms on each floor including the south side of the basement, which is open to the hillside. Approximately 130 residents reside in Hinderlie.
• Hong International Hall, built in 1954, was originally named North Hall. In 1966 the building was renamed in honor of Nils Joseph Hong, president from 1898 until 1918 and a faculty member at Pacific Lutheran College until he retired in 1938^[4]. The hall has five language wings (Norwegian, Chinese, French, German, and Spanish) and the International Honors wing. Approximately 100 residents reside in Hong.
• Kreidler Hall, built in 1957, was originally named West Hall. In 1966 the hall was renamed Kreidler Hall after Lora Bradford Kreidler, the Dean of Women and teacher of arts from 1921 to 1943. All rooms in Kreidler are single rooms and students must be 20 years of age or junior standing to reside in Kreidler. Approximately 65 students reside in Kreidler.
• Stuen Hall, built in 1966, is named after Ole J. Stuen, faculty member and administrator from 1913 to 1952. Approximately 100 residents reside in Stuen.
• Ordal Hall, built in 1967, is named in honor of Ola J. Ordal, president of Pacific Lutheran College from 1921 to 1928. The Hall was originally built to house 187 female students but has since become co-ed.

Lower campus [edit]

• Pflueger Hall, built in 1962, was the first resident hall built on lower campus. The building is named after Jesse P. Pflueger, professor of religion and philosophy from 1930 to 1958. It was designed to be a three story dormitory to house 212 male students on lower campus, but since then has been converted to house both male and female students.
• Foss Hall, built in 1965, is named after Rev. Halfdan L. Foss, chairman of the Pacific Lutheran Board of Trustees from 1942 to 1964. The hall originally housed 188 men but has since become co-ed.
• Tingelstad Hall, built in 1967, was originally designed to house 396 male students but has since then become co-ed. The dormitory was named to honor Oscar A. Tingelstad, president of PLU from 1928-1943. Standing nine stories tall Tingelstad is the tallest building in Parkland. The hall is divided into four houses, Alpine, Cascade, Evergreen and Ivy with every two floors sharing a common lounge.
• South Hall, built in 2000, is an apartment-style complex located on the south edge of campus. Students must be 20-years of age or junior standing to reside in South.

360° panorama of Pacific Lutheran University's campus as seen on a summer afternoon.

Commitment to sustainability [edit]

PLU has a long history of being committed to a sustainable campus and leading the way as an example for institutions around the world. A certification program in environmental studies was developed in the 1970s, and a major was established in the 1990s. On April 22, 2004 PLU President Loren Anderson signed the Talloires Declaration, making PLU the first Pacific Northwest University to sign the declaration. Leading the nation as an early signatory to the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment in 2007, PLU accepted the challenge, showing commitment to achieving carbon neutrality. The agreement called for universities to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but PLU has taken the initiative to set their goal of becoming carbon neutral by December 31, 2014.^[33] The 2012 edition of The Princeton Review’s Guide to 322 Green Colleges recognized PLU as a green college leader.^[34] Highlights of the review include PLU dining services using 25 percent of its food budget to buy local and/or organic food and 95 percent of the products used by the facilities crew being Green Seal Certified.^[35]

PLU is currently in the process of remodeling and reconstructing multiple buildings throughout campus. The goal is for each building to obtain a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating of Gold. Currently two buildings have been awarded a Gold rating by LEED. In 2006 the Morken Center for Learning and Technology became the first building to earn the award.^[36] The Morken Building is home to the School of Business and the Computer Science department. This 55,000 square foot, $21 million building requires no fossil fuel to operate and is heated and cooled by using a geothermal heat-pump system that regulates its temperature with water stored in 85 wells located 300 feet underground.^[37] In 2009 a second building would earn the LEED Gold rating when the Martin J. Neeb Center was completed. This building is home to the radio station 88.5 KPLU and at the time of the award being presented it was the only radio facility in the nation with a LEED Gold ranking.^[38] The University Center was the third building to receive a LEED rating. Following the completion of the 2006-2007 academic year, the University Center underwent $14 million in construction renovations and as a result earned a LEED Silver rating.^[39]

Student activities [edit]

Music [edit]

PLU offers a wide variety of musical ensembles for students to participate in. The instrumental groups include the University Symphony Orchestra, Wind Ensemble, Concert Band, Jazz Ensemble, Jazz Combo, and Chamber Music. Along with these groups the university has a wide variety of vocal groups which include the Choir of the West, University Chorale, University Singers, University Men's Chorus, Choral Union, and Chapel Choir.^[40]

Choir of the West [edit]

The most famous of PLU's musical groups is the Choir of the West. Founded in 1925 the choir has toured extensively in America, Europe, and Asia. In 1964 the choir performed the world premier of Hungarian composer Miklós Rózsa’s major vocal piece, “The Vanities of Life.” A decade later the choir would perform the west coast premier of Polish composer Krzysztof Penderecki’s “Passion According to St. Luke”. Another notable performance came in 1987 when the choir gave the first performance in the northwest of Benjamin Britten’s enormous War Requiem. The choir has been chosen to perform at several American Choral Directors Association conventions including the national convention in 2005. In the summer of 2011, the Choir of the West toured Germany and France. That tour featured performances at the Harmonie Festival in Lindenholzhausen, Germany, a world competition that takes place once every six years. Choirs from 47 countries participated in the 2011 festival. The Choir of the West won a Gold Certificate (second place) in the Large Mixed Choir division, and the men of the choir won a Gold Certificate (first place) in the Male Chamber Choir division. The women of the choir were awarded a Silver Certificate in the Women’s Chamber Choir division. The Choir of the West recently performed at the Northwest ACDA Conference in Seattle in 2012.^[41][42] Since its founding in 1925 the Choir of the West has had six conductors. They are as follows: Joseph Edwards (1927–1935), Gunnar Malmin (1937–1964), Maurice Skones (1964–1983), Richard Sparks (1983–2001), Kathryn Lehmann (2001–2006) and Richard Nance (2006–present).^[43]

University Chorale [edit]

The Pacific Lutheran University Chorale is a mixed choir comprised primarily—though not exclusively—of freshmen and sophomore singers spanning a variety of academic disciplines. The choir meets four days a week for a ninety-minute rehearsal and sings many times each year in concerts, tours, and campus ministry events. The choir tours regionally and appears on PLU Christmas compact discs. The Chorale has recently performed for conferences of the Washington Music Educators Association (2010) and American Choral Directors Association (2006). In March 2012, the ensemble performed for the ACDA Northwest Division Conference. University Chorale is conducted by Dr. Brian Galante. Brian Galante is Associate Director of Choral Activities at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, Washington, where he conducts the University Chorale, Men’s Chorus, and University Singers (Women’s Chorus). He also teaches undergraduate courses in Vocal Pedagogy for the Choral Music Educator, Choral Methods, Choral Literature, and Conducting. University Chorale Website

The Mooring Mast [edit]

The Mooring Mast is PLU's student-run newspaper. It was first printed in 1924 in the basement of the university chapel. The unusual name of the newspaper comes from the USS Shenandoah, a U.S. Navy airship. In nearby Fort Lewis there was a large mooring structure for the airship and the students derived the name from this in honor of the famed ship.^[8]

Army ROTC [edit]

PLU has a US Army Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) detachment that each year commissions officers into the active Army, Army National Guard and Army Reserve. In addition to Army scholarships, PLU provides a room and board scholarship.

KPLU-FM [edit]

KPLU-FM (88.5 MHz) is a news & jazz format National Public Radio member station that is owned by Pacific Lutheran University. While PLU holds the license for the radio station and all KPLU staff members are also university employees, the station operates nearly independently. PLU supports the station with infrastructure, allowing it to operate without any daily overhead, but the station is otherwise self-supporting.^[44]

Athletics [edit]

PLU is a member of NCAA Division III, as well as the Northwest Conference. PLU has a rich tradition of athletic success: in the Northwest Conference, no other school has won the All-Sports Trophy as many times as PLU has.^[45]

PLU offers the following varsity sports: Baseball, Men's and Women's Basketball, Men's and Women's Cross Country, Football, Men's and Women's Golf, Men's and Women's Rowing, Men's and Women's Soccer, Softball, Men's and Women's Swimming, Men's and Women's Tennis, Men's and Women's Track & Field, and Women's Volleyball. Along with these varsity sports PLU also offers both men's and women's Lacrosse and Ultimate Frisbee as club sports.

Notable alumni [edit]

Athletics [edit]

• Marv Harshman, 1942: Nation’s winningest college basketball coach at the time of his retirement.^[46]
• Don Poier, 1974: The radio and television voice for the Vancouver and Memphis Grizzlies from 1995–2005.^[47]
• Ken Flajole, 1977: National Football League coach, currently the inside linebacker coach for the Clevland Browns.^[48][49]
• John Zamberlin, 1979: Former National Football League linebacker and head football coach at Central Washington University and Idaho State University.^[50]
• Craig Kupp, 1990: Former National Football League quarterback.^[51][52]
• Megan Jendrick, 2008: American swimmer, record holder, and winner of two gold medals at the 2000 Summer Olympics and a silver medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics.^[53][54]
• Lisa Cole, 1997: Head coach of the Boston Breakers in the National Women's Soccer League

Art and music [edit]

• Michael Peterson, 1980: American country music artist.^[55]
• Connor Trinneer, 1991: Actor most notable for playing Commander 'Trip' Tucker in Star Trek: Enterprise.^[56]
• Crystal Aikin, 1997: American gospel singer-songwriter and reality television personality.^[57]
• Angela Meade, 2001: Operatic soprano.^[58]

Politics [edit]

• Jack Metcalf, 1951: Former United States Representative, 2nd Congressional District, Washington.^[59]
• John Nilson, 1973: Canadian politician in Saskatchewan. Currently a member of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan.^[60]
• Lois Capps, 1959: United States Representative, 22nd Congressional District, California.^[61]
• Joyce A. Barr, 1976: American diplomat and former ambassador to Namibia.^[62]
• Sean Parnell, 1984: Governor of Alaska and lawyer.^[63]
• Rick Larsen, 1987: United States Representative, 2nd Congressional District, Washington.^[64]
• Calvin Goings, 1995: Served as the youngest ever elected Washington State Senator.^[65][66]

Science and medicine [edit]

• Martin W. Johnson, 1918: Renowned marine biologist and author.^[67]
• Gene Strandness, 1950: Pioneer in the field of vascular surgery, and "founding father" of the University of Washington School of Medicine and Medical Center.
• William Foege, 1957: Worked with World Health Organization to eradicate smallpox, former director of U.S. Centers for Disease Control and the Carter Center.,^[68] a 2012 Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient.^[69][70]
• David B. Wake, 1958: Professor of integrative biology at Cal Berkeley and internationally respected expert on speciation.^[71]

Other [edit]

• Brad Tilden, 1983: CEO of [(Alaska Airlines)].^[72]
• Lute Jerstad, 1958: American mountaineer and mountain guide and one of the first Americans to climb Mount Everest.^[73]
• Shannon Brinias, 1985: Anchor at KOVR-TV in Sacramento.^[74]

References [edit]

External links [edit]

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