Former Biola president dies

http://chimes.biola.edu/content/article/2010/aug/22/richard-chase-former-biola-president-dies/

Former Biola President Richard Chase died Friday, August 20 of natural causes at age 79. Chase, Biola's sixth president, served for 12 years. | Photo courtesy of Biola

Students compared him to Abraham Lincoln. His eloquent speech, tall height, and angular features earned him the comparison, but it was his relationship with the Lord and his vision for Biola that made him the respected man many remember today.

Richard Chase, who served as Biola’s president from 1970 to 1982, died of natural causes Friday, Aug. 20. The 79-year-old man died in his home at Windsor Park Manor retirement community in Carol Stream, Ill., leaving behind his wife, Mary, two children, and a grateful university.

“The strength and position of Biola University today can be credited in large part to Richard Chase and [his] unwavering, inspiring commitment to godly living and Christ-honoring education,” current Biola president Barry Corey said in a statement.

Chase's legacy at Biola

Biola named Chase Gymnasium after the former president, who, friends of Chase said, frequented the gym to play basketball with students and faculty. Chase also helped Biola merge with Rosemead School of Psychology in 1977.

Ken Bascom, senior director of facilities planning at Biola, said Biola owes much of its academic standing to Chase.

“I remember him coming back from a trip to colleges and universities across the country,” Bascom said. “There was active discussion about Biola changing its name. Many people from Chase’s era felt like we were never outgrowing the image of being a Bible institute. Chase came back from that trip and said, ‘We have turned the corner; the Biola name has grown to be respected and has outgrown its humble beginnings.’ After that, there was no more talk about changing the name of Biola.”

Chase graduated from Biola in 1951 with a bachelor’s degree in theology and worked as the chairman of Biola’s speech department. In 1970, five years after becoming Biola’s vice president, Chase became Biola’s sixth president. Chase served at Biola for 12 more years before moving to Illinois to become the sixth president of Wheaton College. There, he served 11 years before retiring in 1993.

Chase returned to Biola for the ground breaking of Biola’s current library in 2000 and for Biola’s centennial celebration in 2008.

Biola's favorite memories of Chase

Bascom said he still remembers watching the former president walk into Mayers Auditorium to teach a speech class Bascom took in 1967.

“The students I hung around with had a tremendous respect for him from the start,” Bascom said. “The 60s were turbulent. We had our share of political discussions. Chase was a really good pressure release valve. He got sent in to talk to some of us students who fancied ourselves to be intelligent and ahead of the times. He handled those situations very well.”

“I remember him as a warm and friendly person, but also was impressed by his thoughtful and professional approach to his work as president,” said Keith Edwards, who worked at Rosemead and took part in negotiations when it merged with Biola. “The merger was a major move for Biola and it had several potential challenges. [Chase] had a deep conviction that this was in Biola’s interest and pursued it. He was kind and thoughtful, but assertive and decisive.”

“He was a very intelligent and capable person,” said David Holmquist, who has been Biola’s athletic director for 33 years now.

Holmquist, who recalled many pleasant tennis games with the former president, said he knew Chase as a young boy. His relationship with Chase grew when he began working at Biola in 1978. “He was a man of deep faith. There was also a kindness about him, an ability to listen to people. I just felt he was a very easy person to be with, a very humble and unpretentious man.”

When Biola was struggling to gain credentials, Bascom said God used Chase to turn Biola into a Christian university.

Chase honored at Biola

The Chronicle of Higher Education named Chase one of the 100 most effective college presidents in America in a 1986 nationwide survey, and Biola awarded Chase a legacy award for “A Distinguished Lifetime of Leadership and Service” in 2008.

“I am so encouraged by the caliber of the Chase family and honored to be able to express on behalf of Biola University our prayers and sympathy for the loss of such a wonderful father, husband and Christian leader,” Corey said in his statement. “I knew when I met him I'd met a giant. Not only was he a man of academic vision and administrative strength, he was a servant of the people and he loved students.”

Provost Candidate Meets Campus Leaders

http://chimes.biola.edu/content/article/2010/jul/01/provost-candidate-meets/

David Nystrom, candidate for Biola’s provost and senior vice president position, met with campus leaders Thursday during his visit of the school. The 16 leaders in attendance included President Barry Corey, AS President Lizzie Neely, and several deans from different departments.

“The process of finding a new provost has truly been ordained,” Corey said at the meeting.

After a year-long search for Biola’s next provost that located about 150 applicants, Corey announced Nystrom’s candidacy last month.

“Nystrom is open, honest, humble, and interesting,” said Bruce Narramore, a psychology professor who co-chaired the search committee with Corey. “Barry and David will be a great complement to each other.”

Nystrom’s vision for Biola

Nystrom said his goals for Biola would revolve around how to practically apply Biola’s mission statement over the next 10 to 15 years.

Nystrom also commented on trends in higher education.

“Technology and what it allows us to do plays a large role in higher education,” Nystrom said at the meeting. “[One trend is] the ability to expand more professional education (i.e. nursing, business, sciences). And the cost of it will rise, which means we need to find more funds to allow for growth.”

Nystrom successfully found such funds in his previous work at William Jessup University in Rocklin, Calif., where he taught as an adjunct and served as the academic dean. During his four years at WJU, the school dropped the price of tuition - one of only two schools in the country to do so.

Nystrom said his main contribution at WJU involved influencing people to give money to the school.

“I gave people a sense of what the future should be, confidence in the future, how to accomplish the future, and the patience to get there,” Nystrom said.

Nystrom brings his experience with diversity and multiculturalism to the position as well. He has lived in Sweden, spent time in Greece and Turkey, and lived in a diverse neighborhood of Chicago with his family. He has also cultivated friendships with people of different nationalities when he lived in San Francisco.

Nystrom’s qualifications and history

Nystrom grew up in Northern California the youngest of three and attended a conservative church. He spent five years as an associate high school pastor before becoming an associate college pastor. Nystrom attended Fuller Seminary and received his B.A. and Ph.D at the University of California Davis. He taught at North Park University and Theological Seminary in Chicago for 12 years as the chair of biblical and theological studies and the director of the Institute for Christian Studies.

Nystrom was one of two candidates interviewed for the provost position. He did not seek out the position originally, but made a strong impression on Corey after meeting with him in December.

The provost search committee contacted several references, all of which confidently supported Nystrom. He has also been endorsed by Talbot deans Dr. Dennis Dirks and Dr. Michael Wilkins. If Biola offers the provost position to Nystrom and he accepts, he will assume the role later this summer.

Provost Candidate Announced

http://chimes.biola.edu/content/article/2010/jun/24/provost-candidate-announced/

After a year of diligent searching, President Corey has announced the selection of David Paul Nystrom as candidate for Biola’s the position of provost and senior vice president. Nystrom, who was one of two candidates interviewed, will visit campus July 1 to discuss the possibility of taking the job.

“I have invited Dr. David P. Nystrom for a daylong conversation with a number of Biola’s constituencies,” Corey said in a release from the Office of the President. “If the offer is extended and accepted, he is prepared to assume the role later this summer with his faculty appointment appropriately reflecting his academic background in classical history and New Testament.”

Introducing David Nystrom

Nystrom, currently the vice president for academic affairs at William Jessup University in Rocklin, Calif., received his B.A. and Ph.D. from the University of California at Davis, and his M.Div. from Fuller Theological Seminary, returning later to teach at both schools. He also spent 12 years at North Park University and Theological Seminary in Chicago, as professor, chair of biblical and theological studies and director of the Institute for Christian Studies.

In his statement, Corey describes Nystrom as having “great charisma” and being a “natural team-builder.” Although Biola is a larger school than Nystrom has been working with – William Jessup reported student enrollment of 578 in fall 2009 – all of the colleagues contacted for reference said they are confident Nystrom can transition from the smaller to larger stage with ease.

“I believe that David Nystrom is a rising presence in the world of Christian higher education, and his potential at Biola University will be significant as we move forward academically,” Corey said in his statement.

Nystrom discovered by Search Committee

Corey first met Nystrom in December after he was deemed as a potential candidate by Biola’s Search Advisory Committee. Corey said the search committee looked for a candidate with certain characteristics including strong interpersonal skills, a deep grasp of integrative thinking from a Biblical worldview and confidence in leading faculty to higher levels of excellence. Though Corey and the committee reviewed profiles for other candidates throughout the spring semester, they kept in contact with Nystrom, who continued the extensive interview process.

Corey has said he admires his “spirit of Christian humility,” emphasizing that Nystrom did not seek out the position at Biola. With a teaching and administrative background at both secular and Christian colleges, Nystrom has been an outstanding and beloved leader wherever he goes.

Nystrom endorsed by Talbot Deans

“His theological core is conservative, and his ability to analyze contexts and arrive at solutions has made many identify him as a gifted leader,” Corey said in his release.

Nystrom is committed to helping institutions maintain a strong biblical foundation. He has been interviewed by Talbot Deans Dennis Dirks and Michael Wilkins, who have fully endorsed his theology.

Nystrom will be visiting campus with his wife of 27 years, Kristina, and their 11-year-old daughter Annika.

Introduction

My name is Harmony Wheeler and I am a professional writer and public relations practitioner. Aside from my website, harmonywheeler.com, this is where I will regularly post my published articles.