36th annual Commencement

Heritage University holds 36th annual Commencement ceremony

Heritage University celebrated the accomplishments of this year’s graduates during the 2018 Commencement at the Yakima Valley SunDome on Saturday. Three hundred twenty-five students received their degrees from Heritage this year.

Dr. Lori Alvord, the first Navajo woman to become a surgeon, served as commencement speaker. Student speakers included Jesica Alvarez as baccalaureate degree speaker, and Alfredia Thompson as master’s degree speaker. Colleen Sheahan, class of 2000, received the Violet Lumley Rau Outstanding Alumni Award.

Pictures from Commencement are posted on the Heritage University Facebook page. We’ve also created a music video featuring commencement. Watch it by clicking the link: https://t.e2ma.net/click/h97ijb/ht3khf/5nn3wd

Enactus captures 2nd place at Nationals

Enactus students capture 2nd place at Nationals

eritage University’s Enactus presentation team recently captured 2nd place in its league at the Enactus USA National Exposition in Kansas City, Missouri. Nearly 90 teams from universities and colleges from across the country competed at Nationals which took place in mid-May.

Team members Kevin Lopez, Anitramarina Reyna, Josceline Mora, Marcus Bravo, Yasmin Silva Sepulveda, Melissa Gomez and Omar Moreno delivered a presentation which focused on four Heritage Enactus projects aimed at helping the community.

The team also included information technology team members Miliset Bustamante and David Mance and were led by advisor Dioselina Verduzco.

Congratulations Heritage Enactus!

Thank You to Our Sponsors

The Future of DACA

KCTS 9 and Heritage University co-sponsoring The Future of DACA: A Conversation with Attorney General Bob Ferguson

KCTS 9, the PBS affiliate in Seattle and Heritage University are collaborating to present The Future of DACA: A Conversation with Attorney General Bob Ferguson at the Yakima Valley Museum in Yakima, Wash. on May 21 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Ferguson will speak out on the legal challenges that aim to block the Trump Administration’s plan to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. The Future of DACA will also include video profiles of some local DACA recipients who will share their stories.

DACA allows the 800,000 undocumented young people known as “Dreamers” to live and work legally in the U.S. Washington has joined 14 states in suing to allow the program to continue.

Kimberly Bellamy-Thompson, social science chair at Heritage University said the university wants people to have a better understanding of DACA. “Part of the mission of Heritage University is to provide access and equity and promote community engagement. Our mission is to educate and share knowledge with those that seek to better themselves and their families,” said Bellamy-Thompson. “There are many people who are still unfamiliar with the immigration policy that established DACA in 2012.”

The Future of DACA is part of KCTS 9’s “Borders & Heritage” series highlighting immigration stories from the Northwest. Longtime KCTS reporter and Yakima Valley native Enrique Cerna will serve as program moderator. The event is free and open to the public. Seating will be on a first come, first served basis. To ensure seating, participants are encouraged to RSVP at kcts9.org/events.

For more information, contact Kimberly Bellamy-Thompson at (509) 952-7288 or Bellamy-Thompson_K@Heritage.edu.

36th Annual Commencement

Heritage University to Hold 36th Annual Commencement at Yakima Valley SunDome

Heritage University will host Dr. Lori Arviso Alvord, the first Diné (Navajo) woman surgeon as commencement speaker during its 36th Commencement exercise Saturday, May 5 at 10:00 a.m. at the Yakima Valley SunDome. Undergraduate and graduate students from the Yakima Valley and the Tri-Cities will participate in the ceremony. Overall, 334 students earned their degrees at Heritage this year.

Dr. Alvord is from Crownpoint, New Mexico. She graduated from Dartmouth College with a double major in psychology sociology and a minor in Native American studies. She earned her M.D at Stanford University Medical School, and completed a six-year residency at Stanford University Hospital. Dr. Alvord earned her board certification as a surgeon in 1994.

She later returned to her Navajo reservation, where she combined her technical proficiency in surgery while addressing the psychological and spiritual aspects of healing. While never forgetting her Native roots, Dr. Alvord strongly advocates blending Western medicine with traditional healing practices. She has written The Scalpel and the Silver Bear, a book about her experiences. In 2013, Dr. Alvord was nominated to serve as the U.S. Surgeon General.

The Violet Lumley Rau Outstanding Alumni Award will be presented to Pastor Colleen Sheahan. In 2000, Sheahan earned a B.A. in Elementary Education through a collaborative program with Central Washington University, Yakima Valley College and Heritage University. After graduation, Sheahan started a private preschool -12th grade Christian school in Yakima, Wash. called as West Chestnut Academy where she serves as pastor. In 2008 she earned a master’s in education from Indiana Wesleyan University.

Heritage will announce the recipients of the Board of Directors’ Academic Excellence Award and the President’s Council Student Award of Distinction during the ceremony.

The Yakima Valley SunDome is located at 1301 South Fair Ave. in Yakima. Parking is free. Additional information is available online at: http://www.heritage.edu/Community/2018-Commencement

For more information, contact David Mance, media relations coordinator at (509) 865-0731 or Mance_D@Heritage.edu.

Youth and Justice Forum

Washington State Supreme Court Justice to Speak at Heritage University Youth and Justice Forum

Washington State Supreme Court Justice Steven Gonzalez will deliver the keynote speech during the annual Yakima Valley Youth and Justice Forum at Heritage University. The forum for middle, high school and college students takes place Friday, April 20 from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Local law enforcement agencies, including the Yakima County Sheriff’s Office and several police chiefs from cities in the Valley as well as those from the state and federal level will participate in the forum.

The Youth and Justice Forum has three goals. The first is to educate students from under-represented communities about professions and employment opportunities in the legal system; second, to enhance students’ knowledge and education of law; and third, to help build trust between youth and those in the justice system.

New this year will be a panel of lawyers and law school students talking to college students about law school applications, attending law school, and providing information about law careers. The panel will be moderated by Federal Court Clerk, Francisco Carriedo.

Kimberly Bellamy-Thompson, Heritage University assistant professor of criminal justice says the forum is a unique opportunity to introduce young people to the personal and professional sides of justice system leaders. “These personal connections are meaningful. The Youth and Justice Forum will give students a better understanding of the justice system and the wide range of career opportunities the entire system has to offer.”

Steve González was appointed to the Washington State Supreme Court effective January 1, 2012, and subsequently won a contested race for a six-year term. Before joining the Supreme Court, Justice González served for ten years as a trial judge on the King County Superior Court hearing criminal, civil, juvenile, and family law cases. In 2015, Justice González and the other Washington Supreme court judges heard oral arguments for three cases at Heritage University visited Heritage University as part of the “traveling court” program.

For more information, contact Kimberly Bellamy-Thompson at bellamy-thompson_k@heritage.edu or (509) 865-0748.