COOL SCHOOLS

By  Kedric Francis

COAST MAGAZINE

Education is one of the pillars of philanthropy in Orange County, with fundraisers, galas and parties for public and private programs key components of the social whirl. The big guns get most of the attention, including Chapman U., UCI, OCHSA, and CSF. But community colleges and smaller schools deserve acclaim as well.

Vanguard University is a school we’re hearing more and more about, most recently when they hosted the Ensure Justice gala dinner at Santa Ana Country Club. The evening was a fundraiser to support the university’s Global Center for Women and Justice and its mission to promote the dignity of women locally and globally. The keynote speaker was author Rhonda Sciortino, and the Center’s director Sandra Morgan addressed the audience as well, passionately showing how supporters can help students learn to be a voice for the voiceless, including abused, trafficked and exploited women and girls.

Vanguard University is a private, Christian, comprehensive university of liberal arts and professional studies equipping students for a Spirit-empowered life of Christ-centered leadership and service. The U.S. News & World Report has ranked Vanguard among the best baccalaureate colleges in the west in their 2011-2012 rankings of colleges and universities and The Princeton Review named VU a 2011-2012 “Best in the West” College. Vanguard is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC). www.vanguard.edu.

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A popular speaker and writer, Dr. Wood was elected chief executive officer of the church at the 52nd General Council in August 2007. As general superintendent of the Assemblies of God, USA, part of the largest Pentecostal denomination in the world, he is a member of the denomination’s Executive Leadership Team and Executive Presbytery. The church has over 12,300 congregations in the United States with some 2.8 million members and adherents. The U.S. Assemblies of God is part of a larger World Assemblies of God fellowship with a membership of over 60 million.  Prior to his present position, Wood served the church as its general secretary for 14 years. He was assistant superintendent of the Southern California District Council of the Assemblies of God from 1988-1993. Dr. Wood pastored Newport-Mesa Church in Costa Mesa, California, for 17 years. Dr. Wood was elected to serve as chairman of the World Assemblies of God Fellowship at its meeting in Lisbon, Portugal in May, 2008.  Wood has also taught as an adjunct faculty in the Religion Department at Vanguard University and currently serves as a Trustee Emeritus on the University’s Board of Trustees.

The son of missionary parents to China and Tibet, Wood holds a doctoral degree in pastoral theology from Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California, and a juris doctorate from Western State University College of Law in Fullerton, California. He did his undergraduate work at Evangel University (College) in Springfield, Missouri, and served the college in several capacities, including being director of spiritual life and student life from 1965- 71. He was ordained by the Southern Missouri District in 1967. Dr. Wood is author of a number of books including: A Psalm In Your Heart, Living Fully, The Successful Life, and a college text on the Book of Acts. Sermons by Dr. Wood may be heard at www.georgeowood.com.

For more information regarding all Commencement events, please visit the website at commencement.vanguard.edu.

Watch the LIVE WEBCAST of the Undergraduate Ceremony at vanguard.edu/live; tweet and follow tweets live from all events with #VUGrad

Bits of Hope

“A Costa Mesa company is looking to improve the lives of Ugandan women one bracelet and necklace at a time.”

By Alisha Gomez

DAILY PILOT

Sometimes a trip is more than just a great escape.

That’s what happened to Kallie Dovel when she first traveled to Uganda in summer 2007. It was there that she saw what women were going through: little to no education, lack of health care, extreme poverty.

But there was one thing they had: paper beads they made by hand and turned into jewelry. Unfortunately, there wasn’t a market for them to sell the items.

Dovel started thinking. She brought home a box of jewelry and showed it to friends and family who were amazed. She sold the jewelry at school and at events. People responded strongly; they loved the jewelry.

But Dovel, a young twenty-something finishing her degree at Vanguard University in Costa Mesa, couldn’t do it alone. She went to her friends and told them she really wanted to sell the jewelry and invest in Uganda, but she needed their help.

“So we started helping her,” said Alli Swanson, one of the five founders and director of public relations and marketing. “We started selling jewelry at craft fairs and random events, wherever we could.”

In the summer of 2008, four of them went to Uganda to meet the women they had been supporting, see their lives and figure out a way to make their jewelry business model more sustainable.

It was then that 31 Bits, now in Costa Mesa, was born.

The company first hired six women in Uganda to make the beads and jewelry, paid them a salary equivalent to a teacher and ultimately started devising their business plan.

All of them — Jessie Simonson, Anna Nelson, Brooke Hodges and Swanson — but Dovel returned to finish school at Vanguard. Dovel lived and worked with the women to put the business model in place.

A big break came in October 2008 when sandal maker Reef called. One of the designers was friends with one of the founder’s moms. The designer loved the story, the beads and the design and had showed the design team at Reef to see if the sandal maker could work with 31 Bits to make a special edition sandal.

“Reef is one of the largest sandal companies in the world, so we were really excited at the possibility of partnering with them,” Swanson said. “We met with them and had [photo copied] pictures of the ladies and box of jewelry, told our story and said a prayer. They loved our story and they placed a rather large order from us. That’s when it took off for us and that’s when it became something bigger.”

That first big order, some 16,000 beads, gave the founders enough money to get their business truly off the ground.

Nearly four years later, 31 Bits is on its fourth sandal design with Reef. The necklaces and bracelets made out of paper beads are sold in internationally in about 140 boutiques. Locally, they can be found at Silhouettes in Newport Beach, Deer Lovely in Costa Mesa, Jack’s Surf Shop in Newport Beach. For a list of shops, visit http://www.31bits.com.

Bracelets range from $10 to $48. Necklaces are $20 to about $60.

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Dr. Carol A. Taylor

President, Vanguard University of Southern California

Worst Job: Working in a cubicle doing patient billing at a small hospital, with little or no human interaction.

As president of Vanguard University in Costa Mesa, Carol Taylor is the first female president of any Assemblies of God university, and only the sixth woman currently in presidential leadership, among the schools in the Council for Christian Colleges & Universities (CCCU), an international association of Christian institutions of higher learning. Taylor is a strong advocate for second-language learners and international students. She has consulted for a number of state departments of education and national resource centers, and worked with national committees focused on large-scale testing. She has taught and lectured nationally, as well as in 11 countries around the globe. Since 2000, Taylor, who has a Ph.D. in multilingual/multicultural education from Florida State University, has helped to further Christian higher education. She’s been a facilitator and a mentor in the CCCU Women’s Leadership Development Institute, and she served on the CCCU Student Academic Programs Commission.

Advice to women in business: Be an eyes-wide-open optimist while facing brutal facts. Get the best team, invest in them and turn them loose.

OC Metro story

Kallie Dovel `08, Founder/Co-Owner
Brooke Hodges `09, Director of Involvement
Anna Nelson `09, Director of Administration
Jessie Simonson `09, Director of Sales and Production
Alli Swanson `09, Director of PR and Marketing

Kallie Dovel traveled to Uganda in 2007 and met women who made paper beads, but lacked a marketing and sales plan. After hearing their stories, Kallie searched for a way to give opportunities to her new Ugandan friends. She brought jewelry back to the U.S. and spent the next year dreaming up the concept of a development organization. She brought a few friends on board and her ideas quickly evolved into 31 Bits. Kallie’s new team traveled to Uganda in August 2008 and selected six women to buy jewelry from on a monthly basis. The company has now evolved into 108 Ugandan female employees, not including a Ugandan staff of six program managers who run specific trainings and programs for beneficiaries. They receive English lessons, financial trainings, business courses, HIV/AIDS treatment, bike loans and more. 31 Bits is now sold in more than 130 stores around the world.

Click to see more on OC Business Journal Awards

Celebrating its 11th anniversary, the OC Music Awards kicks off on January 3rd with seven weeks of free showcases at different venues across the county. 35 local artists will compete for the titles of Best Live Band or Best Live Acoustic and a performance slot at the 2012 OC Music Awards, March 3 at the Grove of Anaheim. And, the voting is open now!

Meeting Tully James Wilkinson at a coffee shop for his interview seems àpropos considering the young, good-looking English major (his favorite author is C.S. Lewis), singer-songwriter, and college student got his musical start playing in coffee shops.

Even though he has naught but a demo out, with a nod from the OC Music Awards and a House of Blues show under his belt, “discovering” Wilkinson at a coffee shop certainly paid off in more than caffeinated highs for the performer–regardless of how “taxing” playing “two hour sets for not that much feedback” might understandably become.

But not so “taxing” that the struggle of being a full-time student, “working two or three jobs to pay for stuff,” and being “pretty busy” doesn’t make Wilkinson feel energized by a sense of accomplishment.

“Playing shows at night kind of makes you come alive,” said Wilkinson, sincerely. “So it’s all worth it in the end.”

Read more: OC Music Awards 2012: Tully James Wilkinson Is A Lyrical Storyteller With Intimate, Emotional Acoustic Entreaties http://kroq.radio.com/2012/02/05/oc-music-awards-2012-tully-james-wilkinson-is-a-lyrical-storyteller-with-intimate-emotional-acoustic-entreaties/#ixzz1mOVzXvLu

Current nominees the Civil Wars, two-time GRAMMY winner Diana Krall, funk artist Maceo Parker, and six-time GRAMMY winner Joe Walsh have also been added to the lineup for the 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards.

Two-time GRAMMY winner Common, actor Taraji P. Henson, two-time GRAMMY winner Reba McEntire, and Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award recipient Diana Ross will appear as presenters.

The Civil Wars and Foster The People each have two nominations. The Civil Wars are up for Best Country Duo/Group Performance for “Barton Hollow” and Best Folk Album for Barton Hollow. Foster The People have nods in Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for “Pumped Up Kicks” and Best Alternative Music Album for Torches.

Three-time GRAMMY winners Maroon 5 are nominated in Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for “Moves Like Jagger” (with Christina Aguilera).

Previously announced performers include Adele (in her first live performance since undergoing vocal cord surgery last fall); Jason Aldean and Kelly Clarkson; Tony Bennett and Carrie Underwood; Chris Brown; Glen Campbell with The Band Perry and Blake Shelton; Coldplay and Rihanna; Deadmau5; Foo Fighters; David Guetta; Alicia Keys and Bonnie Raitt; Lil Wayne; Bruno Mars; Paul McCartney; Nicki Minaj; Katy Perry; Bruce Springsteen And The E Street Band; and Taylor Swift. Aldean, the Band Perry, the Civil Wars, Deadmau5, Foster The People, Guetta, Minaj, Parker, Shelton, and Walsh will perform on the GRAMMY telecast for the first time.

Previously announced presenters are Marc Anthony, Dierks Bentley, Jack Black, Drake, Fergie, Lady Antebellum, Miranda Lambert, Gwyneth Paltrow, Ryan Seacrest, Ringo Starr, and Ahmir “?uestlove” Thompson.

The telecast will be hosted by LL Cool J, who has hosted “The GRAMMY Nominations Concert Live!! — Countdown To Music’s Biggest Night” since its inception in December 2008. This is his first time hosting the annual GRAMMY Awards telecast.

The show is produced by John Cossette Productions and AEG Ehrlich Ventures for The Recording Academy. Ken Ehrlich is executive producer, Louis J. Horvitz is director, and David Wild and Ken Ehrlich are the writers.

The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards will take place live on Sunday, Feb. 12 at Staples Center in Los Angeles and will be broadcast in high definition and 5.1 surround sound on the CBS Television Network from 8–11:30 p.m. (ET/PT). The show also will be supported on radio worldwide via Westwood One/Dial Global, and covered online at GRAMMY.com and CBS.com, and on YouTube.

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The school’s Students in Free Enterprise chapter is coordinating the event.

by Caitlin Adams

In an effort to inform, educate and further the discussion into the importance of developing environmentally responsible business practices, the Vanguard University chapter of Students in Free Enterprise is preparing for the school’s annual Environmental Sustainability Conference.

The conference serves as a showcase for top business and industry leaders in sustainable and green business areas, hosted by the chapter at the University campus. This year’s lineup of speakers represents a new wave of businesses that are committed to bringing about change locally and on a larger community scale, and integrating sustainable practices into their business models.

The keynote speakers at this year’s event are Andrea Robinson of ARC Sustainability and Jennifer Schwab of Sierra Club Green Home, two companies that specialize in developing new ways of incorporating environmentally friendly practices into standard business and lifestyle models.

“Smart business leaders know that sustainability is not a trend and that restoration is the goal. Beyond being simply the right thing to do from an ethical perspective, sustainable businesses are efficient businesses. They understand the impacts of their resource use and supply chains, as well as the growing power of the informed consumer, to choose socially and environmentally responsible products,” Robinson said. “The CEOs, CFOs and companies that are going to have relevance in the future are the ones determining how to not just survive, but how to thrive sustainably.”

The Environmental Sustainability Conference will be held on Friday, Feb. 10, at Vanguard University in Costa Mesa from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

For more information or to register for the conference, visit Vanguard’s website.

Full story OC Metro

The OC Register
Her battle with sex trade began with one kid

By YVETTE CABRERA

Battling human trafficking?

It’s no easy task.

Sandra Morgan knows this first hand.

While living in Athens, Greece in the late 1990s and early 2000s, Morgan, a pediatric nurse, came to realize that many of the people working in the city’s brothels weren’t there by choice. The question she then asked herself was what could she do about it.

Today, she’s director of the Global Center for Women and Justice at Vanguard University.

Fighting human trafficking is a big part of what she does.

Tomorrow, (Feb. 1) Vanguard will commemorate Freedom Day, the 147th anniversary of the Thirteenth Amendment, which abolished slavery in the United States.

Yet slavery – in the form of involuntary servitude or its equally horrific cousin, “debt bondage” — is anything but abolished, even in Orange County.

In all, about 27 million people around the world – including some 100,000 in the United States – are victims of human trafficking, according the U.S. State Department.

For many who learn about that uncomfortable fact, the first instinct is to find a way to help directly. But unless you’re in law enforcement, that tactic can backfire, putting you and the people you’re trying to help at risk.

So, can the average person really make a difference?

Morgan’s career shows how it’s possible.

Full story from the OC Register

Despite a slowly recovering economy, green business continues to be one of the world’s fastest growing industries. With the rising prices of energy, “going green” is imperative now more than ever. Vanguard University’s chapter of Students In Free Enterprise will once again serve the Orange County business community and university students by showcasing top industry leaders in the reform for sustainable business. The Environmental Sustainability Conference returns Friday, Feb. 10, 2012 to Vanguard University in Costa Mesa, from 9:00a.m. to 4:00p.m.

The event’s influential keynoters are Jennifer Schwab of Sierra Club Green Home and Andrea Robinson of ARC Sustainability. Both are leaders in bringing environmental initiatives into their business culture. Jennifer Schwab is the Chief Sustainability Officer for Sierra Club Green Home. Developed to help Americans make their homes more energy efficient, SCGH educates consumers on how to improve the sustainability and health of their homes. “I am concerned about the green movement losing momentum at the consumer level. Adverse economic conditions are forcing the average citizen to focus on day to day survival, and while still sympathetic to environmental concerns, it seems that people aren’t embracing sustainable living as a top priority. That is why I am happy to speak to college students: to help instill in them a sustainable living ethic that becomes part of their everyday life, forever.” said Jennifer Schwab.

Andrea Robinson is the Founder and Director of ARC Sustainability, an environmental and corporate social responsibility consulting firm based in Los Angeles. Andrea was responsible for the comprehensive sustainability efforts and carbon footprint for the 2008 Democratic National Convention as the first-ever Director of Sustainability & Greening for the convention. “Smart business leaders know that sustainability is not a trend and that restoration is the goal. Beyond being simply the right thing to do from an ethical perspective, sustainable businesses are efficient businesses. They understand the impacts of their resource use and supply chains, as well as the growing power of the informed consumer to choose socially and environmentally responsible products. The CEOs, CFOs and companies that are going to have relevance in the future are the ones determining how to not just survive, but how to thrive sustainably.” Said Andrea Robinson.

The day will educate and empower attendees with ideas and resources for implementing innovative and sustainable business and life practices. Attendees will have the opportunity to network with speakers and prominent business leaders during the interactive workshops and exhibitor fair.

Featured Speakers include:
• Tyler Merrick, Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Project 7
• Mike Levin, Executive Director, CleanTech OC
• Spencer Brown, Founder & Chief Tree Hugger, Rent A Green Box
• Jeff Duggan, Co-Owner & Founder, Portola Coffee Lab
• Evan Marks, Founder & Director, The Ecology Center
• Nicole Suydam, Vice President of Development, Goodwill of Orange County
• Kallie Dovel, Founder, 31 Bits
• Vera Chang, West Coast Fellow, Bon Appétit Management Company Foundation

The Fourth Annual Environmental Sustainability Conference continues Vanguard University SIFE’s tradition of gathering the Orange County business community for a unique and interactive educational experience. To register for the Environmental Sustainability Conference go to vanguard.edu/GreenConf. #VUGreenConf

SIFE (Students In Free Enterprise)

SIFE is an international non-profit organization that brings together the leaders of today and tomorrow to create a better and more sustainable world through the positive power of business. Founded in 1975, SIFE has active programs on more than 1,500 college and university campuses in 40 countries. Through projects that improve the lives of people worldwide, participating university students, academic professionals and industry leaders are demonstrating that individuals with a knowledge and passion for business can be a powerful force for change. For more information, visit www.sife.org. Learn more about Vanguard University SIFE at sife.vanguard.edu. CONTACT: Samantha Hawkins (916) 494-9145