ordhord Beowulf, the troop’s captain, unlocked his wordhord and answered. Beowulf ll.258-59 Northwestern College English Department Newsletter Fall 2012 Volume11 No. 1 The loss of the beautiful trees –especially the redbud that flowered in early spring -- has struck the hearts of all those who used to call Granberg home. However, more important than the trees and the building were the community that had been fostered and the memories that had been collected within the walls of the old English department house. Granberg was a house with a long history and a story to tell. Dr. Joel Westerholm, who had the same office for 22 years, remembers when he had a little “Mickey Mouse” table in the corner of his office where his children played. “You don’t replace a history like that very quickly.” In Granberg, “there were all sorts of stories about the cracks in the wall and the creaks in the floor.” Granberg Hall will be missed. When I asked Dr. Michael Kensak how he felt when Granberg was torn down, he replied by describing a picture: “I was in shock when I saw a picture of Granberg Hall with only my office missing. The demolition machine came and took a bite – all that history, gone in one quick bite. It was like watching a slow death as we all watched and pondered our mortality.” However, seeing the progress of the new Learning Commons coming out of the hole that was Granberg has been heartening. Also heartening is the fostering of a new community and the collection of new memories in the homey cottages that now house the evicted. For a while, rumor had it that the English department was going to be moved to the basement of the North Suites. Some English classes now meet in the jail-like bowels of this new dorm. Westerholm has trained his students to refer to their classroom as Bunker 13: “We and the cockroaches would have survived a nuclear attack.” Fortunately, alter- native accommodations for offices were arranged. The English department now resides on the far northeast corner of campus in Doorenbos and Muilenburg cottages. The English professors are relieved to still be in a house setting, although they regret the necessary separation. Kensak laments, “Now I can’t yell sarcastic comments across the hall to Ann.” Westerholm is concerned for his colleagues in Muilenburg, “because they’re a long ways from the coffee pot!” Dr. Keith Fynaardt in his office in Muilenburg cottage Muilenburg Cottage front room (Continued on page 2) In This Issue… Spring 2012 Courses 2-3 Spectrum 3 Cardboard Magazine 4 Deepsong 4 Festival Faith & Learning 5 Granberg Wake 6 Sherman Alexie 7 Alum Visits 7 Alum Profile 8
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-1-
ordhord Beowulf, the troop’s captain, unlocked his wordhord and answered. Beowulf ll.258-59
Northwestern College
English Department Newsletter
Fall 2012 Volume11 No. 1
The loss of the beautiful trees –especially the redbud that
flowered in early spring -- has struck the hearts of all those
who used to call Granberg home. However, more important
than the trees and the building were the community that had
been fostered and the memories that had been collected
within the walls of the old English department house.
Granberg was a house with a long history and a story to
tell. Dr. Joel Westerholm, who had the same office for 22
years, remembers when he had a little “Mickey Mouse” table
in the corner of his office where his children played. “You
don’t replace a history like that very quickly.” In Granberg,
“there were all sorts of stories about the cracks in the wall
and the creaks in the floor.” Granberg Hall will be missed.
When I asked Dr. Michael Kensak how he felt when
Granberg was torn down, he replied by describing a picture:
“I was in shock when I saw a picture of Granberg Hall with
only my office missing. The demolition machine came and
took a bite – all that history, gone in one quick bite. It was
like watching a slow death as we all watched and pondered
our mortality.” However, seeing the progress of the new
Learning Commons coming out of the hole that was
Granberg has been heartening.
Also heartening is the fostering of a new community and
the collection of new memories in the homey cottages that
now house the evicted.
For a while, rumor had it that the English department was
going to be moved to the basement of the North Suites.
Some English classes now meet in the jail-like bowels of this
new dorm. Westerholm has trained his students to refer to
their classroom as Bunker 13: “We and the cockroaches
would have survived a nuclear attack.” Fortunately, alter-
native accommodations for offices were arranged. The
English department now resides on the far northeast corner
of campus in Doorenbos and Muilenburg cottages. The
English professors are relieved to still be in a house setting,
although they regret the necessary separation. Kensak
laments, “Now I can’t yell sarcastic comments across the
hall to Ann.” Westerholm is concerned for his colleagues in
Muilenburg, “because they’re a long ways from the
coffee pot!”
Dr. Keith Fynaardt in his office in Muilenburg cottage Muilenburg Cottage front room
(Continued on page 2)
In This Issue…
Spring 2012 Courses 2-3
Spectrum 3
Cardboard Magazine 4
Deepsong 4
Festival Faith & Learning 5
Granberg Wake 6
Sherman Alexie 7
Alum Visits 7
Alum Profile 8
-2-
The professors have mixed feelings about having their
offices in ex-bedrooms. Kensak says it makes him feel like
he is coming home for work: there are kitchens and living
rooms, and their offices are in bedrooms. “I can bop over to
Joel’s bedroom and see what he is up to.” Dr. Keith Fynaardt
over in Muilenburg cottage says it’s awkward having his
office in a bedroom that faculty have slept in.
Kensak is already feeling at home in his new office. He
is impressed with how large his office is; he believes he has
over 1,000 books in his closet alone. “I think I could fit four
or five VPH offices into this room!” In fact, with smaller
classes, Kensak invites the students into his office where
they sit around a table and dissect a text together. This
totally changes the dynamic; “It’s like having the students
over for dinner, except the text is the food!”
Besides the split into two houses, another downside of the
new accommodation is that there is less student traffic.
Doorenbos and Muilenburg are farther away from the center
of campus than Granberg was. Muilenburg is usually very
quiet. It is, as Fynaardt says, “A really quiet place to read
and write and be introverted like so many English profs
are.” However, the quiet is a result of both the separation of
the English department and the “long” walk. According to
Westerholm, “What we need now is a skywalk to
Muilenburg and to the center of campus.” In the meantime,
we should all follow Kensak’s example and use the long
walk to ponder and pay more attention to the trees.
Doorenbos Cottage common area
Dr. Michael Kensak in his office in Doorenbos Cottage
Death of a Redbud (Continued from page 1)
ENG 380 Special Topics in Writing Writing With Images
Dr. Samuel Martin Tuesday/Thursday (First Half) 1:45—3:15 pm
Writing With Images is a multi-genre creative writing workshop
designed for writers interested in exploring the possibilities of
engaging the visual image through poetry, fiction, and nonfiction.
Most of the course work is devoted to practical work on writing with
pictures including work with domestic and archival photographs, fine
art, and found images, but this will be supplemented with a considera-
tion of the nature and history of this subgenre (pushing beyond the
idea of image as mere illustration). As part of the course there will be
close readings of, and presentations on, a number of key texts. A final
portfolio, the presentation of a critical reading of at least one author,
and participation in peer critiques and group work will form the basis