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Alumni Achievements

Additional Alumni Achievements

Evan visits the renowned Duke University Chapel .

Featured Alum
Evan Cate,'08
Major: Theology

Career Path: Received a Duke Scholarship to pursue a master's in divinity degree at the university's School of Divinity. The scholarship covers full tuition and is awarded to entering students based on academic achievement and exceptional promise for ordained or diaconal ministry.

Why Whitworth: "When I visited, Whitworth seemed to be a place that fostered unique interpersonal relationships, both among students and between students and faculty. Whitworth was truly unlike any other place I visited in this respect. I was also fortunate to receive a generous financial aid package."

Whitworth Activities: "I was involved with Associated Students of Whitworth University during my sophomore year, serving as the dorm senator for McMillan Hall. I also participated in a variety of intramurals, and I served for two years as a volunteer high school youth group leader at a local Presbyterian church."

Quote: "My education at Whitworth gave me valuable critical thinking, reading and writing skills, and helped me to begin to think well about what it means to be faithful to Jesus Christ in this world. My theology degree prepared me to engage immediately with the material in my master of divinity program at Duke, and to do so at a high level. In fact, I was able to get four entry-level courses waived because of the stellar education I received at Whitworth, allowing me to take more advanced (and more interesting) electives."

Influential Whitworth Experiences: "I was fortunate to have many formational experiences, classes and mentor relationships while at Whitworth, but one course that stands out is Adam Neder's Christian Theology course. The class taught me how to approach theology, forced me to grapple with the content of the church's doctrines, and reminded me of the importance of sound theological thinking for the church's witness and proclamation."

Career Goals: "I am currently on the ordination track with the Presbyterian Church (USA), and am still discerning whether my call is to vocational ministry or to pursue further studies in order to eventually teach in a college. If I were to do the latter, I would like to teach church history, especially the history of doctrine."

Here's what some Whitworth graduates are doing with their theology degrees:

Kristin Nilsson, '10 (double major in peace studies), joined the Jesuit Volunteer Corps and is stationed in San Jose, Calif. She works in the Office of Social Ministry in St. Joseph's Cathedral Basilica, where each day she serves several hundred homeless people.
Glen Alberto Guenther, '09 (minors in Spanish and political science), is completing a twoyear internship in Ecuador with World Vision and has been appointed an international election monitor for the presidential election in El Salvador. He plans to pursue a master's degree in public policy.
Margaret Mitsuyasu, '08, is in her second year at Princeton Theological Seminary, where she's pursuing an M.Div.
Nathan Mesaros, '05, is a project coordinator with World Vision, traveling to international locations to match funds with needs.
J. David Thorpe, '05, is a freelance artist in Colorado Springs; he works to promote the development of intentional sustainable communities/urban planning through speaking venues and artistic renderings.
Carrie Bowers, '09, is enrolled in the master-in-teaching program at Whitworth University, preparing to teach secondary English.
Bethany Dearborn, '05, is working as a social worker with Tierra Nueva, a ministry to Hispanic migrant workers in Washington's Skagit Valley.
Brandon Comella, '08, is youth director at Millwood Presbyterian Church, in Spokane Valley.
Tyler Thralls, '10, is teaching high school in a small town in rural Africa for Village Schools International.
Brent Hendricks, '07, is founder of Global Neighborhood, a ministry to refugees in the Spokane area.