2016: Year in Review

The New Year is officially here! In retrospect, 2016 was an eventful year at Starr King to say the least. Despite the heartbreaking loss of our Provost in February, we stayed true to our mission and accomplished some great things as a community. Take a look back at some of the key moments of 2016.

• Fourteen of our beloved students graduated at Commencement.
• We announced the continuation of the SKSM-ChI Joint Program.
• Former Provost Dr. Ibrahim Farajaje’s legacy was uplifted at the White House.
• We showed up big at the UUA General Assembly in Columbus, OH.
• Arliss Ungar received the Louis C. Cornish “Living the Mission” Award, presented by the UU Partner Church Council.
• Dr. Ysaye Barnwell blessed us with her talents as we built a “vocal community” at Starr King Symposium.
• We welcomed 11 new students in the spring.
• We welcomed one of our largest entering classes ever in the fall.
• We hired another full-time faculty member, The Rev. Sofia Betancourt, as the Assistant Professor of UU Theologies and Ethics
• We partnered with the Religious Freedom Center to offer courses as part of a pilot program for the Certificate in Religion in Public Life
• MASC Grad Christine Boyle shared her experience as a delegate at the Paris Climate Talks.
• Climate activist Tim DeChristopher (Bidder 70) came to discuss the power of civil disobedience
• SKSM joined local organizers in co-sponsoring a 4-day weekend of action honoring Grace Lee Boggs.
• Rev. Dr. Angela Yarber came to present her book on microaggressions  
• Oscar-nominated filmmaker Frederick Marx came to discuss his documentary on how veterans heal from “moral injury”.
• SKSM Dean, Rev. Dr. Gabriella Lettini, served on the Ecumenical Jury of the Cannes Film Festival.
• We were “Rock Solid with Standing Rock”
• We received a $2M bequest to fund the David and Norma Lewis Scholarship Fund.
• We met a $50K matching gift challenge from the Carpenter Foundation.

Thank you for your support this year. We look forward to serving our beloved community in 2017!