Wishing you a happy and safe holiday season
and a joyous New Year.
* * *

I can't let the year end without taking this opportunity to wish my alumni friends and Fielding colleagues a most happy holiday season, as well as to think about our active and productive 2005 and look ahead to new advancements and challenges at Fielding in 2006.

Pat Oelrich Fielding Open House

A highlight of the past year was one of our most successful community gatherings hosted by Board of Trustees member Patricia Oelrich. She opened her Princeton, New Jersey, home to alumni, students, and faculty who were delighted with the opportunity to reconnect and catch up on Fielding news and converse with President Judith Kuipers. You can see some familiar and happy faces in this photo album.

I am deeply indebted to our Advancement & Development team - especially to Violet Hatipoglu (Development Associate) who is coordinating the January Winter Session alumni events for Psychology and for Human & Organization Development (HOD) - for helping me keep our alumni relations program at full speed while the search committee diligently reads resumes and prepares to interview the top candidates in late January.

We are still accepting applications, and I encourage you to tell qualified friends and colleagues about the position. Click here to read the job announcement that ran in our local newspaper.

Thanks to all of you for your support and for maintaining a uniquely warm and connected alumni network.

January 2006 Winter Sessions

2006 will open again with a full schedule of planning and participating in the HOD and Psychology alumni sessions in January in Santa Barbara and for the Educational Leadership & Change graduation in February.

HOD's session will be held January 10-14. 49 HOD alumni are participating, and we will welcome 23 students as alumni on January 14. Two special events added to this year's schedule are (1) a week-long French Film Festival, "Living on the Edge: The Immigrant Experience," the brainchild of our resident film aficionado, faculty member Jeremy Shapiro and (2) a guest presentation by noted researcher Gisela Labouvie-Vief titled "Higher Reaches of Adult Development."

The School of Psychology's winter session will be January 16-21. For that week, 5 alumni have registered, and they are welcoming 13 new graduates to their ranks on January 21.

A special event during Psychology's winter session is a public presentation by Robert J. Dowling, Fielding Board of Trustees member and Editor-in-Chief of The Hollywood Reporter. The event was organized and sponsored by Bernie Luskin and the Media Psychology Program. Read more about Mr. Dowling and his presentation here.

Focus Magazine

Look for the next issue of Focus Magazine to arrive in your mailbox in January! Sylvia Williams and her team have again produced an exemplary publication that builds Fielding's image and shows the university we are proud to be a part of. One special group that deserves are appreciation is are the Fielding alumni who serve on our Board of Trustees. We highlighted the current alumni members - Sandra McCord Best, Eileen Morgan, Frederick Phillips, Ted Takamura, and Robert Tankard - in the forthcoming issue and you can read a sneak preview here.

Fielding Rings and Lapel Pin

Among the significant projects that the Alum Council has been working toward on your behalf is making available official Fielding rings and lapel pins. This project has been near and dear to Alan Pollite's heart, and he has been its steward to near completion. The rings can be ordered now through www.Jostens.com. A brochure with photos of actual Fielding and descriptions of the seven styles and choices of gemstones and metal will be mailed to alumni in late January. Prior to the upcoming winter session graduations of each school, a Jostens representative will be present to display the rings and to take orders.

Creating the Future Together

Fielding is indeed fortunate to have alumni like Thelma Jackson, EdD (ELC 02) who remain committed to the university and willing to make their considerable talents available to its advancement. Thelma is a leading educational transformation theorist who is chairing Fielding's 2006 strategic planning effort, "Creating the Future Together."

The committee, whose members represent all Fielding constituencies, has set forth an ambitious schedule. At their successful meeting last week in Chicago, the committee organized into three work teams: Mission, Vision, and Values; Process; and Strategic Content. Members throughout and at all levels of our community will have an opportunity to reflect and comment on the strategic recommendations. The committee will deliver its final report to Judith Kuipers this spring, and Dr. Kuipers will in turn present it to the Board of Trustees at their May meeting.

We thank Thelma and her committee for their hard and dedicated work.

Library Services - Important alumni survey

Stefan Kramer, Fielding director of library services, has developed an online survey that we urge all alumni to submit by January 15, 2006. As Fielding begins to establish budget priorities and needs for the coming year, it's important for us to collect data about the level of interest and needs among our alumni for library and research services. Fielding is committed to providing such support to the extent resources allow us to meet your needs. Please take a moment to answers several questions at the following link:
http://www.fielding.edu/library/surveys/FANmail-Dec2005.asp.

How to Reach Fielding's Office of Alumni Relations

ANNE KRATZ, CHIEF DEVELOPMENT OFFICER
akratz@fielding.edu
805.898.2926

SYLVIA WILLIAMS , DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS & COMMUNITY RELATIONS
sawilliams@fielding.edu
805.898.2947

FRANCES GOODROW, DEVELOPMENT COORDINATOR
fgoodrow@fielding.edu
805.898.2951

VIOLET HATIPOGLU, DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATE
vhatipoglu@fielding.edu
805.898.2920

FELIX ACCOUNTS
helpdesk@fielding.edu
805.898.4040

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2112 Santa Barbara Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93105
805.687.1099