News

Dr. Darla Schumm, Associate Provost and Professor of Religious Studies at Hollins University in Virginia, visited Conrad Grebel University College in early February. She was the 2023 Rodney and Lorna Sawatsky Visiting Scholar. During her time at Grebel, she gave lectures in several graduate classes, spoke at a Faculty Forum, and attended the weekly Chapel service alongside staff and students.

“Grebel is beyond what I wanted; it’s what I needed,” said Elizabeth Ahing, a current resident at Conrad Grebel University College. She is also an upper-year student at Wilfrid Laurier University, working toward a BA in Communication Studies and a minor in Leadership.

The nominations for the 52nd Annual Juno Awards were announced this week, naming some of Canada’s top musicians, singers, songwriters, producers, and more. Included in the nominations is Mark Vuorinen, Associate Professor and Chair of Music at Conrad Grebel University College at the University of Waterloo, along with The Elora Singers!  

As the Artistic Director and Conductor of The Elora Singers, Vuorinen and the choir have been nominated for a Juno Award in the category of Classical Album of the Year (Large Ensemble) for their release of Radiant Dawn: Music for Advent and Christmas.

Dr. Darla Schumm will give the 2023 Sawatsky Visiting Scholar Lecture at Grebel. Dr. Schumm’s lecture will speak on “The Power of Misfitting: Disrupting Sinner, Saint, and Super Crip Controlling Images.” Pulling from theories outlined by Patricia Hill Collins, Rosemarie Garland-Thomson, and others, she will identify the mechanisms in today's religious communities that systemically designate disabled people as inferior. Schumm will raise the concept of power that comes with misfitting and redefine preconceived notions. 

The vocal music sphere at Conrad Grebel University College welcomes a new scholarship for passionate students taking Music Studio in Voice, and who sing in a Music Department choir at the University of Waterloo and Grebel. The “Lichti Voice Studies Scholarship Award” was graciously established by Daniel Lichti, an Associate Professor Emeritus of the Faculty of Music at Wilfrid Laurier University (1998-2017). 

To look back on Issa Ebombolo’s (MPACS 2017) career thus far is to look back on a journey of leadership, collaboration, and great accomplishments. From developing a peace curriculum, helping develop programs and support for refugee camps, and now, in his current role, working with Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) as Peacebuilding Coordinator for Zambia and Malawi, he has helped promote peace and restorative justice in all that he does. It is fitting that he has been chosen as the 2022 recipient of Conrad Grebel University College’s Distinguished Alumni Service Award.

Grebel Professor Derek Suderman is passionate about connecting with global Anabaptist churches and contributing to cross-cultural teaching. This summer, he taught courses in Cuba and Thailand to resource the Global Mennonite Church.

Many Grebel alumni have brought technological expertise to pressing problems in fascinating ways. Building on this experience, we now operate the Grebel Peace Incubator and the PeaceTech Living-Learning Community. In this issue of Grebel Now, you’ll find profiles of alumni who have tried to apply science and technology to good purposes. I hope you are as intrigued and inspired by their stories as I am.

“The role of technology in contemporary society is expanding every day, and critical reflection on the impact of technology now pervades a growing number of scholarly and popular contexts. Not only is it a struggle to keep up with accelerating technological developments, we can be overwhelmed by a deluge of observations, opinions, and analyses of these developments. Indeed, thanks to the rise of new technologies like social media, there are many more ways that our attention is being drawn to the impact of technology.”

Grebel alumni are involved in many interesting initiatives that use technology for good—in start-ups, projects, support roles, research, and hobbies. The following profiles highlight some alumni who are involved in activities that use technology to make a difference in society and the world.