News

Nagel Institute receives $1.9 million grant
The Templeton Religion Trust has awarded the Nagel Institute for the Study of World Christianity at Calvin University a $1.9 million grant to support the next phase of a groundbreaking multi-year project. July 10,2024

Calvin Prison Initiative Hires Executive Director
Lisa Spoelhof Schra, a 1993 graduate of Calvin, has been named executive director of the Calvin Prison Initiative (CPI). July 2,2024

Charged as Agents of Renewal
On Friday, May 10, 2024, 34 men graduated with bachelor's or associate's degrees from Calvin University. May 14,2024

When a Christ-Centered Education Reaches Beyond Prison Walls
On Friday, May 10, 2024, the fifth cohort of the Calvin Prison Initiative earns their bachelor's degrees from Calvin University. Graduates from the Class of 2024 reflect on how their education behind bars has shaped them and what they hope to do now. May 8,2024

Calvin University Addresses Environmental Concerns with New Book on Plaster Creek Watershed
In a new book, Gail Gunst Heffner, emeritus, and David Warners, professor of biology, illuminate the problems of Plaster Creek and similar waterways across the U.S. and urge readers to consider their roles in environmental stewardship. May 8,2024

Creating a more beautiful space for teaching and learning
On Thursday, April 25, David I. Smith was awarded Calvin University's Presidential Award for Exemplary Teaching—the highest teaching honor the university bestows on its faculty. April 26,2024

Doors Open and Opportunities Abound
Jack Klop moved from California to Michigan for Calvin University's great engineering program. He said he stayed at Calvin because of the many opportunities he's had in just his first two years. April 23,2024

A Well-Balanced Education Leads to Flourishing Life
On April 2, 2024, Noah Praamsma ‘17, a nutrition coordinator for the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine in Washington, D.C., returns to his alma mater to talk about plant-based nutrition, the same place where he discovered a passion for preventative healthcare. March 26,2024

From Life Sentence to Life Calling
A self-centered life led Chris Bernaiche to a life sentence. After more than a decade of destructive behavior inside prison walls, he turned his life over to Christ. Now, through the Calvin Prison Initiative program, he's helping his peers find meaning in their lives. March 26,2024

Calvin's Festival of Faith & Writing Returns in April
Calvin University’s literary extravaganza, the Festival of Faith & Writing, returns in person to Grand Rapids on April 11-13, after a long COVID hiatus. March 19,2024

Plaster Creek Stewards awarded $675K grant as part of Sustain Our Great Lakes Project
Calvin University recently received a $675K grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The grant was awarded as part of the Sustain Our Great Lakes project. January 9,2024

Students create viable path for Calvin University to achieve carbon neutrality by 2030
Calvin University President Wiebe Boer posed the question: “What earlier year should Calvin University choose for its carbon neutrality date?” to Engineering 333 students. The team discovered a way to move the target date up decades. December 12,2023

Sidney J. Jansma Jr. awarded 2024 Kuyper Prize
Sid Jansma Jr. will be the recipient of the 2024 Kuyper Prize, which is awarded annually by Calvin University and Calvin Theological Seminary. December 12,2023

Calvin University announces 2024 January Series lineup
The 2024 edition of Calvin University’s award-winning January Series features national podcasters and journalists, a world-renowned rock climber, French-American jazz pianist and composer, an American legal scholar, and a Pulitzer Prize-winning author. October 10,2023

Professor's research impacts coffee roasting on six continents
An engineering professor at Calvin University helped create a patent for the VortX EcoFilter, which is reducing the detrimental effect conventional coffee roasting is having on the environment. The new product has been installed in about 200 locations on six continents. September 30,2023

Committed to excellence on, off, and under the fields
Pending the results of a 500-foot-deep test bore that was done in late August, university leaders are planning to install two small geothermal fields that will heat and cool the new outdoor athletic facilities on the northwest side of campus. September 12,2023

Calvin professor emeritus reshapes the study of American religion and politics
For the past four decades, Calvin professor emeritus Corwin Smidt has been a pioneer of the study and research at the intersection of American religion and politics. This year, he received a Lifetime Achievement Award for this work from the world's premiere political science association. September 7,2023

Removing Parking and Discovering Place
Plaster Creek Stewards have turned a portion of a Calvin University parking lot into a large bioswale. The project, funded by a state grant, aims to limit stormwater runoff and improve water quality downstream. August 1,2023

Flipping the script unlocks stories of transformation
While Nate Roels started at Calvin in 2013 as a business major, he soon discovered a deeper passion for film and media. So, he flipped the script, switched his major to a minor and pursued filmmaking. Now, he has a documentary film making its debut on the big screen. July 25,2023

When updating spreadsheets opens doors
This summer, two student researchers at Calvin University are glued to spreadsheets. Though the work can be tedious at times, the students are driven by the fact that their daily work is literally helping keep returning citizens from returning to prison. July 19,2023

Director's innovative vision helping reform prisons
Heidi Washington, director of the Michigan Department of Corrections, has championed the motto: "Make prison time productive time." Her visionary leadership, which includes a partnership with Calvin University and Calvin Theological Seminary, is helping shift the tide inside Michigan's prisons. June 13,2023

Calvin students equipped to compete on the world's stage
In June, students from Calvin University head to Grenoble, France to compete in a Model UN competition. This past year, the team finished within the top ten of two national competitions featuring Ivy League schools and large state universities. June 8,2023

Calvin University 2023 grads reflect on earning bachelor's degree behind bars
Graduates from the Class of 2023 reflect on their experience earning a bachelor's degree from Calvin University behind bars. They talk about how the program shaped them and what they hope to do with their degree. May 10,2023

On a Mission to Inspire Students to Dream Bigger
For two decades, Matt Heun, a professor of engineering at Calvin University, has inspired students to go beyond their own expectations of themselves. This spring, he's the recipient of Calvin’s 2023 Presidential Award for Exemplary Teaching—the highest honor the university awards for teaching. April 21,2023

Going Beyond the confines to discover community
Ken and James came into prison at the same time and shared a cell in county jail. Over the past decade, their journeys inside prison took very different paths, but God brought them back together through the Calvin Prison Initiative program. Now, they're creating a community unheard of inside prison walls. April 6,2023

Calvin University Receives STARS Silver Rating for Sustainability Achievements
Calvin University has earned a STARS Silver rating in recognition of its sustainability achievements from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. This year's overall score is the highest in the institution's history. March 29,2023

Discovering a deeper and more integrated faith
When Noro Dung was looking at colleges and universities, she wanted a place grounded and rooted in God, a place where she was not forced, but rather free, to pursue her faith. At Calvin, she's indeed found that freedom, but also discovered a deeper and more integrated faith. March 10,2023

From Hostility to Hospitality: How Calvin is Renewing Civics Education
The Civic Hospitality Project, a partnership between the Kuyers Institute and the Henry Institute, gives K-12 educators many curricular tools and exercises they can draw from in putting together their civics lesson plans. The goal? For civics education to aspire to more than simply tolerance. February 20,2023

Calvin students team up to save energy during January
During January, hundreds of Calvin students participated in Kill-A-Watt, a competition between residence halls to see who can conserve the most energy. Collectively, the residents saved 53,000-watt hours of electricity per day in the dorms. February 3,2023

Calvin University student awarded prestigious Hatfield Prize
Calvin senior Emily Steen is one of three students in the country to be awarded The Hatfield Prize by the Center for Public Justice. January 19,2023

Calvin in 2022: A Year in Review
From a presidential transition to the first-ever graduation ceremony behind bars to adding new sports, spaces, and academic programming, there was no shortage of exciting happenings at Calvin in 2022. December 31,2022

Transforming a campus into an arboretum
In 2022, Calvin University’s campus was designated as an arboretum. Certified arborist Bob Speelman, for whom the arboretum is now named, walks around the campus to pick out 12 of his favorite trees. December 21,2022

Calvin adds two new cohort programs for fall 2023
The Sustainability Fellows Cohort and Common Good Coalition are two new exciting options for students entering Calvin in fall 2023 to consider. The application deadline is December 15, 2022. December 12,2022

Engineering students shifting carbon into neutral at Calvin University
In a semester-long engineering class project, students developed their communication, math, and problem-solving skills as they discovered a path for Calvin to eliminate its natural-gas related net CO2 emissions from its heating. December 7,2022

Engineer's watershed moment having ripple effects
When Julie Wildschut '00 was a middle school student she had her watershed moment. Now three decades later, that moment is having a ripple effect on students, communities, and a watershed. October 21,2022

Calvin University to inaugurate Wiebe Boer as 12th president
The formal inauguration ceremony for Dr. Wiebe K. Boer will take place at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, October 26, 2022, in Calvin’s Van Noord Arena. October 5,2022

12 Discoveries President Boer Made in First 100 Days
Upon arriving at Calvin University in late June 2022, President Boer has been learning about the campus and the community. Here are 12 discoveries he's made as he's become reacquainted with his alma mater. October 3,2022

I'll take World-Renowned Speakers for 15 days
Calvin University's 2023 January Series features a NASA scientist, New York Times best-selling authors, a former speechwriter for three U.S. presidents, and the holder of the longest winning streak on Jeopardy! September 28,2022

Calvin Prison Initiative seen as national model for prison education
In late August, leaders of the U.S. Department of Education visited the Calvin Prison Initiative. Four hours later, they left inspired not just by stories of transformation, but by the strategic, thoughtful collaboration that is making CPI a national model to follow for prison education. September 1,2022

Calvin University Builds Momentum
Since Calvin changed its last name from "college" to "university" in 2019, the institution has established two new schools, added six graduate programs, set fundraising records, and become the first university in MIchigan to award bachelor's degrees behind bars. July 22,2022

Accelerating Calvin University's Energy Transition
Calvin University is making history in Michigan by becoming the first university in the state to pursue Solar-as-a-Service as an approach to accelerating the energy transition. July 8,2022

Calvin selects dean for School of Health
Adejoke Bolanle Ayoola is Calvin University's inaugural dean for its School of Health. Ayoola is globally recognized as an experienced practitioner, educator, researcher, and administrator. June 24,2022

Major Watershed Restoration Grant Awarded to Plaster Creek Stewards
Calvin University's Plaster Creek Stewards has been awarded a major two-year grant from the State of Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy. The grant has a total value of over $1 million. June 21,2022

Walking into a new identity
On Monday, May 9, 2022, Calvin University awarded degrees to 76 inmates in a grand celebration in Ionia, Michigan. It marked the first time in the state of Michigan that bachelor's degrees were awarded behind bars. May 10,2022

Calvin University holds graduation ceremony behind bars
On Monday, May 9, 2022, 45 inmates will receive a bachelor's degree from Calvin University as part of a formal Commencement ceremony held inside Handlon Correctional Facility. This marks a first for the state of Michigan. May 4,2022

Calvin English professor publishes “Refugia Faith” to spread awareness about the climate crisis
Debra Rienstra, professor of English at Calvin, recently published an interdisciplinary work to bring awareness to the climate crisis and show how Christians can act as stewards of the Earth. March 31,2022

How a spring break trip altered a Calvin sophomore’s perspective on justice
Sophomore Gisel Espinoza's service-learning trip to Louisiana over spring break equipped her with skills to “act justly” as an agent of renewal. March 24,2022

Engineering students provide key insights for Habitat for Humanity
Habitat for Humanity wondered how to reduce carbon emissions even further in a house they are building. For the answer, they turned to an engineering class at Calvin University. January 14,2022

Calvin professor helping to shape the future of education
Clarence Joldersma, director of the master of education program at Calvin University, contributed to a once-in-a-generation UNESCO report called the Futures of Education. December 16,2021

Calvin's cohort programs help students find community
Navigating through college is challenging. Joining a cohort group not only builds community from day one, but it also makes the college experience more enriching and enjoyable. December 9,2021