Simpson University Psychology Department

Join us at 10 a.m. Saturday to celebrate our 260 graduates of the Simpson University Class of 2020!
Link: https://youtu.be/MrcgYMd_AL4

We cannot wait to celebrate our amazing Class of 2020 graduates online at 10 a.m. Saturday! The virtual ceremony—honoring spring, summer and fall graduates—will follow the structure of an in-person commencement with introductions, speakers, special music, and presentation of the graduates. Dr. James Postma, a professor emeritus from Chico State University and SU board chair, will deliver the keynote address. Join us Saturday: https://www.youtube.com/user/simpsonuniversity/videos

Simpson University Prepares to Celebrate Class of 2020 in Virtual Ceremony A special ceremony celebrating the 260 graduates of Simpson University's Class of 2020 is scheduled to air “live” at 10 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 19, on the university's YouTube page. The online ceremony--honoring spring, summer and fall graduates--will follow the structure of an in-person commencemen...

Four more days until we honor our Class of 2020 graduates with a special virtual ceremony that will air "live" at 10 a.m. Saturday! These 260 women and men from our undergraduate and graduate programs have pushed through the extraordinary challenges of this year to reach this milestone, and we could not be more proud of them.

The online ceremony will follow the structure of an in-person commencement with introductions, speakers, special music, and presentation of the graduates. Watch for a link and join us in watching, cheering and praying for these new SU alumni!
https://wordpress.com/post/simpsonunews.com/2095

Congrats to this SU psychology alumnus!

Simpson University Alumnus Takes Home Top ‘America’s Got Talent’ Prize Simpson University alumnus and Stockton native Brandon Leake took home the winner’s title and $1 million prize on season 15 of “America’s Got Talent.”

Congratulations to all of our Class of 2020 graduates! Your class has demonstrated great leadership, care, and faithfulness during your time at Simpson. We are so proud of your academic and co-curricular accomplishments! Well done Class of 2020! We look forward to seeing what is next.

And, as was captured in the end of the year videos, may you always remember that the Lord is your good shepherd (Psalm 23), while seeking wisdom (Proverbs 4:4-9) as you choose to act justly, love mercy and to walk humbly with our God (Micah 6:8).

Grace, peace, and strength to you all!

Another great event happening this week on Wednesday, November 13th: Relationships Made Well focusing on adoption and entering God's family! Psychology students, Patience and Halle, will be a part of the panel discussion. Morgan 2nd Floor Lobby from 7:00-8:15 pm. Hope to see you there!

Let's enjoy pizza together at MOD on Tuesday, November 12th, to raise funds for Psych Club and this year's Comfort Zone! See you there!

ATTN, Simpson University students!
Friday (10/18) is the deadline to sign up for a summer session Marine Biology course that includes a five-day field trip to Hawaii! Have fun learning about the marine environment AND fulfill your lab science requirement at the same time. If interested, contact Dr. David Rice THIS WEEK at [email protected].

So proud of Psychology Major students, Kathryn and Rebecca, for helping to coordinate and facilitate this event with Girls Inc. at Simpson! And, thank you Lindsay and Girls Inc. for contributing toward shaping strong, smart, and bold girls and young women!

Today is World Mental Health Day, and the theme for this year is su***de prevention. World Health Organization (WHO) has put together the following document that provides practical ways for us to take 40 seconds of action to work toward preventing su***de, based on the fact that someone in the world loses their life to su***de every 40 seconds: https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/mental-health/su***de/flyer-40seconds-web.pdf?sfvrsn=5ba643c_2.

Further resources can be found on the American Foundation for Su***de Prevention website at: afsp.org. And, if you or someone you know is experiencing thoughts of su***de, 24/7 support is offered through the National Su***de Prevention Line at 1-800-273-8255.

May we all take a moment to remember that we are in this life journey together and that we need one another to live life well. Many have reflected on the shape of the cross being both vertical and horizontal, reminding us to live deeply into the truth of our being created by a relational triune God for relationship with Him, the vertical, and with one another, the horizontal. With a posture of intentionality, vulnerability, and openness, we can indeed do this together!

Join us tonight at 6:00 pm in GC1 for our Psych Club/Asian American Fellowship event! There will be worship, a brief message from Dr. Kim and Dr. Costillo related to spiritual and psychological growth, and student testimonies, all while enjoying Asian snacks and boba Thai iced tea. Hope to see you there!

Vallejo selects deputy chief from San Jose as next police chief VALLEJO — Shawny Williams, deputy chief for the San Jose Police Department, has been named the new Vallejo police chief and is expected to begin his duties in November. The final appointment is pending completion of required background checks, a statement released Friday by the city states. “D

This week Dr. Chiao will be in Chicago at the annual American Psychological Association (APA) conference. Through the Division of Theoretical and Philosophical Psychology, he will be presenting "An Open Model for Life Progress," which proposes a model that is open to any interested parties inside and outside academia to co-contribute worldview-based positive human development studies and applications under an open research framework.

This week Dr. Costillo will be participating in a week long learning institute at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan entitled "African American Religious Autobiography." She is looking forward to a transformative community learning experience that will not only contribute to her own qualitative research entitled "Exploring Dynamics of Race & Ethnicity: Black and White Experiences in the Rural United States" but also to her own growth and development.

Congratulations to graduating senior, Lydia McGaffee, who in the course of her education at Simpson University was able to attend a semester abroad at the University of Oxford earning credits toward her major in psychology and minor in Bible and theology. Find out more about her experience by clicking on the article link.

Thank you, Lydia, for your many contributions to Simpson University and, in particular, the psychology department!

https://simpsonunews.com/2019/04/22/simpson-university-student-spends-robust-study-semester-at-oxford/

Simpson University Student Spends Robust Study Semester at Oxford Simpson University graduating senior Lydia McGaffee experienced the academic opportunity of a lifetime during fall semester, living in Oxford, England, and studying at the oldest university in the English-speaking world.

As we move toward Good Friday tomorrow and Easter this Sunday, may we pause on this Maundy Thursday to remember Jesus's new commandment to love one another as we have been so deeply loved by Him, the Saviour of our world...With this is mind, take a moment to first reflect on the Lord's tremendous love for you. Then, consider how you might extend this love toward another, today and in days to come...A perfect opportunity for a study break in the midst of the spring season of finals.

The Other Holy Day In the rush toward Good Friday and Easter, don't forget Maundy Thursday.

As part of our yearly tradition, today we celebrated Simpson students' accomplishments. The Psychology Department recognized senior Hannah Goddard as Psychology Student of the Year and also celebrated with Lydia McGaffee, Florence Anderberg, Madison Wright, Mattison Wenham, Alyssa Gordon and Hannah Goddard who earned academic honors, Madison Wright who earned the Student Athlete of the Year award, and Lydia McGaffee who earned Best Undergraduate Paper at this year's Student Research Symposium. Well done psychology majors! We look forward to seeing your continued progress along your journey as you lean into moving more toward that which God has called you.

It has been a little over two weeks since our community suddenly lost Cody Beaumont, who was known by some of you. Along with Cody’s loss, I (Dr. Costillo)know that there are others of you who have also recently lost people close to you. Given these recent circumstances, I wanted to take a moment to provide some resources related to loss, as well as to remind us all that grief is a process. You may be familiar with Elisabeth Kubler-Ross’s five stages of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. Since she first wrote about these five stages in more a linear format, it has come to our attention through additional research that the five stages are not necessarily linear and that they vary from person-to-person. One resource differentiates between a staircase approach reminiscent of Kubler-Ross’s original theory and a roller coaster approach being more representative of the actual grief process. I bring this up that we may be reminded that there will be good, bad, and in-between days, in no specific order, as we enter into and continue in the grief process. The absolutely critical part of this grief process is to find close others who can support and be with you in the midst of the process and to remember (and/or to ask others to remind you) to take care of yourself in the process. Local resources may include Simpson’s Wellness Center or Hill Country C.A.R.E. Center (530) 691-4446, among others.

I greatly appreciate J. William Worden’s four tasks of mourning attached to this post: to accept the reality of the loss, to work through the pain of grief, to adjust to an environment in which the deceased is missing, and to find an enduring connection with the deceased while embarking on a new life. These four stages can help us to orient toward our loss and to recognize that we will indeed find meaning (even if this meaning is an acceptance of not being sure of the meaning) related to our loss at some point and even be able to integrate this meaning into our lives as we continue to relate with our deceased loved one in some meaningful way. As I often tell my students, when we experience deep loss, it is not that it simply just goes away one day. However, over time, we learn to relate to our loss in a different way, to have a different relationship with our grief, a way to have that enduring connection with our loved one, as Worden states.

And, in considering a Christian worldview, I am absolutely grateful that we have a high priest, Jesus, who completely understands our grief in that he participated in our finite world, as completely human, while also completely remaining in Trinitarian relationship. He is one who can most completely empathize with us in our grief and will likely work through physically present others, as is evidenced throughout the biblical narrative.

In conclusion, may we recognize the importance of relationship in the midst of the grieving process and boldly seek one another out. Grace and peace to you all in the midst of this process of life.

We in the Psychology Department are so proud of our students who will be participating in this year's Student Research Symposium. Please come out tomorrow, Wednesday, 3/13, to hear what they have to share about:

"Racism in the United States: Narrative, Culture, and Outcomes,"

"S*x, Guilt, and the Church,"

"Momentum from Common Reading: Engaging Brené Brown's 'Braving the Wilderness,'"

"PTSD: A Disorder of Memory, and Its Cognitive Vaccine."

We are also happy to have partnered with Taylor Baldwin, a current psychology major in the ASPIRE program. He will be presenting a poster entitled:

"The Effects of Small-Group Participation on Men's Perceived Social Support, Attachment to Others, and Attachment to God-figures"

Well done, all!

Simpson University Invites Community to 9th Annual Student Research Symposium The public is invited to sit in on thought-provoking presentations and participate in Q&A and poster sessions at Simpson University’s 9th Annual Student Research Symposium on Wednesday, March 13.

Psych Club participated in the circus themed NiteLife show by hosting a ring toss booth. Simpson University has so many talented students! It is truly a privilege to participate in the fullness of life that happens here at Simpson...And a special shout out to all of our psych majors and minors who performed in the show! Indeed "The Greatest Show!"

ATTN, all Simpson students -- deadline to register for this year's Intro to Marine Biology 3-week May Term is March 15. This class meets your lab science requirement. Contact Dr. Rice at [email protected].

Simpson University Students Explore Marine Life in Humboldt Bay Simpson University students studied marine organisms, collected fish and invertebrates from Humboldt Bay, and even helped rescue a young elephant seal during a three-week May Term course in marine biology.

Dr. Costillo and Research Experience students, along with others from Simpson University, will be traveling to Biola's annual Student Congress of Racial Reconciliation (SCORR) during this upcoming week. We are all grateful to be able to participate in such a transformative, impacting learning experience! You can learn more about the conference below: https://www.biola.edu/scorr

SCORR Conference 2019 Discover Student Congress on Racial Reconciliation (SCORR)! It is a two-day conference hosted by Biola University to celebrate and learn about the diversity within the body of Christ.

And...It is officially a snow day (Wednesday, 2/13/19)! Enjoy this rare and special day!

Quick question...What type of events/gatherings would you like to see from the Psych Club/Psychology Department? Ready...go!

As we celebrate and remember Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., may we be reminded to lean into the one true light, Jesus Christ, asking for courage and boldness as we continue the work of this great man and so many others.