Alumni Association Board Elects Vice-President, Welcomes New Members
The Alumni Association Board of Representatives held its fall meeting on Dec. 4, 2023.
The Alumni Board works toward a mission to deepen the engagement of alumni and students in a lifelong relationship with Pacific University and to further the welfare of Pacific University.
During the fall meeting the Alumni Board held a robust conversation about Pacific’s work toward strengthening equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility. This is part of a larger effort to align the work of the Alumni Board with this university priority.
The three standing committees of the Alumni Board (Archives & History, Awards & Scholarship and Enrollment & New Student Support) met to begin setting goals for the coming year.
The Alumni Board elected Rhony Bhopla MFA ’22 as Vice President. Rhony will serve in this role until 2025 when she begins her term as President. Current president Rachel (Johnson) Boone DHS '15 will begin her two-year term as Past President at that time.
Rhony earned her master of fine arts in writing, which is a low-residency program with most of the curriculum delivery taking place online. Students gather in Oregon twice annually for residencies at the Oregon Coast and in Forest Grove. Rhony completed all of her residencies during the height of the pandemic for a total of three virtual and two in-person. She was able to participate in the final Forest Grove residency and returned this year as a volunteer. She has also volunteered remotely in several ways. Her poetry has been included in several publications. She recently completed a 16-week DEI training with Mosaic Education Network along with community leaders in Sacramento and received a certificate of completion. Rhony lives in California.
The Alumni Board also elected two new members who add to the diverse array of perspectives represented.
Rebekah Goodfellow MBA '22
Rebekah Goodfellow attended the Hillsboro Campus and earned a Master of Business Administration: Healthcare Management. Upon graduation, she was recognized with the Outstanding MBA Student Service Award. She also holds a bachelor's degree in psychology from Portland State University. She currently works as the accounts receivable supervisor at Eye Health Northwest. Rebekah lives in Oregon.
Jenny Johnson-Riley '98
Jenny attended Forest Grove campus and studied literature and philosophy. She was a phonathon caller and a member of the forensics team. Jenny was featured in What Can I Do With A Degree in Philosophy a book by Dave Boersema, professor emeritus. She holds a master's of English from Portland State University and a PhD in Human Development from Fielding Graduate University. Her professional expertise is sexual violence research and therapy and she works at Kahn and Hansen & Associates. Jenny lives in Washington.
The Alumni Board continues to seek members who can represent the following perspectives:
- Attendance at Pacific between 1980 and 2010
- Attendance on Eugene, Woodburn and Hillsboro Campuses (any years)
- Graduate and professional degree programs – including alumni who hold more than one degree from Pacific (any years)
The Alumni Board also seeks other alumni who can offer perspectives not currently represented. We welcome all interested alumni to review some basic details and then respond to this email to schedule a meeting with a member of the Alumni Association staff to learn more.
The Alumni Board will next meet on March 9, 2024.