Pepperdine University - Promenade Yearbook (Malibu, CA)

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By Dwayne Jones It is a little past three in the afternoon and Bob Fraley is just now sitting down to relax for the first time today. He drops into a large leather back chair and lets out a sight of relief. You know, he says, just today tFeb. D I hand- ed in my resignation as dean of admissions, ef- fective July 31. He leans over his desk and with an open palm resting his face in the center of his hand and says, I am over 65 and it is time to retire. He adds, Today will be a good day to reminisce. Fraley glances upward to appreciate the incred- ible view that fills a whole corner of his office. I love to watch the deer when they come down the mountain, he says, but adds that it is sad to think of how many have died because reckless students were driving through campus too fast and too busy to notice them in the road. He has two lloonto-ceiling windows: one offers the Pacific Ocean, and on a clear day Catalina can be seen with the naked eye; the other window allows Fraley to enjoy the deer that come down through the dusty mountainside to nibble the vegetation. Wisdom is often associated with being over 65, and as the interview lengthened, this man's wisdom flowed. One question that has haunted him most of his life: Why am I where I am, and they are where they are? He is speaking of Calcutta, 1943. He was only 18. It was the middle of World War II, and he was stationed in India. I was among the poorest of the poor, Fraley says. I remember the great famine and the flatbed trucks stopping along the streets like the garbage trucks do to pick up garbage, except they were there to pick up bodies that lined Robert Fraley, dean of admissions and enrollment management, plans to move to Washington state. ister so he could serve people. I tell people that my life is made of three 21-year passages. He believes that all good things come through a rite of passage, just as college is a rite of passage. His third passage has been at Pepperdine. He brought his experiences to this job. He came here to serve young people because he believes in what Pepperdine offers. Kids come here with their parents, and they walk the streets.' He describes how they would stack them on the flatbed trucks. One row with heads turned on way and the next row with the heads turned the other way. Then they would pull a rope over What they. tstudent prospectsl are looking for can't be seen. --Dean Bob Fraley around looking in the buildings and peering through the windows, all looking for some- thing, but what they are looking for can't be seen. He is referring to Plato: the top to tie them down to take the Most real things are unset: bodies away to be burned. Fraley is momentarily silent. He has blue eyes which are glistening, as if tears could come at any time. That is how real India and this life-long question, Why am I where I am, and they are where they are? came to him. It is a question without any tangible answer, says Fraley, and I don't expect to ever get an answer. Fraley came home from India and became a min- Fraley believes that Pepperdine is offering an experi- ence, and this can't be seen. His peers, staff, students and wife all say he is a prankster and a great storyteller. Fraley believes that humor clears the air of motives and puts people at eat; A lot of people know Bob Fraley. And a lot of people can say, That's a good man, he really cares. But most people when asked, will laugh and say, He knows the funniest stories. 18 Features

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c ?U z 0 m 4 2 O m e Dr. Phillip Thomason, associate professor of Spanish, talks with a Seaver student. By Bill Weir It is an average Pendleton classroom. Undergrads sit, fidgeting about the room. Upperclassmen shuffle in, with the words incomplete requirement written across their expressions. Until the lights go out. The audible din is quieted by a strong, soothing voice. Even in the dark, authority can be discerned in the words, yet the tone seems as if it is incapable of expressing a harsh word. Como esta? Dr. Phillip evaluations, and they stand near perfect as far as likability among students is concerned. I pull from a lot of different teaching method- ologies. 'Eclectric' would be a good word. In this subject, to lead a student to communicate vocally is the most important to me. There's an obligation to teach the basics of grammar. But I do like to use off-the-wall teaching methods. I strive never to do it more for effect than for value. Let it never be said that Thomason is all flash and no substance. The Thomason, associate pro- fessor of Spanish, asks calmly out of the black. All I want you to do is relax, con- centrate and listen. A conjugation of Spanish verbs follows--a terrifying chore for those 95 percent required to take a foreign When you speak another language, it opens up a whole new world. -- Dr. Phil Thomason students give him praise, sure, but he has spent a lot of time gathering inforrnaton to give back. An undergraduate degree from Montebello, graduate work at Auburn, a doctorate from the University of Kentucky, and dissertation work in the City Archives of Madrid, Spain are all language course. How do I explain turning off the lights? Thomason asks himself aloud, smiling. It takes away all exterior distraction; it helps people relax. People learn much better when they are less tense and uptight. And, quite frankly, I use it as a shock method. You have to do whatever you can to get people's attention. And it seems very appropriate that this gentle man who seems to radiate wisdom would use a shock. method as subtle as turning out the lights. But whatever the formula, it works. In his years at Pepperdine, no one has been able to match his teacher resume items. Why Spanish? My fourth grade Spanish teacher, he replies, rather humbly. She really influenced me. I was a small town kid, always want- ing to do exotic things. Spanish was exotic! It was away from the norm. It was being different. For now, Malibu is as exotic as it gets for Thomason, his wife, who works as a librarian in Payson Library and his 11-year-old son. But it is evident in his manner, his style and his results that he truly loves what he does. Besides, he grins, when you speak another language, it opens up a whole new world. That is quite exotic enough. Features 17

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Z O m Z 1-4 M H 41 By Cindy Pazuk Many things have changed at Pepperdine since it first opened in Los Angeles in 1937. But since 1961, one thing tor personl has remained constant. J im Atkinson has been the friendly face in the Foreign Student Office for more than 25 years, and after a very successful career as professor, adviser and friend, he is retiring. He came to Pepperdine, while it was still located in Los Angeles, in 1961 as a professor students he has met throughout his years with the university. A great thing about this office is that you can keep in touch with people from all over the world, Atkinson says. I like knowing that 1, maybe in some way, helped make their time at Pepperdine more memorable. Atkinson hasnlt always remained on campus though. For a year he was a visiting faculty member and professor of English at the university's Year-in- Europe program in of English. After eight years of teach- ing he accepted the position of full- time foreign student adviser. During his time as adviser, he has befriended many students who are just arriving in the United States with no prior knowledge of the customs or My dream would be to see all of the students at Pepperdine become better friends. --Jim Atkinson Heidelberg, West Germany. Though he says he only speaks English fluently, and a smattering of a few others, he manages to communicate with norms Americans take for granted. The tforeignl students go through the Foreign Student Office to be admitted as undergraduates to Seaver College, he says. We provide documents, work, and advising--also we provide friendship. There are more than 650 undergraduates at Seaver College who are non-U,S. citizens. All of them must go through the Foreign Student Office and Atkinson, for their classes. But he has provided much more than simply advising. He trys to keep in touch with many of the kindness. In retirement, Atkinson says he will avoid Mondays as much as possible. One improvement that he would like to see is for the foreign and American students to become better acquainted. I would like to see a greater interaction between foreign and American students, he says. We have a microcosm of the world here, and it's sad that so many people's paths never cross. My dream would be to see all of the students at Pepperdine become friends. Jim Atkinson, foreign student adviser, has served Pepperdine University since 1961. Features 19