A HOPEFUL FUTURE
Each year our juniors and seniors here at HIS engage with various colleges and universities in our region. In March, they took a trip to California to visit three Seventh-day Adventist higher education institutions: Pacific Union College, La Sierra University, and San Manuel Gateway College, which is an affiliate of Loma Linda University.
At San Manuel Gateway College they were introduced to the health sciences department. They toured the grounds and library at La Sierra University and talked with current students about their college experience. However, the most impactful of the three campus visits was at Pacific Union College (PUC).
When asked what part they liked the best, Abbie and Dakota shared details of several activities they engaged in while visiting PUC. Both girls particularly enjoyed talking with the career service representative. “She gave us reality advice. She went deep and talked about the importance of having good time management and to not slack off. She didn’t just tell us that college is fun and that we should just do it.”
Additional activities included a campus tour of PUC, a scavenger hunt, and bowling. During their bowling excursion, the recruiter, Abraham, taught our students how to curve a bowling ball as they played. Abbie and Dakota playfully argued about who did better at curving. The group stayed through the weekend, which naturally included attending church. Afterwards, Abbie shared, “We were invited to the president’s house for Sabbath lunch. I really liked that.”
One particularly exciting encounter during their tour of PUC was the anatomage table in the health department. According to the PUC website, “This state-of-the-art technology is the most advanced human-based medical education system offering digitized human cadavers and medical tools.”
“We felt this table and the resource of having five human cadavers would be beneficial not just in pre-nursing but also as the students progress into nursing,” said PUC Dean of Nursing and Health Science Kimberly Dunker.¹ Dakota and Abbie very much liked interacting with the anatomage table, as it sparked curiosity about the human body and medicine.
Another key area of interest was the printing press. Many of our students do not come to Holbrook Indian School with thoughts for their future after high school. Most only consider careers they are familiar with because of family members’ career choices, like welding or auto mechanics. These are noble professions in themselves, but we want our students to know all of the options available to them based on their own personal skill set.
For example, one of our juniors, Leo, is a gifted and talented artist. While engaging with the printing press at PUC and creating a tote bag with a graphic, he was inspired to consider pursuing a career in art. With this new option, and since it is something he loves, he is now open to the idea of attending college after graduation to hone his skills as an artist.
We support our students in whichever path they choose after they graduate and leave HIS. We also want to provide them with as much necessary information as possible so they can make an informed decision about their future beyond HIS. Jeremiah 29:11 says, “‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future’” (NIV). God’s plans are always best, and sometimes having the proper information helps us to discern the bright future filled with hope that He has in store.
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¹Ally Romanes, “PUC’s Nursing Department Strengthens Program by Purchasing an Anatomage Table,” Pacific Union College, March 4, 2025, https://www.puc.edu/news/archives/2025/pucs-nursing-department-strengthens-program-by-purchasing-an-anatomage-table.
