Peace Conference keynote speaker Nicholas Detweiler-Stoddard (Photo by David Kreider)

When 60 students were asked to name problems they want solved, answers included environmental, immigration and criminal justice reform and eliminating genocide, human trafficking and racism.

Having just posed the above request to the Feb. 19-20 Intercollegiate Peace Fellowship Conference, keynoter Nicholas Detweiler-Stoddard followed with a tougher question: “How many of these have you changed?”

After an awkward silence from the mostly undergraduates, he reminded them that frustration with big issues should not entail giving up, but working on a human scale. Personally, Detweiler-Stoddard knew he could not abolish racism, but had helped one boy and his family who suffered its effects.

STAR (Strategies for Trauma Awareness and Resilience) program artwork created by students during a weekend training seminar. The glasswork was featured throughout the weekend peace conference. The individual pieces of glass (inset) feature words and phrases focused on the process of peacebuilding. (Photo by Amy Schmid)

“Backyard Peacebuilding: Cultivating Peace In Our Neighborhoods” was the 2010 theme for the conference – an annual gathering organized by students from Mennonite schools for more than 60 years. Participants came to this year’s host campus, ²ÝÝ®ÉçÇø, from Conrad Grebel College, Waterloo, Ont.; Bluffton (Ohio) University; Goshen (Ind.) College; Hesston (Kan.) College; and Messiah College, Grantham, Pa.

Host students determine each year’s theme, noted faculty member Gloria Rhodes, chair of the applied social sciences department that houses the peacebuilding and development major. A previous conference hosted at EMU chose trauma healing. EMU seniors Kate Nussbaum and Jenny Hochstetler led in planning this year’s event, working in a small campus group since September. The “Backyard” theme emerged in early brainstorming when students called for a localized focus, said Nussbaum.

Feedback from students

Messiah College sophomore Phil Wilmot liked the emphasis on working locally. He hopes to start a movement to resist war taxation.

Participants in Vanessa Hershberger’s “Peacebuilding Education in Nicaragua” workshop try to tie a knot without letting go of the ends, an exercise aimed at illustrating how difficult it can be to work in a different culture. Photo by Amy Schmid

Daniel Foxvog is active in a peace club on his Goshen campus, which recently sponsored a workshop on resisting war “from the 1960s to today.” He hopes to advocate for immigrants or restorative justice.

Tannis Schilk liked the emphasis on constructive change. The second-year political science major from Conrad Grebel said, “We spend a lot of time studying government and how it works, but not how to improve things.”

Defining “peace” was another challenge Detweiler-Stoddard posed. To some, e noted, “peace” has negative connotations. Students called out related terms, ranging from “conflict transformation” to “Shalom.”

Caleb Gingrich, in his third year at Grebel, felt peace was not the mere absence of violence, but “living in harmony with each other. It’s not the absence of conflict, but how you deal with conflict; how you value each other.”

About the speaker

EMU 2007 graduate Detweiler-Stoddard, who received the bi-national C. Henry Smith Peace Oratory award that year and later worked with local schools, the Boys and Girls Club and Crossing Creeks facility, is a first-year master of divinity student at Eastern Mennonite Seminary.

While no more than a third of attendees aspired to careers in peacebuilding, most agreed with Detweiler-Stoddard that “Peacebuilding is something everybody can do.”

He suggested “de-professionalizing” their concept of it. Once traveling to Jamaica, working beside human rights lawyers and other “professional peacebuilders,” he had felt, “Peace wasn’t my thing. Fortunately, my colleagues helped me to see differently. It was something that I as a common person could do.” He now aspires to ministry, perhaps — though not necessarily – in a pastorate.

Peacebuilding activities

Students from each school shared their peacebuilding activities, including gardening, composting, anti-racism training and peer mediation, noted Hochstetler. While brainstorming for new projects, “The students had so much visionary energy and so many incredible ideas, they repeatedly exceeded the time frames,” Detweiler-Stoddard said.

Among the mostly student-led workshops, “Music as a Metaphor” for harmonious interaction was a favorite for Hochstetler. Nussbaum added, “We had a great discussion on Safe Space” – a group for dialogue on sexual orientation. “The majority found a lot of hope in our generation about our willingness to dialogue.”

Two workshops addressed immigration: one titled “Would You Let Jesus In?” and another discussing the proposed “DREAM Act” to allow conditional citizenship for undocumented youth.

Other topics ranged from Palestine-occupation divestment to “Commuting for Peace – Biking in the 21st Century.” Several from the latter workshop wheeled off to ride between lingering snowbanks on a chilled but sunny afternoon.

The conference ended with some hands-on work: students assisted Titus Peachey and Luke Schrock-Hurst, of Mennonite Central Committee, in folding towels for kits containing supplies for shipment to Haiti.

Learn more about peacebuilding and development studies at EMU

Chris Edwards is a free-lance writer living in Harrisonburg.

This year’s gathering will focus on the theme, “Backyard Peacebuilding – Cultivating Peace in Our Neighborhoods.”

Keynote speaker

Nicholas Stoddard, a 2007 EMU graduat, will give the keynote address

Nicholas Stoddard of Harrisonburg, a 2007 EMU graduate, will give a keynote address 9 a.m. Friday, Feb. 19, and speak several additional times on the conference theme.

Stoddard received first place in the bi-national C. Henry Smith Peace Oratorical contest his senior year. His oration focused on how one’s actions have direct effect on others, even those at a great distance. He is currently is a first-year student in the master of divinity program at Eastern Mennonite Seminary.

Conference details

The program, entirely organized by students in EMU’s Peace Fellowship, will open 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 18 and end noon Saturday, Feb. 20. Participating schools include Conrad Grebel College, Ont.; Bluffton (Ohio) University; Goshen (Ind.) College; Hesston (Kan.) College; and Messiah College, Grantham, Pa.

Workshops will be offered on a wide range of topics from “Conflict as a Metaphor for Peacebuilding” and “A Biblical Perspective on Immigration” to “Biking as Peacebuilding” and “Morally Responsible Investment” and others.

Most sessions will be held in Martin Chapel of the seminary building and seminary classrooms.

Full schedule of events

Creating connections

The purpose of the conference is “to gather together fellow students who care about issues of peace and justice,” said EMU senior Jennifer K. (Jenny) Hochstetler, conference co-organizer. “These students are our peers, soon to be colleagues, and this will be a great time to connect and build relationships as well as have meaningful discussions on being active in building peace in our own neighborhoods,” she added.

Participants have been invited to remain on campus until Sunday. Those who do will take part in a service activity Saturday afternoon, making relief kits for Haiti.

For more information on the conference, contact co-organizers Kate Nussbaum, kate.nussbaum@emu.edu, or Jenny Hochstetler, jennifer.hochstetler@emu.edu.

Peace Fellowship is a student organization that organizes campus-wide activities, regular space to share meals and discussions, and special speakers to spark meaningful dialogue.

Laura C. Cattell

Laura C. Cattell, an environmental science and justice, peace and conflict studies major from Honey Brook, Pa., won first place with her speech, “Structural Violence in the U.S. Education System.”

Listen to the podcast of Laura’s speech as she gave it during chapel on April 3, 2009.

In the bi-national contest she competed against winners from other Mennonite-related colleges and universities in the United States and Canada.

Building a more just world

In describing structural violence, she presented a case study of two high schools in the Philadelphia area, one in a wealthy suburb and another in a nearby economically-distressed area in the city. As persons and organizations worked within the system for a more equitable distribution of resources and program funds, the formula used to allocate federal funds was changed to include parameters such as poverty and ESL and consequently provide more resources to communities with little indigenous wealth.

“If we are to do true peacebuilding, we must address structural violence,” Cattell said in her speech. “Service and individual change are needed, but without advocacy it is short-sighted. As Christians, we must continue to serve those around us, but must also embrace the role of advocacy in building a more just world.

Challenging and engaging coursework at EMU

“Challenging and engaging coursework at EMU promoted me to speak about the power differentials that maintain and entrench structural violence, I chose to speak specifically about the education system because in theory it gives all kids the same chance at success,” Cattell said.

“I am grateful for such a wonderful opportunity to articulate the problem of structural violence in the education system and to [EMU] professor Gloria Rhodes for her guidance and encouragement on this project,” she added.

In April 2009, Cattell was among 10 recipients of the annual “Cords of Distinction” award. The students were selected for their “significant and verifiable impact” on the university and on student life, for their contributions to developing the institution’s positive image, for substantial contributions to the Harrisonburg-Rockingham County area and beyond, for their high academic and social standing and their embodiment of EMU’s shared values of Christian discipleship, community, service and peacebuilding.

Cattell will begin working in October with the Maryland Conservation Corps at the Merkle Wildlife Sanctuary (). This award-winning AmeriCorps program engages young adults in extensive natural resource management and park conservation projects. The program has been managed by the Maryland Park Service since 1984.

She is a member of Frazer Mennonite Church, Malvern, Pa.

Nick Stoddard winner in 2007

EMU has participated in the oratorical competition for the last seven out of eight years, with Nicholas L. (Nick) Detweiler-Stoddard of Harrisonburg winning the grand prize at the bi-national level in 2007 with his speech, “Connect the Dots.”

The contest was established in 1974 by the directors of the C. Henry Smith Trust as a way of honoring the late Mennonite historian who taught at Goshen (Ind.) College and Bluffton (Ohio) University. Smith is well-known for his numerous books on Mennonite history and his particular attention to the peace commitments of the Mennonite tradition.

It is administered annually by Peace and Justice Ministries of Mennonite Central Committee U.S. Students from every Mennonite and Brethren in Christ college in North America are eligible to participate. At EMU, the contest is sponsored by the departments of Bible and religion, language and literature and justice, peace and conflict studies.

EMU grad Nick Detweiler-Stoddard, a biblical studies major who is now entering the M.Div. program at Eastern Mennonite Seminary.

As a recipient of a 2009 FTE Congregational Fellowship, Detweiler-Stoddard will receive a $2,000 to $5,000 award from FTE, which matches support from his nominating congregation for seminary tuition and living expenses. He will also attend the 2009 FTE Conference on Excellence in Ministry, “Becoming Rich toward God: Pastoral Leadership and Economic Justice,” June 17-21 at Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria, Va.

FTE Congregational Fellows are selected competitively from a pool of applicants from across the U.S. and Canada. They must be nominated by a congregation, be preparing for congregational or parish ministry, have a minimum grade point average of 3.0 and have intellectual and interpersonal gifts for pastoral leadership. Detweiler-Stoddard was nominated for the fellowship by Community Mennonite Church of Harrisonburg, where he is a member.

The Wellman, Iowa, native is a 2008 biblical studies graduate of EMU. He is a behavior support specialist at Crossroads Counseling Center in Harrisonburg, working with clients to help them function better in school.

In 2007, Detweiler-Stoddard won the grand prize at the bi-national level in the C. Henry Smith Peace Oratorical Contest with his speech, “Connect the Dots.” Read the speech (PDF)

He and his wife, Erika Detweiler-Stoddard, are youth sponsors at Community Mennonite Church.

More about FTE fellowships

FTE awards the fellowships, which are funded by Lilly Endowment Inc., to increase the number of highly capable young people exploring or preparing for ordained ministry as a profession. Fewer than seven percent of clergy in most denominations today are under age 35, and interest among seminary students in congregational ministry has declined over the past five years.

“In today’s economy, the need to support young people who aspire to serve the church and the common good is an essential investment,” said the Rev. Ellen Echols Purdum, director of FTE Ministry Fellowships. “Congregations and entire communities need the intellect, leadership gifts and compassion that these candidates will bring to local challenges, spiritual, social and economic.”

The Fund for Theological Education is a leading ecumenical advocate for excellence and diversity in pastoral ministry and theological scholarship. It supports the next generation of leaders among pastors and scholars, annually providing $1.5 million in fellowships and support to gifted young people from all denominations and racial/ethnic backgrounds.

For more information about FTE fellowships, visit .

An EMU student has received first prize in the bi-national C. Henry Smith Peace Oratorical Contest.

Nicholas L. (Nick) Stoddard, a senior biblical studies major from Wellman, Iowa, won a cash gift and a scholarship to attend a peace-related conference for his speech, “Connect the Dots.”

His oration focused on developing a mindset that sees how one’s actions have a direct effect on other people, even those at great geographic distance.

The winning speech can be viewed at http://www.emu.edu/news/nicholas_stoddard.pdf

Stoddard is co-leader of EMU Peace Fellowship with Katrina Alger and Michelle Kennel. He is married to Erika Detweiler Stoddard, a 2007 EMU graduate, and is a member of Kalona (Iowa) Mennonite Church.

“This contest is a great opportunity for EMU students to speak in their own words to how they apply the Christian peace witness to specific issues they care about,” said Nancy R. Heisey, chair of EMU’s Bible and religion department. “It’s exciting to see Nicholas’ challenge to us at EMU to choose just lifestyle options being recognized as central to the peace witness of Mennonites throughout the U.S. and Canada.”

The contest was established in 1974 by the directors of the C. Henry Smith Trust as a way of honoring the late Mennonite historian who taught at Goshen (Ind.) College and Bluffton (Ohio) University.

It is administered annually by Peace and Justice Ministries of Mennonite Central Committee U.S. Students from every Mennonite and Brethren in Christ college in North America are eligible to participate.