The university unveiled the “Headlines of History” exhibit of photos and school memorabilia from some of the high points in the university’s history, founded by George Pepperdine in downtown Los Angeles in 1937.
By Paul Sisolak / Special to The Malibu Times
A sense of school pride was in the air at Pepperdine University last weekend, with the first of a series of events on the Malibu campus celebrating its 75th anniversary.
The “Waves Weekend” kicked off a yearlong campaign to mark the school’s diamond jubilee, combining the school’s homecoming, alumni reunions, family activities and live music.
Members of the school’s Crest Advisory Committee also hosted an unveiling of “Headlines of History,” an exhibit of photos and school memorabilia from some of the high points in the university’s history, founded by George Pepperdine in downtown Los Angeles in 1937.
A reception for the exhibit took place Saturday afternoon in the Thornton Administrative Center, where friends and alumni recalled their experiences at the university as life changing.
“It’s like a personal walk down memory lane about what came before and after,” said Susan Giboney, a Pepperdine alumna who graduated during the school’s silver anniversary.
She was the last to see the founder of Pepperdine hand out diplomas personally. Giboney recalled the camaraderie between the student body, her memories of George Pepperdine, and also her associations with the university’s Associated Women for Pepperdine club, a groundbreaking first for the 1950s.
“I think it was meaningful for the women to have a leadership role,” she said.
“Headlines” is a chronological, pictorial history of the university. Through archival visuals and captions, visitors can look at Pepperdine’s noteworthy milestones through the years. George Pepperdine College was founded in 1937 by the successful auto parts businessman, but in its first 35 years, classes were not in Malibu, but in downtown Los Angeles, where students were greeted at the campus entrance by a stone cherub dubbed Delores, one of the school’s now-iconic images.
It was the donation of 138 acres of vacant land by the Adamson family in the late 1960s that brought the college to Malibu in 1972. Grant Adamson said at Saturday’s reception that his grandfather specified the parcel be used for something “special,” and that the location has always played a part in the school’s success.
“The students are great when they come here and even better when they leave here,” Adamson said.
“There’s not a day I don’t step on campus and reflect on the beauty,” Kevin Steele, a Pepperdine alumnus, said.
The exhibit’s time timeline also goes into detail regarding the school’s numerous athletic victories throughout the years. The university reaches beyond Malibu, as well, as the exhibit’s timeline details the establishment of various international programs across the globe in countries like Argentina, China and Switzerland. Visits from dignitaries and politicians are also recounted.
“I remember [Ronald] Reagan being here,” said Jenny Ricker, a 1976 Pepperdine graduate, about the then-California governor’s visit to the campus.
“Headlines” also devotes space for the university’s response on September 11, 2001, which claimed the life of 1995 alumnus, Thomas E. Burnett Jr. Burnett Jr. died on United Flight 93, which crashed into a Pennsylvania field after a group of passengers, including Burnett, thwarted the terrorists. The school honors Burnett’s memory in its Heroes Garden.
Ensconced in glass cases throughout the exhibit are some well-preserved items from the school’s past, including a vintage varsity sweater, a student body jury gavel and George Pepperdine’s original typewriter.
But nostalgia aside, “Headlines” omits one ongoing relationship that can’t necessarily be summarized in an exhibition. It’s been well documented that Pepperdine throughout the years has endured a somewhat fractious relationship with the City of Malibu since it established itself here in the seventies.
“I find the university to be an asset to the community, but with reservation,” Councilman Jefferson “Zuma Jay” Wagner said. “It’s a fine institution for higher education … [but] the problem we have with community relations is that the university is always answering to the questions of the community. The university’s not been proactive, in my mind. They’ve never really sponsored a huge event in the City of Malibu for the benefit of the city. It’s always a university-oriented type event.”
The university’s conservative-themed ideologies have often clashed with Malibu’s liberal-leaning vibes as well; however, in a social context, that gap has narrowed, Wagner said.
“I think the image of being conservative has melted a bit,” he said. “Socially, they’re finding a more harmonious blending with the city.”
Jerry Derloshon, Pepperdine’s director of public relations, believes the relationship between the school and the city has improved markedly over the past decade.
“In the 10 years I’ve been there, the relationship between Pepperdine University and the City of Malibu has been, for the most part, positive,” he said. “When we have challenges and difficulties, we find ways to overcome them, with candidness, diplomacy and dialogue.”
Derloshon cited recent dialogues with the city and its officials over approval of Pepperdine’s master plan as one positive example. University students, staff and faculty, he said, show their support for Malibu commerce by bringing revenue to the city through local businesses.
Derloshon and Wagner find themselves in agreement over one thing-that the recent Navy Days celebration, which Pepperdine participated in, was a solid collaboration between the two entities.
The “Headlines of History” exhibit is expected to remain on display through the 2011-2012 school year.