DAYSTAR UNIVERS ITY

Jan 24 - Jan 31 ISSUE 02 2014

LPA Launches Creatives AcademyA cluster of prominent writers, publishers and media personalities came together for the official launch of Daystar’s Creatives Academy housed under the Department of Language and Performing Arts. The launch was held on Saturday, January 18, at the Nairobi Campus, Allen Grove annex.

Speaking at the event, Dean, School of Communication, Language and Performing Arts Prof. Levi Obonyo congratulated the Performing Arts Department for the exemplary work it has put in initiating and planning for the class. His remarks were echoed by Kinyanjui Kombani, writer of the acclaimed book “The last Villains of Molo” who also expressed gratitude on behalf of the writers who have joined hands in working on the project geared towards growing writers in the country. “I would like to thank Daystar for providing this unique opportunity for the writers to nurture their talent,” he added. Other guests in attendance included veteran writer and journalist, Ken Walibora, Head of Business News at Citizen Television, Terryanne Chebet, award winning writer Ng’ang’a Mbugua, Jason Kap Kirwok, Bonnie Kim, Winnie Thuku-Craig, Anthony Gitonga, and veteran writer Muthoni Likimani, all of who will be teaching in the class.

On her part, Head of Performing Arts Department and the brains behind the class, Dr. Wandia Njoya, expressed her joy to see students getting the much needed yet missing

grooming by the industry professionals. “My department is committed to not only teach but turn students into professionals,” she stated. She added that the idea behind the class was born from the Authors’ buffet; a meeting of writers to discuss issues affecting them, and the desire to pass on the experiences of writers and publishers to students who want to pursue a writing career.

The class will be held every Saturday till the 19th of April from 8-11a.m. and is open to anyone with a passion for writing; both continuing students and non-Daystar students. The continuing students who want to take the class for credit are instructed to register for ENG 408X (Special Topics) using the normal registration process. Daystar students who do not want to take the whole class, and non-Daystar students, will register at the beginning of every class at a cost of five hundred shillings per session, or 1,000 shillings if they want a certificate for that session. The format of the class is such that every professional writer, including some who were not present at the launch, will have a session where they will teach a designated topic, for which they are best suited. By the end of the course, students will have undertaken numerous projects; a major one being how to get published. Textbook Center, the giant bookshop chain, as well as the award-winning entertainment online magazine Niaje.com have also offered to sponsor the event.

HoD Language & Performing Arts, Dr. Wandia Njoya (2nd left) poses with some of the invited writers and media personalities.

For the second year running, Daystar University’s Athi River Campus played host to the 16th Chapter of Ezra Conference which was held recently. The conference attracted over 2100 delegates consisting of college and university students from all the 47 counties in Kenya, as well as delegates from the East African community, specifically Uganda and Tanzania. Daystar University was well represented by students from both Nairobi and Athi River Campuses.

The exposition of this year’s conference was “Secrets of the Kingdom: Living and serving under the Lordship of Christ.” The main Bible expositor was Director of International Fellowship of Evangelical Students (IFES), Europe, Mr. Peter Oyugi.

Speaking at the conference, the National Director of Fellowship of Christian Unions (FOCUS) Mr. Simon Masibo noted and lauded the growth of Ezra Conference. “This was the largest number of delegates in the history of Ezra” he said. Ezra is an annual Bible & Discipleship training conference, organized by FOCUS. Since its inception in 1989, Ezra Conference has had a running theme drawn from Ezra 7:10, with varying emphases each year. Until 2010, the thrust of Ezra conference had been “Bible & Leadership” training, with the aim of developing leaders and equipping delegates with skills to study the word of God, apply it to their lives and teach it to others. However, since 2011, the thrust of Ezra has changed to Bible and Discipleship training, so as to give discipleship a national platform for engagement.

As he welcomed delegates to Daystar University, the University Vice-Chancellor, Dr. Timothy Wachira noted that EZRA conference and specifically the number of its delegates has grown over the year. Also present at the conference were Daystar University Resident Chaplain, Rev. Mutinda Musyimi as well as the Corporate Affairs Manager Mr. Charles Kilonzo.

Mr. Peter Oyugi, speaks to the congregation during the EZRA 2013 - 2014 conference. Mr Oyugi was the main

expositor.

Daystar University Hosts EZRA Conference

Eva Kasaya Sheds Light on the Plight of House girls

Eva Kasaya, a writer whose memoir “Tale of Kasaya” won her the 2011 Jomo Kenyatta Foundation prize in the youth category, recently visited the Daystar University Book Club. This was for the discussion of her book Tale of Kasaya, which is about her experiences in Nairobi as a house girl.

Despite the hardships faced from employers who were sometimes violent and would not pay for the work she did in their homes, Ms. Kasaya said that she was committed to her work and carried it out with diligence. She said that she received responses from several people that the book had captured their own experiences. Since leaving domestic employment, Ms. Kasaya said that employment conditions for domestic workers have improved, with more of them now receiving days off and NHIF payments, unlike before when house girls worked

every day of the week and received no benefits. She joked that she and her generation were “the Mau Mau of house girls” because they spoke out about the lives of house girls.

The book club was held at Smart Village at Adams Arcade and attended by faculty and students across different departments who are bound together by their love for reading. They included Prof Mike Kuria - the club convener, Dr. Larry Ndivo, Lavender Akinyi, Juliet Hephzibah, David Karani and Dr. Wandia Njoya. They praised Tale of Kasaya as a brave book that is interesting to read.

Reviews of the book can be found on the Department website at https://sites.google.com/a/daystar.ac.ke/department-of-language-and-performing-arts/book-club-and-art-reviews/book-club-reviews/tale-of-kasaya.

Library Update

Did you know that you can access thousands of e-books available through various e-resources databases within the University? Following are some samples of computer Science books available from ebrary database

1. Certified Wireless Technology Specialist Official Study by GuideRobert J. Bartz (2012)Pass the CWTS exam with the help of this fully updated official guide. Completely updated to cover the latest Certified Wireless Technology

Specialist exam, this best-selling guide is the only Official Study Guide for the popular wireless certification. This foundation-level certification is in high demand for wireless networking professionals, and you can master all the exam topics with this Official guide. It covers all the exam objectives and helps you study with hands-on exercises, chapter review questions, an objective map, a pre-assessment test, and additional study tools on the companion website.

2. Networking for Dummies by Doug Lowe (2013) Both beginning network administrators and home users have made previous editions of this book a top seller. Now fully updated, this edition shows you step by step how to set up and maintain a network

and covers Windows 8 and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1. Author Doug Lowe also includes updated coverage of broadband technologies as well as storage and back-up procedures, all in his easy-to-follow style. You’ll learn to build a wired or wireless network, secure and optimize it, safely connect to the Internet, troubleshoot problems, and much more.

3. Microsoft Windows Security Essentials by Darril Gibson (2011)IT security can be a complex topic, especially for those new to the field of IT. This full-color book, with a focus on the Microsoft Technology Associate (MTA) program,

offers a clear and easy-to-understand approach to Windows security risks and attacks for newcomers to the world of IT. By paring down to just the essentials, beginners gain a solid foundation of security concepts upon which more advanced topics and technologies can be built.This straightforward guide begins each chapter by laying out a list of topics to be discussed, followed by a concise discussion of the core networking skills you need to have to gain a strong handle on the subject matter. Chapters conclude with review questions and suggested labs so you can measure your level of understanding of the chapter’s content.

4. Oracle Certified Associate, Java SE 7 Programmer Study Guide by M. Reese Richard (2012) This book covers:• In-depth understanding of Java through the examination of objects and methods• Extensive code

examples and figures to illustrate key concepts in Java SE 7 including memory usage

• Additional coverage of good programming and design practices as they relate to the certification objectives

• Step-by-step coverage of certification exam topics in a simplified and easy-to-learn manner.

Athi River Campus

Date: 28th January 2014Speaker: Dr. Chip KingsburyTopic: Family Talk

Date: 30th January 2014University Prayer DaySpeaker: Gary Leibovich

Date: 2nd February 2014Speaker: Pastor J. KamauTopic: God’s Dwelling Place

Nairobi Campus

Date: 28th January 2014Hymn ChapelSpeaker: Terry Nzauni

Date: 30th January 2014University Prayer DaySpeaker: Rev. Oliver Kisaka

Evening

Date: 31st January 2014University Prayer DaySpeaker: Pastor Curtis Reed

Mombasa Campus

Date: 30th January 2014University Prayer DaySpeaker: Pastor Gedion Banda

Chapel Diary

“Great minds discuss ideas. Average minds discuss events. Small minds discuss people.”

(Eleanor Roosevelt)

Weekly Inspiration

Daystar University invites all Daystar alumni to the Alumni Homecoming Chapel, which will be held on Sunday, March 2, 2014 at the Athi River Campus. The Alumni Chapel starts at 9:30 a.m. Transport to Athi River will be available at the Nairobi Campus at 8:00 a.m.

For planning purposes, all attending alumni are requested to kindly confirm attendance through the Daystar University Alumni Association (DUAA) Facebook page, or by sending an email to alumni@daystar.ac.ke.

Please come with your families. We look forward to having you back home!

Alumni Home coming Chapel

Ms. Juliana Ndunge Manzi, a student in the Bachelor of Commerce (Marketing) programme passed on last Thursday January 16, after a short illness. The late Juliana will be buried on Saturday, January 25, in Machakos County.

Mr. Michael Njuno of the Vice-Chancellor’s office has lost his father-in-law. Mr. Octavius Nyamu, who is also grandfather to Martha Wangeshi and Edwin Muchiri (Communication, and Computer Science students respectively), passed away on Thursday, January 16 in Kagio Nursing Home, Kirinyaga County. The late Mr. Nyamau will be buried on

Dr. Clayton Peel, senior faculty in the Department of Communication, lost his mother on Tuesday, January 14. She was buried on Monday, January 20, in Toronto, Canada.

Mrs. Patricia Ogolla of the Administration Department recently lost her father. Mr. Matthew Onyango passed away on January 9, and was laid to rest on Friday, January 17, in Ahero, Nyando County.

Kindly let us keep them all and their families in prayer.

Bereavement