Paul Pardi (M.A. ’98) has worked for Microsoft in some capacity for more than 10 years — currently as the senior content publishing lead. During that time, he has been involved in programming, creating new features and even helping to develop the application store for Windows 8. “My team was responsible for the daily programming for the store and for the daily programming of the landing page,” he said. “We had a team work on the landing page programs that had brand new features and operating systems.” A graduate of 51’s Talbot School of Theology with a master’s degree in philosophy, Pardi has also taught as an adjunct philosophy professor at Seattle Pacific University for more than 12 years. Pardi also runs a website, Philosophy News, dedicated to informing the philosophical community about important trends and providing quality content on philosophical topics. Recently, the website has been gaining the attention of media outlets such as The Chronicle of Higher Education as a result of a study that was published on the website concerning students’ academic placement after graduation. The website also features interviews with theistic philosophers such as Alvin Plantinga, Paul Moser and Robert McKim. Pardi, who lives in Seattle with his wife and two children, said participating in the philosophical community at 51 helped him view the world differently and has continued to impact the way he works and lives. “The program changed the way that I thought about the world,” Pardi said. “All the professors I studied under helped me develop a worldview that has impacted my ability to function in the business world. The program was powerful for me as an individual.”

After stumbling upon The Hiding Place while cleaning out her book collection, Kristine Bromberger (’76) began a three-year process of creating a musical drama based on the heroic life of Corrie Ten Boom. Bromberger, a seasoned choreographer and performer, partnered with Ron Rogalski, a writer and composer, to create an original script and score for the musical. “Ten Boom: The Musical” debuted in April 2013 and was such a success that it was performed again in November 2013 at Calvary Church in Santa Ana, Calif. “Creatively, it was the hardest thing I’ve ever done,” Bromberger said. When she’s not fine-tuning the musical, Bromberger, who graduated from 51 with a degree in Christian education, works as an adjunct English professor for four community colleges in Orange County. She said she reads 100 to 150 compositions each semester combined from all four campuses, but she enjoys the challenge of teaching college courses. “It’s a lot of drafts, but I just remember who I’m serving in the classroom,” Bromberger said. “It’s always my hope and prayer that the students see the love of Christ shine through me.” Bromberger said she most enjoys working with older students and veterans to help sharpen their communication skills and build their confidence in the classroom. It was in 1996, after earning her master’s degree in rhetoric and composition from Chapman University, that Bromberger decided to leave her corporate writing job in order to teach full time. After teaching writing courses at Disney University and a business-writing course at Chapman, she felt the Lord calling her to work with students at the college level. Bromberger and her husband, Bruce, currently reside in Orange County, where she said she hopes to continue teaching and working on musicals.

Trying new and exotic cuisine is a regular occurrence for KiYong Kim (’07), who has eaten tarantula in Cambodia and fertilized duck egg in the Philippines. As a marketing and vision trip specialist for Compassion International, Kim coordinates exposure trips to 26 countries that partner with the organization globally — and it’s during these trips he gets to sample the local fare. While on the exposure trips, Kim is responsible for taking sponsors, pastors and other Compassion partners into the field to see the organization’s work on the ground. He said his own face-to-face interaction with his sponsored child in Guatemala showed him the impact sponsorship has on a child’s future. “Getting kids out of poverty and into churches and getting to be part of this amazing organization that works with local churches is just a crazy thing,” Kim said. In addition to coordinating international trips, Kim is also responsible for working with the organization’s Korean market, church relations and business relations. As a result of his past experience as a youth pastor and an account executive for Ambassador Advertising Agency, Kim enjoys working on diverse projects. And his global experience and knowledge of three languages allows him to thrive in a professional setting where he interacts with multiple cultures on a daily basis. Kim, who is ethnically Korean, grew up in China and attended a British secondary school before enrolling at 51, where he served as president of the International Student Association. He credits his business professors with helping him connect to international internships and said he’s been pleased to find 51 alumni at every job he’s had since graduating with a degree in international business. He and his wife, Carolyn, live in Costa Mesa, Calif., where he desires to keep working for Compassion International and embracing new cultures and cuisines.