Anonby nominated for Emeritus status
Retired professor to be honoured this spring
April 7, 2007
Alison Fraser, Staff Writer
Dr. John Anonby, who retired from the Trinity Western University English department last year, has been nominated for Professor Emeritus status. This honour will be conferred to him at the Graduation Ceremony in April.
The award is given to those who have shown excellence in teaching, produced scholarly journals or research, and have been nominated by their faculty. The nomination serves to keep ties strong with former professors, ensuring that their next steps outside of the university will be ones in which they will represent the school.
Anonby began teaching at TWU in 1975. Thoughout his time at the university, he took several sabbaticals to travel and work in East Africa with his family. Since leaving the school, Anonby has completed a book and is planning a return trip to Africa.
“We’ve been making plans to go back to Africa for a retirement project,” he said, of him and his wife. “The whole idea of retirement is a whole new venture for us.”
His retirement will not be a typical one, however, as he and his wife will be teaching for a semester at a Bible college in Kitwe, Zambia, launching a new course on African authors. After that, they will be teaching at Pan Africa Christian University in Kenya.
“Much of the research I’ve done over the years and many of my interests lie in looking at Christian perspectives in literature; looking not only at Christian authors but non-Christian authors,” said Anonby.
As Professor Emeritus, his ties will remain close to the university, and Anonby said he is pleased with the direction TWU is headed.
“My sense of it is that this university is very interested in and concerned about reaching out into society,” said Anonby. “This is not a Christian hideout, and all through the years we’ve been aware that our mandate is to link with the larger society.”
With his strong background in theology and literature, Anonby is doing just that – reaching out through his love of books.
While in Kenya, Anonby will focus on theological and biblical courses, but hopes to branch out into more literary dimensions in the university courses there.
“Literature is one of the avenues into society, the pulse of society, and to be able to articulate a Christian perspective not only with people who agree with you, but people who don’t, is wonderful if it leaves people inquiring,” he said.
Although he is no longer teaching at TWU, he said a strong tie to the school will always exist: “It affirms my ongoing connection with Trinity Western, and in some ways I see myself as a representative of the university.”
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