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	<img alt="" src="http://ausable.org/images/uploads/general/North Park_1.jpg" style="width: 250px; height: 188px; float: right;" />Au Sable is pleased and honored to announce the completion of a new Sustaining Partner Agreement with North Park University. A long-time member of Au Sable&rsquo;s family of Participating Colleges, North Park University, located in Chicago, Illinois, has now joined another important group of Au Sable&rsquo;s supporting institutions, the Sustaining Partners. Sustaining Partner colleges and universities make direct financial contributions to the operation of Au Sable&rsquo;s academic program, and in return receive discounted tuition, reserved course slots and reserved research opportunities for their students.</p>
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	With the new partnership agreement, North Park joins Bethel University, Calvin College, Cedarville University, Cornerstone University, Covenant College, The King&rsquo;s University College, Messiah College, and Redeemer University College to bring the total number of current Sustaining Partners to nine. Fred Van Dyke, Au Sable&rsquo;s Executive Director noted, &ldquo;It is both a delight and distinction to welcome such a distinguished institution as North Park University to the Sustaining Partner family. Over 100 Au Sable alumni are North Park graduates, making North Park a major contributor to Au Sable&rsquo;s alumni community and the number has been growing rapidly in recent years. It&rsquo;s fitting for us to enter into this new relationship with North Park that will bring additional benefits to its current and future students in their interactions with Au Sable. And it is an honor for us to partner with such a distinguished institution, one that works in the heart of a major urban area.&rdquo;</p>
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	North Park distinguished itself recently in the Au Sable community by being home to Katie Patterson, the inaugural (2014) winner of the Harold Z. Snyder Fellowship. Speaking of her education at Au Sable and its connection to North Park, Katie said, &ldquo;I believe that Au Sable&rsquo;s vision to &ldquo;inspire and educate people to serve, protect, and restore God&rsquo;s earth&rdquo; is an undeniable continuation of North Park&rsquo;s mission to &ldquo;prepare students for lives of significance and service&rdquo;.&nbsp; The most substantial aspect of my time was the community that I was a part of while taking classes with the institute. As integral to my experience as learning lake chemistry and identifying hundreds of marine invertebrates was, the open and honest conversations with my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ were just as much so. After each session at Au Sable I walked back onto the North Park campus with an unhindered passion for God and His Creation, and I could not keep myself from sharing my experience with everyone I met!&rdquo;</p>
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	&nbsp;Through its status as a Sustaining Partner, North Park will now be able to offer its own students reduced tuition for Au Sable courses and special consideration for positions in the Au Sable research program, while its own administration can play a greater role in the review and development of Au Sable&rsquo;s own curriculum. North Park&rsquo;s Provost, Dr. Michael O. Emerson, noted, &ldquo;&ldquo;We are thrilled to move to Sustaining Partner status with Au Sable. Learning to care for God&rsquo;s creation is essential and urgent, and that is why our partnership with Au Sable is vital.&rdquo;</p>
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	All of us at Au Sable are thrilled to welcome North Park University to the Sustaining Partner family. We look forward to a long relationship of mutual benefit and blessing for everyone involved.</p>
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