A recent 10-year study names Hope College a leader among baccalaureate institutions as a source of future Ph.D. recipients.

 It is better to forgive than to seethe. So goes the conventional wisdom, according to Dr. Charlotte vanOyen Witvliet of the Hope College psychology faculty.  Her latest research project, recently awarded an external grant, just may prove it.

The Hope College Alumni Association  Board of Directors has appointed three new members and has  chosen its officers for 1998-99.          The board also made several reappointments.          The board's new members are:  Neil Petty of  Honeoye, N.Y. (New York Region), Jennifer Trask of Elm Hall  (Junior Class Representative) and James Van Eenenaam of Dana  Point, Calif. (California Region).          Claire Gibbs of Melbourne, Fla., has been  appointed president, succeeding Jennifer Liggett of  Kalamazoo, president since 1996, who will serve an  additional year on the board as past president.  Gibbs was  also reappointed to the board as its Southeast Region  Representative.          Bruce Brumels of Lake City has been appointed vice  president, and Michael Percy of Mentor, Ohio, has been  appointed to a second year as secretary.          Reappointed to the board in addition to Gibbs  were:  Michelle Laverman of Phoenix, Ariz. (Southwest  Region) and Linda Schaap of Barrington, Ill. (Central  Region).  Kara McGillicudy of Okemos, previously Senior  Class Representative, has been appointed Most Recent  Graduating Class Representative; and Dan McCue of Bexley,  Ohio, previously Junior Class Representative, has been  appointed Senior Class Representative.          In addition, three board members have concluded  their service to the board:  Janette Aardema of Grand  Rapids; Bryan Bush of Anaheim, Calif.; and Megan Mulder of  Chicago, Ill.          Petty, who is a 1957 Hope graduate, is retired as  principal of Martha Brown Middle School of Fairport, N.Y.   He worked for the school district for 32 years as a vocal  music teacher, assistant principal and principal.          He has served as chair of the Perinton Arts  Council and president of the Fairport Rotary Club, and on  the Board of Directors of Hunt Hollow Ski Club.  He was  director of choirs for the First Congregational Church in  Fairport for 24 years, and is currently a member of the  choir of the United Church of Christ of Honeoye; he has  served on committees or boards with both churches.          At Hope, he majored in music education and minored  in English and German.  He was a member of the Chapel Choir  and Cosmopolitan Fraternity, and president of the sophomore  class.          Petty earned his master's of education in guidance  and administration from the University of Rochester.          He served on the Rochester Advisory Committee for  the college's "Hope in the Future" campaign.  He has also  been active in Hope events in the Rochester area.          Petty and his wife, Janice, have three children:   David and Karen, who are both 1981 Hope graduates, and  Linda.          Trask, a junior at Hope, is an accounting major.          She has been active on the Social Activities  Committee (SAC) at Hope, and during the 1997-98 school year  was responsible for SAC events in the Kletz and worked on  special events such as the Talent Jam.  She will be SAC's  director during 1998-99.          Trask has been involved in Orientation at Hope,  and is serving as co-director this year, planning the  Orientation Weekend activities for the incoming class of  2002.  She was a resident assistant in Dykstra Hall during  the 1997-98 school year.          She has participated in the Partners in Promise  program that links Hope students with area children.  She  was named to the Dean's List during her freshman and  sophomore years.          Trask is the daughter of Jerry and Pamela Trask of  Elm Hall.  She is a 1996 graduate of Alma High School.          Van Eenenaam, who is a 1988 Hope graduate, has  been an international trade specialist with the U.S. Customs  Service/Department of Treasury since 1991.  He was  previously an import specialist with the International Trade  Administration/Department of Commerce in Washington, D.C.          While at Hope, he earned a business administration  major with a political science minor.  He was on Student  Congress, was a member of the Fraternal Society and  participated in the LaCrosse Club.  He holds an MBA in  management from Pepperdine University.          Van Eenenaam will be teaching international  business courses at the University of California, Irvine  during the 1998-99 school year.  He is an active member of  the Orange County Marine Institute, volunteering as a docent  and helping maintain the "Pilgrim," a replica of an 1830s  sailing ship.          He has been active in Hope events in California,  and as a volunteer for the Admissions Office.          Van Eenenaam and his wife, Sblenda, have three  children, Olivia, Sofie and Claire.