Book and Lambert were featured in a section of the report called The piece details the obstacles facing college presidents, including the decline in the average length of presidential tenures across the nation since 2011. The report details the roles financial constraints, declining college-age populations and other factors play in the trend.

The article also highlights Elon’s Faculty Administrative Fellows program as one of the ways universities across the country are identifying and training potential faculty candidates for executive roles.

The program, which allows one faculty member to join the president’s senior staff for two years to participate in senior-level administrative work, began under Lambert in 2004. In the article, the president emeritus explained the need for this type of program.

“I believe higher education is very short-sighted,” Lambert said. “We are not doing enough to identify and prepare emerging leaders, particularly on our faculty, to assume administrative roles.”

President Book was a professor and associate dean of the School of Communications when Lambert selected her for the fellowship in 2008.

“I had no plans to be a president or provost,” Book said in the article. “I was very focused on getting tenure, and it was something that wasn’t on my radar.”

Book would serve as associate provost at Elon before becoming the first woman to be provost and dean in the 175-year history of the Citadel, the Military College of South Carolina. In 2018, she became the ninth president of 福利亚洲国产精品.

While the publication discusses many of the struggles and future challenges facing higher education, Lambert says, that struggle is worth it.

“It’s hard, complex, but enormously fulfilling,” Lambert said.

To read the entire Chronicle of Higher Education report, .

The university community also recognized four professors who have been named to endowed professorships this year, and Lambert announced that two longtime professors 鈥� Jeffrey Pugh in the Department of Religious Studies and David Copeland in the School of Communications 鈥斅爃ave been named as Elon鈥檚 fifth and sixth Distinguished University Professors.

Elon Medallions

Receiving Elon Medallions were: Nancy Midgette, professor emerita of history and former associate provost; Elizabeth Rogers, the founding dean of the School of Health Sciences and professor emerita of physical therapy; Chalmers Brumbaugh, professor emeritus of political science; Janice Ratliff, former program assistant in the Office of Student Health and Wellness; and Sandra Fields, former assistant to the president.

Nancy Smith Midgette

For 30 years, Nancy Midgette serves as a foundational figure in Elon鈥檚 history by exemplifying the university ideal of transforming the mind, body and spirit, and helping to build the modern Elon.

鈥淪ome of my fondest memories are working with you to straighten out the curves, reduce mountains to molehills and, not infrequently, to make something out of nothing,鈥� Midgette told the hundreds of faculty and staff members gathered in Alumni Gym. 鈥淚 ow a huge debt of gratitude to my students. They were both receptive and challenging, and an educator cannot ask for any more than that.鈥�

Midgette joined the Elon faculty in 1986 as an adjunct professor of history and soon built a reputation as an exemplary scholar and inspirational teacher. In 1998, she received the university鈥檚 highest teaching honor 鈥� the Daniels-Danieley Award for Excellence in Teaching, which followed the presentation of the Sears Roebuck Foundation Teaching Excellence Campus Leadership Award in 1990.

During her three decades at Elon, she served as chair of the Department of History and associate provost, as well as stepping up to fill a number of key roles during times of university transition including interim director of Career Services and interim dean of Elon College, the College of Arts and Sciences. She retired as professor emerita of history.

An early trailblazing voice for experiential learning and civic engagement, Midgette led some of Elon鈥檚 earliest study abroad courses and established the university鈥檚 Council on Civic Engagement. She served as the first coordinator of Elon鈥檚 leadership program and laid the groundwork for the Leadership Studies minor, while also chairing the experiential education committee at Elon.

Midgette is known for the bonds she developed with students through the years, such as in her role as the first faculty director-in-residence for the Historic Neighborhood, a residential campus community whose name she coined. Many have fond memories of her living in Isabella Cannon Pavilion with her cat, Cali, where she helped build a tight-knit residential family and engaging intellectual community through regular events including the weekly 鈥淐ookies with Cali鈥� sessions.

With a love of history that extends back to her childhood, Midgette earned her bachelor鈥檚 degree in sociology and master鈥檚 degree in history from N.C. State University and a doctorate in U.S. history from the University of Georgia. In retirement, Midgette has returned to her longtime family house in the N.C. mountain town of Montreat, where she continues her life of service and her interest in history by volunteering with the National Parks Service.

Elizabeth Rogers

Regarded as a leader, visionary and caring colleague by her peers and the Elon community, Elizabeth Rogers retired in 2016 as the founding dean of the School of Health Sciences and professor emerita of physical therapy. During her two decades at Elon, she left an indelible mark on the university and her profession while playing a leading role in building the health sciences curriculum.

鈥嬧�淚n life, there are a few things you hope for, some things you dream about, and some things you think will never occur,鈥� Rogers said before stepping out from behind the podium to show of the Elon Medallion hanging around her neck. 鈥淔rankly, I鈥檓 not much into 鈥榖ling,鈥� but I鈥檓 going to cherish this 鈥榖ling鈥� forever.鈥�

Rogers arrived at Elon in 1996 as the founding chair and associate dean of the Department of Physical Therapy and from the start she set her sights on building what has become one of the finest physical therapy education programs. Under her guidance, the program has implemented an innovative modular curriculum and a range of outstanding clinical experiences with an emphasis throughout the program on engaged learning.

She was a champion for the physical therapy program during her career at Elon, with a focus on securing additional funding for faculty scholarship and student aid. Under her leadership, the program transitioned from a master鈥檚 degree program to a clinical doctoral program in only three years, with the new Doctor of Physical Therapy program earning accreditation 鈥渨ith special commendation鈥� from the American Physical Therapy Association in 2000.

Seeking to move Elon forward, Rogers advocated for the creation of a School of Health Sciences that included a physician assistant studies program and played an integral role in the design and creation of the Gerald L. Francis Center as the new school鈥檚 home. Within the community, Rogers built strong partnerships with Alamance Regional Medical Center that stretch back two decades.

Rogers earned her bachelor鈥檚 degree in physical therapy from Loma Linda University, her master鈥檚 degree in health education from Boston University and her doctorate in allied health education and administration from the University of Houston. She was honored in 2004 with the N.C. Physical Therapy Association鈥檚 Founder鈥檚 Day Award in recognition of more than 40 years of leadership and service to the profession, including her pioneering interventional work with AIDS patients in the 1980s and her work as a young woman in Africa serving children and adults with leprosy.

Chalmers Brumbaugh

For three decades, Chalmers Brumbaugh embodied the teacher-scholar-mentor model while serving Elon as professor of political science and inspiring generations of students and alumni to live the university鈥檚 values by embracing public service. He retired in 2016 as professor emeritus of political science in recognition of his keen intellect and steadfast service to the university.

Brumbaugh thanked Elon colleagues and leaders for creating an environment that allowed him to pursue his passions for experiential learning and study abroad. 鈥淓lon has a welcoming culture, one of the most welcoming cultures for new ideas,鈥� Brumbaugh said. 鈥淲e have many wonderful programs, and the experiential learning requirement is just one of those.鈥�

Brumbaugh joined the Elon faculty in 1986 as associate professor of political science and built a reputation as an exceptional educator and champion of experiential learning and civic engagement. He made a profound impact on students and their learning by leading programs to The Washington Center focused on politics and the presidency, as well as accompanying students to eight national political conventions. Brumbaugh helped countless students secure internships and employment on Capitol Hill and in other areas of government.

A respected teacher, Brumbaugh taught courses in Latin American politics and American government, and shared his love for global engagement by leading Elon鈥檚 Winter Term course in Costa Rica for more than two decades and helping to develop a Latin American Studies minor.

One of Elon鈥檚 most beloved advisers, his commitment to student success and his mentoring skills made a significant impact on the quality of students鈥� academic experience on campus and their transition into the professional world. In recognition of his extraordinary service to students, Brumbaugh was named the first recipient of Elon鈥檚 Ward Family Excellence in Mentoring Award, the university鈥檚 highest honor for mentoring, and Advisor of the Year in 2011 and 2012 for his work with Elon鈥檚 chapter of the N.C. Student Legislature.

Brumbaugh earned his master鈥檚 and doctoral degrees in political science from the University of Wisconsin. Away from the university, he served 18 years on the N.C. Internship Council, was an active member of the National Society for Experiential Education and in 2016 was honored with the Order of the Long Leaf Pine, one of North Carolina鈥檚 most prestigious service awards.

Understanding the importance of maintaining lifelong connections with Elon, Brumbaugh remains a trusted and valued mentor to alumni who continue to seek his advice on everything from career choices to political ambitions. A devoted benefactor, he and his wife, Pam, former director of experiential education at Elon and a nationally recognized leader in the field, made a generous gift to establish the Pam and Chalmers Brumbaugh Endowed Scholarship in 2015, paving the way for students to complete internships in Washington, D.C.

Janice J. Ratliff

Janice Ratliff served Elon with insight, affection and dedication for 35 years. In a variety of roles across her more than three decades with the university, she provided invaluable guidance to students and essential administrative support to faculty and staff colleagues before retiring in 2016.

鈥淲ords cannot express how honored, elated and humbled I am to receive the Elon Medallion,鈥� Ratliff said. 鈥淚 have a wall of awards in my home from Elon, and I call them my flowers. 鈥� To my friends and my Elon family 鈥� thank you for giving me another flower.鈥�

A native of Elon, Ratliff joined the 福利亚洲国产精品 community in 1981 as administrative assistant in the Office of Cooperative Education before moving on to work in the Office of the Vice President and Dean of Students, Office of Student Development, Office of Auxiliary Services, and, ultimately, as program assistant in the Office of Student Health and Wellness. Recognized as the heart and soul of the Student Health and Wellness Office, Ratliff could be counted on to care for each student she encountered and played a vital role in helping to ease their minds and those of their families far away from Elon.

With her ever-present smile, Ratliff served as a trusted mentor and role model for African-American students and first-generation students, who flourished under her care. She consistently immersed herself in the life of the university, including dedicated service as an indispensable adviser to Black Cultural Society (now the Black Student Union), the Gospel Choir and Elon鈥檚 Finest. She served on the awards committee for the annual Phillips-Perry Black Excellence Awards Celebration, an聽event she faithfully attended.

In recognition of her unwavering devotion to Elon and its students, including 10 years of service to the Student Government Association, Ratliff was honored in 2010 by the Elon Black Alumni Network for her efforts to ensure the success of African-American students. Elon鈥檚 student organizations recognized her many contributions to the university by naming two awards in her honor鈥擳he Black Student Union Janice Ratliff Community Service Award and the Student Government Association鈥檚 Janice J. Ratliff Award for Organization Volunteer of the Year.

Sandra Ellis Fields

For 18 years, Sandra Fields served Elon as assistant to the president with intelligence, curiosity and an unparalleled commitment to excellence. Her dedication to the university included providing exemplary support to first President Emeritus J. Fred Young and the President Leo M. Lambert as Elon experienced a period of unparalleled growth.

鈥淚 am energized and challenged by people who are really good at what they do, and I value the opportunity to have worked with many of you talented people,鈥� Fields told the crowd. 鈥淥ur mission to educate young people is a noble one, and I have been pleased to do my small part to help Elon be the best it can be.鈥�

Fields joined Elon鈥檚 staff in 1994 after teaching French at Grimsley High School in Greensboro and then serving as administrative assistant to the late Elon Trustee Emeritus Dr. G. Melvin Palmer at Peace United Church of Christ.

At Elon, Fields managed the complex day-to-day life of the president, including an ever-changing calendar, travel, correspondence and connections with a broad range of the Elon family including students, parents and community members. As liaison to Elon鈥檚 Board of Trustees, Fields established important relationships with dozens of trustees聽 and ensured the smooth functioning of the university鈥檚 governing board.

Her skill as a writer and editor shined through her work in helping to transform text into clear, concise and compelling prose, including her work editing important university documents and publications including 鈥淔rom A Grove of Oaks: The Story of 福利亚洲国产精品鈥� by Professor Emeritus and University Historian George Troxler and 鈥淭he Undergraduate Experience: Focusing Institutions on What Matters Most,鈥� co-authored by Lambert, Peter Felten, who is the executive director of the Center for Engaged Learning, and other higher education leaders.

Fields earned her bachelor鈥檚 degree in French from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. In her retirement, continues to share her love for learning and languages by tutoring ESL students in the Greensboro community.

Endowed Professorships

Monday鈥檚 event included an opportunity to recognize those Elon faculty members who have been named this year to endowed professorships.

鈥�Kathy Matera, professor of chemistry, .

The honor is a rotating two-year professorship that supports the efforts of faculty engagement with students in the scholarship of scientific discovery. It is funded through a gift from the estate of Dr. Japheth E. Rawls Jr. 鈥�35 and his wife, Virginia Riddick Rawls, and is for a faculty member in biology, chemistry, environmental studies, exercise science or physics.

Sean R. McMahon, assistant professor of entrepreneurship, has been named the Doherty Emerging Professor of Entrepreneurship. He will receive support for research and travel and will serve as a leader of the entrepreneurship education program in the Martha and Spencer Love School of Business. The term of the professorship is three years.

Ed and Joan Doherty are parents of Elon alumna Kerry Doherty Gatlin 鈥�07. They served on the Elon Parents Council and Ed was elected to the Elon Board of Trustees in 2006. The Dohertys endowed the entrepreneurship professorship and established the Doherty Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership in the Love School.

鈥�Wonhi Synn, professor of finance and chair of the Department of Finance, has been named the Wesley R. Elingburg Professor of Finance.聽 He is the second faculty member to hold the professorship, succeeding accounting professor Art Cassill, who retired in May 2016.聽As the Elingburg Professor, Synn will receive support for research, teaching and mentoring.

Synn joined Elon鈥檚 faculty in 1989, when student enrollment at the Martha and Spencer Love School of Business was only about a third of what it is today. He served as chair of the Department of Business Administration in the 1990s, was promoted to professor in 2003, and became the chair of the Department of Finance in 2010, when the department was established.

鈥�Chris Leupold, associate professor of psychology and faculty fellow for law and leadership, .

Endowed by the estate of Isabella Cannon 鈥�24, a former mayor of Raleigh, N.C., the professorship supports the teaching of leadership courses, advancing the leadership studies minor, providing professional development and support for faculty who teach leadership courses and working with Elon鈥檚 Center for Leadership.

Distinguished University Professors

鈥�Jeffrey Pugh, Maude Sharpe Powell Professor of Religious Studies, and David Copeland, A.J. Fletcher Professor and professor of communications, . The two will be invested with the professorships during ceremonies later this year.

The Distinguished University Professorship is bestowed upon occasion to senior faculty members, honoring their teaching, scholarship, leadership and service to the 福利亚洲国产精品 community. The board of trustees created the professorship in 2001 and a faculty committee solicits nominations and recommends recipients of the honor to the president.

Lambert talked about the university’s leadership transition with faculty and staff assembled in Alumni Gym on Aug. 21. “This morning is the 19 and final time I will have the privilege of offering an Opening of the University address to you, my dear colleagues,” Lambert said. “This is a special and exciting year. We are finishing the Elon Commitment strategic plan and the University community will soon likely begin to ask ‘what’s next?’ The leadership phase of the Elon Leads Campaign is going well and we are thinking about the public phase launch. And, of course, we will soon welcome the ninth president of 福利亚洲国产精品. So, I’ve been giving a lot of thought about what I might say to you in order to be most helpful in this time of transition.”

Lambert said Elon faculty and staff are using their talents to “do the most important work imaginable—shaping the minds and hearts and souls of a new generation.” He said the essence of the university is in the relationships that students develop with “an extraordinary faculty and staff who are committed to helping students become their best and truest selves.”

The five “long plays” outlined by Lambert included the following:

• Safeguarding Elon’s culture, which keeps the focus on students and learning, values a strong teacher-scholar-mentor model, encourages innovation and creativity and values kindness and community
• Keeping a disciplined focus on maintaining Elon’s identity, which aims to set the global standard for engaged learning
• Building the university’s endowment to provide greater student financial aid, including more Odyssey scholarships for talented students with high financial need, Fellows scholarships for highly qualified students, and Elon Engagement scholarships for students from middle income families
• Staying connected with Elon’s young alumni who are making an impact in the world and are critical to the university’s future
• Boldly anticipating the disruptive changes ahead in higher education and remaining nimble and innovative.

Lambert concluded his remarks with heartfelt thanks for the support he has felt during his tenure as Elon’s president. “Everyone in this room is a gift, to me, to this university, and especially to our students,” Lambert said. “I am truly grateful for your counsel and guidance, and for the inspiration you have given me by your own extraordinary work. You called me to be better.”

Lambert will assume the role of president emeritus after his successor takes office. He will take a yearlong writing sabbatical and will remain associated with Elon as a faculty member and to support the new president, primarily in the areas of alumni relations and development.

Watch the video of President Lambert’s address:

Text of President Lambert’s address – August 21, 2017

Good morning and welcome to the beginning of the new year at Elon. I hope you all had the opportunity this summer for some rest and to rejuvenate your bodies and your spirits.

On the Monday following Commencement, Laurie and I moved out of Maynard House into our new home. We love our new space, and frankly, it felt wonderful to dramatically lighten the load of “stuff” we accumulated over 40 years. It took me two months to realize I had left my hair dryer affixed to the wall of my old Maynard House bathroom. [I guess if you don’t use something for 15 years, it falls out of mind.]

This morning is the 19th and final time I will have the privilege of offering an Opening of the University Address to you, my dear colleagues. This is a special and exciting year. We are finishing the Elon Commitment strategic plan and the university community will soon likely begin to ask “what’s next?”  

The leadership phase of the Elon Leads Campaign is going well and we are thinking about the public phase launch. And, of course, we will soon welcome the ninth president of 福利亚洲国产精品. So, I’ve been giving a lot of thought about what I might say to you in order to be most helpful in this time of transition.

Most important of all, I want to offer the perspective that each of you is using your unique gifts and talents to do the most important work imaginable—shaping the minds and hearts and souls of a new generation. I cannot think of another time in my life where the leadership of a new generation was required more. We need new leaders who are more hopeful. More capable of addressing the issues of our time: health care, the scourge of racism and how to respond to the rapid changes taking place in our economy due to technology. More globally-minded. More creative. More kind. More courageous to stand up for American ideals of liberty and justice for all. As Archbishop Desmond Tutu charged us on this very stage, more committed to see the face of God in every other human being they encounter.

It takes a very special environment to help form such leaders and citizens. But nowhere else in my life have I encountered a group of people who are better at doing this work collectively than you. You have often heard me say that the essence of Elon is in the power of the transformative human relationships that are formed here. I am often asked, “What’s Elon’s secret sauce?” And my answer is: an extraordinary faculty and staff who are committed to helping students become their best and truest selves.

As I have been on the road this year engaging with our alumni, I have been speaking about “long plays”—ideas that we are committed to today, and I believe must remain committed to for the next 40 years or longer. I know, 40 years sounds like an eternity. But that is the length of just one extraordinary faculty or staff career at Elon, or two Elon presidencies. Tempus fugit.

I have five “long plays” to talk about this morning that I believe are critical to Elon’s future success.

The first is to safeguard what is best about Elon’s culture. Management gurus often observe that, “culture limits strategy” or “culture eats strategy for breakfast.” Here at Elon, we have been big on strategy. The successful execution of a series of ambitious strategic plans has catapulted us to a place of prominence on the landscape of American higher education. But I am convinced that the reason we have been able to carry our plans forward is because of our strong institutional culture. Here are some of its most important features:

We keep a constant focus on students and learning. It sounds so simple, and self-evident, but this ethic has kept us grounded and focused, at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.

We have a staff that consistently rises to a higher calling. Many of our program assistants are some of the most important student mentors on campus. Our environmental services staff are significant adult presences in the lives of students and extend encouragement. I have had grateful parents thank me because Jana Lynn Patterson gave their kid a much needed “get your act together talk” and moved, for example, an 18-year-old young man along the continuum from being, shall we say, unfocused, to earning a full scholarship to a prestigious law school. Those are but a few of a hundred examples.

We take our faculty teacher-scholar-mentor model seriously. We have kept our bearings. We prize great teaching and mentoring as the most important professional activities of the faculty. No one is prouder than I am of the advances we have made in supporting and celebrating faculty scholarship, but superb teaching remains at the heart of the work of Elon faculty.  

In recognition of the critical importance of faculty excellence to Elon’s mission, I am pleased to announce today that upon recommendation of a committee chaired by Associate Provost for Faculty Affairs Tim Peeples, we will honor two of our colleagues this fall as Distinguished University Professors: Jeffrey Pugh, Maude Sharpe Powell Professor of Religious Studies, and David Copeland, A.J. Fletcher Professor and Professor of Communications. They will be the fifth and six faculty members to receive this title, which recognizes senior full professors for their inspirational teaching, scholarship, service and leadership. We will be investing Dr. Pugh and Dr. Copeland as Distinguished University Professors in formal ceremonies later this academic year, but this morning, I ask you to join me in congratulating them for their years of dedication to Elon and generations of students. 

We prize innovation and creativity. This is a community that is constantly asking, “How can we be more excellent?” Let’s never stop asking that question.

We value kindness and community. The world needs institutions that model kindness and inclusive community. Especially now.

I am not a Pollyanna. I know we are not perfect. Individually and collectively, we have our rough edges and our bad moments. But, all in all, this is a pretty great place because we are so invested in it.

A second long play is that we need to keep a disciplined focus on maintaining our institutional identity. Brands, including those of academic institutions, are very important, and I believe this will be ever more increasingly so. Bates has a brand. Vanderbilt has a brand. Villanova has a brand. My own view is that Elon’s identity is to set the global standard for engaged learning. That’s powerful and distinctive, and maintaining a distinctive place among top colleges and universities is critically important to our future.

Elon can be found on many top-100 lists for colleges and universities. Our leadership in engaged and experiential learning here is unsurpassed. Thanks to you, when asked which institutions are doing the best work in international education, in undergraduate research, in writing across the curriculum, in first-year seminars, in senior capstones, in internships, in residential learning communities and civic engagement, people point to Elon. Our arts and sciences tradition is distinguished. We have a business school in the top 40 and a top-ranked communications school.

We prepare great teachers, lawyers and health care professionals. And we are proud of many other distinctions, such as the Elon Poll, the Doherty Center for Entrepreneurship, our students’ success in winning Fulbrights and many other national and international fellowships, the work of the Center for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning, our track record of success with the Peace Corps, our work in multi-faith, and so much more. The challenge is to maintain distinctiveness as we compete alongside the best institutions of higher education in the country, many with longer-established reputations and much greater wealth.

The third long play I want to address with you this morning concerns maintaining a sense of urgency for building our endowment for a principal purpose—student financial aid.

More than a decade ago, the estate of Leon and Lorraine Watson provided an unrestricted gift that was used to create the Watson Scholars program, our first major gift to support multiple endowed scholarships for students with high financial need, almost all Pell-eligible. Then Furman Moseley, Class of 1956, and his wife, Susan, created the Susan Scholars. Others followed, and the Odyssey Program was created to support a growing number of students with major financial awards, which today totals 118 scholarships. The key to Odyssey’s success is not only the scholarships, of course, but the program’s strong mentoring and sense of community.

Odyssey Scholars today are among the most amazing students at Elon. Bridgette Agbozo, Class of 2019, studied at the University of Bristol this summer with an award from the U.S.-U.K. Fulbright Commission. Steven Armendariz, who graduated last spring, is teaching in Spain this year after winning a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship. Miss Oprah Winfrey dropped by last spring to celebrate the graduation of Nosipho Shangase, who is now studying epidemiology in the School of Public Health at UNC. Nosipho’s journey from her childhood in Johannesburg, to the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls, to being a Susan Scholar at Elon, to one of the nation’s top graduate programs in public health is a story of incredible human potential being realized. Oprah made two telephone calls to both Furman and Susan Moseley to celebrate the connection they shared in Nosipho.

Because of the success of the Odyssey Program, many others are stepping up in the Elon Leads Campaign to expand the program. LabCorp’s gift this summer will support four more Odyssey scholarships for graduates of the Elon Academy. The estate of Edna and Doug Noiles will create six more Odysseys, along with endowment support for the Elon Academy. Trustee Ed Doherty and his wife, Joan, are supporting eight additional Odyssey scholarships. Trustee Cindy Citrone and her husband, Rob, have supported two Odysseys for graduates of the Horizons college-access program. Former SGA President Cam Tims, Class of 2000, has generously added Elon and Odyssey to his estate plan. And we’ll have more exciting additions to Odyssey to announce later this fall. We are making great progress to grow the program to 200 scholars by the end of the Elon Leads Campaign; this work is incredibly important to both the character of Elon and to supporting the American dream of a better life through access to education and hard work. This is a big and strategic bet for Elon; we already have about one-quarter of our endowment funds invested in Odyssey scholarships, but I am convinced that growing this program over time remains one of Elon’s most important commitments.

We are aiming for similar growth for endowments to support our Fellows scholarships, which enable us to enroll some of our other most well-qualified students. For example, this past spring and summer, Trustee Catherine Weaver and her husband, Mike, endowed two Honors Fellowships, parents Larry and Anne Clarke are establishing two Elon College Fellows and two Business Fellows endowments, and the estate of Carolyn Alspaugh endowed two Teaching Fellowships in honor of the memory of her late husband, John. 

Additional aid for students from middle income families in the form of Elon Engagement scholarships is another top priority of the Elon Leads Campaign, and will be key to helping us meet our future enrollment objectives.

The big picture here, folks, is that we are on a decades-long journey to increase student financial aid, principally through endowment. This is the long-term, strategic and most sustainable approach to building our aid pool. In my view, this represents the single most important strategic priority for Elon, and it will require hard work, patience and the commitment of our growing alumni body to succeed.

And speaking of our alumni body, they represent the fourth long play I want to address this morning. You have heard me say many times that great universities are ultimately known by the accomplishments of their alumni, and I have overwhelming confidence that our growing alumni body will propel us to new heights. At President Danieley’s memorial service last December, I observed that when he graduated from Elon in 1946, the college had produced a total of 1,600 alumni in its then 57-year history, fewer than we graduate in a single year these days. So our alumni base is both extraordinarily young and filled with exceptional promise for future leadership in society and of this university. We must stay close to them, encourage them and engage them in meaningful interactions with the university. Each of you can play an important role in making this happen, because it is not the physical campus they are attached to, it’s the people of Elon.  

Nneka Enurah, president of Elon’s alumni chapter in Los Angeles, said to me last spring that they try to hold events in LA that make alumni feel as if they are back at Elon. That’s special.

Our alumni body is a garden and we must tend it with love and care.

The last long play I want to address this morning is a question we have been asking for years: What will learning and the college experience look like in 10 or 20 years?

Elon has a decades-long and distinguished track record in innovation in higher education. We are the national leader in experiential education. Engaged learning is not a slogan here—it’s a practiced art form—and the people in this room are admired nationally for your leadership in this arena. Look at how online learning has reshaped summer school at Elon over the past decade. I remember the debates about that subject in faculty meetings, and how Professor Emerita Carol Chase spoke forcefully against what she saw as a potential depersonalization of an Elon education. And then to her great credit, she tried teaching an online class, and became convinced that the pedagogy indeed could be surprisingly intimate, if done well.

Everywhere we turn these days there is talk about technology disrupting business models. Amazon has changed our shopping habits with far-reaching consequences. Doesn’t the way you access your news differ from 10 years ago? I look at the technological experience of my six-year-old grandson and wonder, how will he be shaped by the online world by the time he reaches college in 12 years? How will he access and make meaning of information? Will human relationships in college matter as much as they do now?

So, the big question is: How will higher education be disrupted?  

I think the residential campus experience will continue to be important for many students. At the same time, we recognize that most of our students already do some portions of their university experience off-campus—in study abroad, internships and research in the field. Will education increasingly become a blend of experiences—on campus and off, online and in-person, in ways that we do not fully imagine at the moment? Will the paradigm of four years of high school and four years of college morph into something else? Will our students increasingly seek two degrees, one undergraduate and one graduate, in a compressed time frame?  

Frankly, I don’t know the answers to these questions. But Jack Welch, former head of GE, once famously said, “If the rate of change on the outside exceeds the rate of change on the inside, the end is near.” And I do know that Elon’s nimbleness and innovative spirit, and willingness to experiment and avoid imitation, have always helped us respond to changing times. Let’s continue to be bold experimenters as the world changes around us. This will involve some risk. We will make some mistakes. And the status quo will be challenged. But the biggest danger is to become stagnant and watch the wave of change overtake our efforts. Elon has always embraced change, and today that is more important than ever before.

Culture. Institutional distinctiveness. Endowment for scholarships. Alumni. Boldy anticipating how learning will take place in the future. I hope you will reflect on those five big ideas as we move forward together.

“The violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, has deeply shocked and saddened the 福利亚洲国产精品 community. First and foremost, we must say in clear language: there is no place on our college campuses, in our communities or in American society for white supremacy, racism, neo-Nazism, fascism or the wretched legacy of the Ku Klux Klan. In the face of such evil, our community chooses to drive out ignorance with education, hope, inclusion and respect. Every generation must stand up for the aspirations of our nation—freedom, equality, liberty and justice—and work to ensure they are protected for all. We are proud to stand in solidarity and love with the people of Charlottesville and our friends at the University of Virginia.” 

Leo M. Lambert
President, 福利亚洲国产精品

Alumni Gym was full Tuesday morning, as the campus community came together to honor President Leo M. Lambert for his service to Elon over the past 18 years, guiding the university to a place of national prominence. 

The College Coffee event provided Lambert with an opportunity to reflect on his role as Elon’s eighth president. He turned to the lyrics of “Simple Gifts,” the Shaker hymn that he first cited when he was introduced as Elon’s new president in the fall of 1998. “When we find ourselves in the place just right, ’twill be in the valley of love and delight,'” Lambert said, reciting a fitting line from the hymn. 

​”I believed then, as I do today, that it was providential and truly a gift from God that I had come down to this place where I was truly meant to be,” said Lambert, with his wife, Laurie, and his family by his side. “Elon has been my valley of love and delight.”

Lambert said Laurie has been “a source of strength and love and one of Elon’s greatest champions.” He also noted the support and encouragement of his daughters, Mollie Lambert and Callie Brown, and Callie’s husband, David Brown, and spoke with delight about his grandchildren, Caleb and Anna Louise Brown. 

“This is noble and important work, and I have delighted in having you as my students, my colleagues and my dear friends,” Lambert said. “Thank you for the privilege of serving and loving Elon for so many wonderful years.”

​Lambert began his work as Elon’s eighth president on Jan. 1, 1999, when total enrollment was about 4,000. Since then, as Board of Trustees Chair Kerrii Anderson ’79 noted for the crowd, 福利亚洲国产精品 has grown to an enrollment of more than 6,700 students. 

“When Leo took office in 1998, most of today’s undergraduates were infants or toddlers,” Anderson said. “They don’t remember a time when there was no Belk Library, no Academic Village, no Koury Business Center, no Rhodes Stadium, no Global Neighborhood, Colonnades or The Oaks. Elon has built more than 100 buildings under Leo’s leadership!

“And today’s students don’t have a full understanding of the academic progress Elon has made under Leo’s guidance. We’ve gained a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa and established schools of Communications, Education, Health Sciences and Law. And many don’t fully appreciate the hard work that went into moving a school that was ranked #16 among Southern Universities to become national leader in engaged learning and student success.”

​

Anderson told the crowd that the community stands at a special moment in Elon’s history. “Our goal is to maintain Elon’s momentum and ensure that the next president is prepared to take the reins from Leo and continue the university’s progress.”

Charged with the task of identifying Elon’s next president is a 15-member Search Committee to be headed by trustee Wes Elingburg P’11, with fellow trustees Noel Allen ’69, who headed the search committee that selected Lambert, and Kebbler McGhee Williams ’98, serving as co-vice-chairs. The committee’s membership is expected to be finalized in the coming weeks and will include eight university trustees (five are alumni and four are Elon parents), three faculty members, two students, one staff member and one member of senior staff. 

In its search, the committee will rely on feedback and input from the broader university community, Elingburg explained, with meetings and forums on campus beginning in mid-March to solicit thoughts about the desired qualities and qualifications of the next president. Members of the Elon community are also invited to share ideas and learn about the process on a website dedicated to the search process — . 

“I know our search committee members will be very mindful of the responsibility they are taking on in this process, and I guarantee that we will work hard to recruit the finest leader to join this great university,” Elingburg said.

​

福利亚洲国产精品 President Leo M. Lambert has informed the Board of Trustees that he will step down as president. The board has launched a search for Elon’s ninth president and Lambert will remain in office until his successor is in place.

> Watch President Lambert’s video message to the Elon community.

Board of Trustees leaders have been working with Lambert to plan a seamless presidential transition. The announcement was made by Lambert to the Elon community on Feb. 13 following the board’s spring meeting. After a sabbatical year dedicated to writing, Lambert will continue service to Elon as president emeritus and professor, and will be available to the new president to primarily support the university’s advancement and alumni engagement offices.

“I believe this is an ideal time for a transition in Elon’s presidency,” Lambert said. “We are completing the final objectives of the Elon Commitment strategic plan and making great progress on the leadership phase of the ‘Elon Leads’ comprehensive fundraising campaign, with a public launch scheduled for 2018. In recruiting a new president at this time, we can ensure continuity of leadership for these key initiatives, as well as anticipate the creation and implementation of the university’s next strategic plan. This will allow Elon to continue to make progress on many fronts as we build a distinguished and distinctive university.

“I expect that 2017 will be an exciting time at Elon,” Lambert said. “We have important goals to pursue and much to accomplish in the months ahead. This will be a year of hard work, anticipation and celebration of our shared achievements.”

Lambert has served as Elon’s president since January 1999. Board of Trustees chair Kerrii Anderson ’79 said Lambert’s extensive record of accomplishments and thoughtful planning of the conclusion of his presidency illustrates why he is one of the nation’s finest academic leaders and why Elon has been so successful during his tenure.

“Leo Lambert has been a dynamic force and an inspirational leader who has propelled Elon to a place of national prominence,” Anderson said. “Over the past 18 years he has dedicated every ounce of his energy to Elon. President Lambert is a man of keen intellect and vision, combining his extensive knowledge of higher education with a compassionate spirit that is evident in the personal relationships he nurtures with thousands of students, parents, alumni, faculty, staff and friends of Elon. Leo and his wife, Laurie, have dedicated almost two decades of service to this institution. They embody all that is admirable about our community and I invite everyone to join me in expressing gratitude to them for their remarkable devotion to our university.”

Elon’s development during Lambert’s service as president is historic, creating one of the great success stories in American higher education. A strong advocate for institutional planning, Lambert led the creation and implementation of two ambitious strategic plans – NewCentury@Elon and the Elon Commitment. The result has been the creation of a model for the modern liberal arts university.

“I believe we have created a nationally distinctive university renowned for experiential and engaged learning, with a premium on the quality of human relationships,” Lambert said. “Elon is global in its outlook and committed to preparing the ethical, ambitious and thoughtful leaders our world needs. Our success has been a team effort, the result of a committed Board of Trustees, brilliant faculty and staff, loyal alumni and generous and supportive parents – everyone working together with a shared belief that we are building a university that is making a profound impact.”

During Lambert’s presidency, applications for undergraduate admission have doubled, enrollment has grown from 4,000 to more than 6,700, and full-time faculty numbers have increased from under 200 to 425. During this period of growth, student academic credentials increased, average class sizes dropped and the student-faculty ratio decreased from 16-to-1 to 12-to-1.

Nationally accredited schools of communications, education, health sciences and law have been established and Elon gained a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa, achieving the highest standards of quality in the arts and sciences. Today Elon is ranked the #1 Southern University by U.S. News & World Report, up from #16 when Lambert took office, and Elon is recognized by U.S. News more often than any university in the nation for excellence in eight high-impact programs that lead to student success.

Throughout his presidency, Lambert has been an advocate for the highest levels of academic excellence. He increased resources for faculty and supported development of the Elon teacher-scholar-mentor model. Professors who excel in teaching and mentoring students are attracted to Elon’s mission, and the university has increased funding to support faculty scholarship and their partnerships with students in research, scholarly and engaged learning activities. During Lambert’s tenure, Elon has established the Center for Engaged Learning and the Center for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning and consistently receives top rankings for excellence in undergraduate teaching.

More than 100 buildings have been added to Elon’s iconic campus during Lambert’s tenure, creating one of the nation’s finest environments for learning. Campus growth has included the following facilities:

Academic facilities

• Carol Grotnes Belk Library
• Academic Village, including Lindner Hall and Cannon, Kenan, Gray, Belk, Spence and Numen Lumen pavilions
• Ernest A. Koury Sr. Business Center
• H. Michael Weaver building for 福利亚洲国产精品 School of Law
• Gerald L. Francis Center for the School of Health Sciences
• Dwight C. Schar Hall, Steers Pavilion and Snow Family Grand Atrium for the School of Communications
• Arts West
• Scott Studios

Residential neighborhoods

• Global Neighborhood, including the Great Hall
• Station at Mill Point
• The Oaks, including McCoy Commons
• Colonnades Neighborhood
• Lakeside and Colonnades dining halls
• Danieley Center expansion, including Daniel Commons and Phoenix Activities and Recreation Center (PARC)
• Loy Center expansion

Athletics and recreational facilities

• Rhodes Stadium
• Alumni Field House
• Hunt Softball Park
• Jerry and Jeanne Robertson Track and Field Complex
• Rudd Field
• Worsley Golf Training Center
• Phoenix Club Sports Fields and Francis Center recreation fields

Other facilities

• South Campus, including nine academic, student life and administrative buildings
• Inman Admissions Welcome Center
• Martin Alumni Center
• Sklut Hillel Center
• 福利亚洲国产精品 Forest
• Loy Farm, including Elon Environmental Center
• Downtown Elon business and residential partnerships
• Downtown Burlington Center for Community Engagement 

Buildings currently under construction or being planned include Schar Center, a 5,400-seat convocation facility; Richard W. Sankey Hall for the Love School of Business; LaRose Commons in the Historic Neighborhood; a new engineering and physical sciences building; and additional residential facilities.

In 2003 Lambert spearheaded a drive to establish 福利亚洲国产精品 School of Law, an effort that culminated in the school’s opening in 2006 in downtown Greensboro. Building strong partnerships with community leaders, the legal community, foundations and philanthropists who provided resources for the school, Lambert advanced a vision of creating a distinctive approach to legal education. Over the past decade, Elon Law has continued to expand its downtown campus, serving as a catalyst to the renaissance of the city center and creating an innovative academic program that emphasizes experiential learning.

During his presidency, Lambert has awarded more than 22,000 Elon diplomas, 54 percent of the degrees conferred since the first graduating class in 1891. He frequently observes that Elon’s national reputation is being built on the achievements of the growing numbers of young alumni. Understanding the importance of alumni engagement to Elon’s future, Lambert has encouraged expansion of alumni programs and staffing, including the creation of the Martin Alumni Center in the center of campus and the establishment of alumni chapters across the country.

Elon has maintained a position as one of the nation’s best values in private higher education under Lambert’s leadership, quadrupling the university’s endowment to $230 million with a priority on funding increased student financial aid. During Lambert’s presidency, the number of endowed scholarships has more than doubled to a total of 613. Lambert led completion of the record-setting $107 million “Ever Elon” campaign in 2011 and has made endowed scholarships a central goal of the “Elon Leads” campaign that is now in its leadership phase.

Lambert’s passion for educational excellence extends beyond the campus to include schools in the Alamance County area. He has been a leading voice for increased investment in K-12 public education and has promoted the university’s involvement in these efforts. He provided inspiration and support for the creation of Elon’s Center for Access and Success, which includes the Elon Academy for area high school students with no family history of college attendance; the It Takes a Village Project, a literacy effort for struggling young readers; and Collegiate Start @Elon, which allows local high school seniors to take Elon courses.

Providing leadership on intercollegiate athletics issues, Lambert chaired the NCAA Division I Committee on Athletics Certification. At Elon, he guided the university through its transition from NCAA Division II to Division I and through conference affiliation changes from the Big South, to the Southern Conference, to the current membership in the Colonial Athletic Association. Throughout the development of Phoenix athletics, Lambert has placed a priority on academic achievement of student-athletes and on their involvement in engaged learning opportunities including study abroad, undergraduate research and service.   

Lambert has held a number of leadership roles nationally, currently serving on the boards of the American Council on Education, the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges (AGB), the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (NAICU), the North Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities (board chair), the John N. Gardner Institute for Excellence in Undergraduate Education (JNGI), the Piedmont Triad Partnership, and as a member of the NCAA Division I Presidential Forum. He formerly served on two national boards encouraging civic engagement among university students, Campus Compact and Project Pericles.

Lambert has written extensively about post-secondary education and is co-author of a new book, The Undergraduate Experience: Focusing Institutions on What Matters Most, published by Jossey-Bass. He was also co-editor of a book about university teaching that was published by the Syracuse University Press in 2005. In 2009, he received the inaugural William M. Burke Presidential Award for Excellence in Experiential Education from the National Society for Experiential Education. In 2010, he received the Periclean Service Award from Project Pericles. He was awarded an honorary doctorate in humane letters from the State University of New York in 2002.

As a prominent figure in North Carolina’s Triad region, Lambert has been named one of the “most influential leaders” for six consecutive years by the Triad Business Journal. In 2011 he was named the #1 large workplace leader in a survey by the Greensboro News & Record. He has also received the Thomas Z. Osborne Distinguished Citizen Award, the highest honor bestowed by the Greensboro, N.C., Chamber of Commerce.

In searching for Lambert’s successor, the Board of Trustees is forming a 15-member search committee chaired by trustee and former board chair Wes Elingburg P’11. The committee will include eight trustees, including one young alumnus/alumna trustee, three faculty members, two students, one staff member and one member of Elon’s senior staff. Trustees have retained the search firm of Storbeck/Pimentel & Associates to assist with the search.

“President Lambert has helped create an optimistic and collegial culture that promotes continual progress and innovation,” Elingburg said. “Our goal is to find a leader who is ready to embrace the exhilarating challenge of building an ever-stronger Elon, continuing to expand our university’s influence as a leader in higher education.”

It has been an immense privilege and honor to serve as Elon’s president for the past 18 years. This past Friday I shared my decision with Trustees at the board’s spring meeting to conclude my service as Elon’s eighth president. Plans will soon be under way to begin the search for Elon’s ninth president. I have committed to the Board that I will remain in office until a new president is named and ready to assume the duties of the office.

In making this announcement, I want to share a few thoughts about Elon’s progress and the presidential transition. I invite you to watch the video message on this page.

Long live Elon!
Leo M. Lambert

Lambert said universities like Elon want to make a college education as accessible to as broad a range of American society as possible. “College is unquestionably worth it,” Lambert said. “If you look at the data, and think about it not only in the terms of living a meaningful and purposeful life, but also the economic gains that one accrues, college is worth it, indisputably.”

The six presidents discussed common issues they are facing, including how to build a student body that reflects the diversity of the broader society, and how to craft a curriculum that helps prepare students to succeed in their careers, serve their communities and be engaged in their communities. The cost of providing such an environment and education remains a challenge, but not an insurmountable one, the presidents said. 

“What we really don’t want is for American universities to become enclaves … (open) only to people of certain income levels,” Brodhead said. 

Lambert said private colleges and universities need to recognize the responsibility they have to not only make higher education accessible to high school students, but to help cultivate their talents and develop those students as models for younger students. Elon programs such as the Elon Academy, a college access program, and the It Takes a Village Project, a literacy program for children, are two good examples of ways that universities can partner with K-12 education. 

Lambert said that too many students are being lost along the way, before they even have the opportunity to pursue a college education. Higher education institutions have an obligation to help support them on their path to finishing high school and preparing for what’s next, he said. 

“The education pipeline in this country is leaking very badly,” Lambert said. “It is the business of independent institutions of higher education, including all of us on the stage here tonight, to be engaged in thinking about what our role is in making sure that more kids are ready for kindergarten, to make sure that students who are in third grade are able to read, to make sure we are helping ninth graders who are thinking about dropping out to stay in school.”

Davidson College President Carol Quillen echoed the idea that private colleges and universities have an obligation to serve more than just those students enrolled on their campuses, saying that education is “a public good in which all of us have a huge investment.”

“We have to do a better job of leading the public debate about the value of education, and how together we are going to ensure that our children have access to the education … that we need them to have in order for us to thrive as a country,” Quillen said. 

The panel also discussed how to integrate college athletics into the broader academic experience, how to cultivate understanding of a variety of faith backgrounds on campus, and the importance of a curriculum that brings together multiple disciplines.

In addition to Lambert, Brodhead and Quillen, the other presidents participating in the forum included Nathan Hatch of Wake Forest University, Phyllis Worthy Dawkins of Bennett College and Jane Fernandes of Guilford College.

The Governor Morehead Forum is an educational initiative of Preservation Greensboro launched in 2013 approaching the 50th anniversary of saving Blandwood Mansion, the home of the former N.C. governor in downtown Greensboro that had fallen into disrepair. The fundraising initiative focuses on hosting and generating discussion around the topics of education, transportation, manufacturing and architecture — all associated with Gov. John Motley Morehead, who served as governor of North Carolina from 1841 through 1845 and is sometimes called the “father of modern North Carolina.”

The Sept. 12 discussion follows an event hosted by The Morehead Forum in May that brought together UNC System President Margaret Spellings and Tom Ross, who had headed the UNC System before her and previously served as president of Davidson College. The pair talked about the state of public education and where it was heading, prompting the Morehead Forum to pursue a discussion about private higher education in North Carolina, said John Graham, development director for Preservation Greensboro. 

“This will be six very good, high-quality educators that will be coming together to talk about the present and the future of higher education from the private sector,” Graham said. “That’s very different from the public sector of higher education.”

The discussion begins at 7:30 p.m., with . Tickets are also available to a private reception and dinner scheduled for 5 p.m. with the six presidents. The cost for the reception and dinner is $250 per person or $400 per couple, with reservations to be made by calling the Preservation Greensboro office at (336) 272-5003. The private event is limited to 60 participants. 

Over the next several weeks will be headed to colleges and universities in the United States. They, their families and taxpayers are making a monumental investment in the futures of these students, believing, correctly, that an undergraduate education is in a global and knowledge-based economy.

But many others come to college with too little appreciation for the vast opportunities before them, gloss over foundational curricular requirements as merely hurdles to be cleared, show far too little drive in developing a plan to make the most of their educations and focus too heavily on the party scene.

Analyzing data from a study of more than two dozen institutions, sociologists conclude that many students “enter college with attitudes, norms, values, and behaviors that are often at odds with academic commitment.” And many universities reinforce these beliefs by building and as something akin to a resort with a curriculum.

An undergraduate education is simply too precious an opportunity to squander or to approach halfheartedly. And while college should ultimately prepare graduates to make a living, it can be – it must be – far more than that.

The good news is that there are simple yet powerful things students can do to ensure that they have a transformative undergraduate experience, no matter where they go to college.

In our book drawing on decades of work and scholarship in higher education and also interviews with leaders and students from many institutions, we identified what matters most for students.

Two factors are most important.

Take responsibility for learning

Too often students (and others) think learning is a simple process of taking knowledge from the professor during class and then returning it, unharmed, on the test.

When sociologist interviewed scores of undergraduates at a large midwestern university, many students echoed the words of one who told her:

“I hate classes with a lot of reading that is tested on. Any class where a teacher is just gonna give us notes and a worksheet or something like that is better. Something that I can study and just learn from in five [minutes] I’ll usually do pretty good in.”

Real learning – that is, learning that makes a significant and lasting change in what a person knows or can do – emerges from what the student, not the professor, does. Of course, professors are critical actors in the process, but students are the ones doing the learning.

To take responsibility for their own learning, students need to move past what psychologist has called possessive and performative understandings of knowledge, where learning is about acquiring new facts or demonstrating expertise in classroom settings.

Instead, meaningful learning emerges from a proactive conception of knowledge, where the student’s goal is to experiment with new and unexpected ways of using what he or she is learning in different settings. This requires students to see themselves as the central actors in the drama of learning.

Whether students choose to take the stage or sit in the balcony matters immensely.

When students jump into learning, challenging themselves to stretch and grow, college is most powerful.

Reflections from an show what this looks like:

“[My goal for my senior] year was to try to do things that maybe I’m not good at already so that I can learn to do these things. I will have to do this once I have a job so avoiding projects that are uncomfortable for me now won’t help me NOT avoid them when I’m a part of the work force.”

Develop meaningful relationships

The relationships students form in college also have a profound influence on their experiences, shaping not only who they spend time with but how they will spend their time.

When asked graduates at Hamilton College to think back on their undergraduate years, these alumni pointed to specific individuals (often professors, coaches or classmates) who shaped their paths.

Students typically think first about relationships with peers. These are essential, of course. Finding friends and cohort groups can be reassuring, but have found that students who interact frequently with peers who are different in significant ways (racially, ethnically, religiously, socioeconomically and so on) show more intellectual and social growth in college than those who don’t.

Again, as with learning, students need to move beyond the familiar to find meaning.

And peer relationships are not only about fun. Decades of research have demonstrated that students who study together learn more and more deeply. As the mathematician reported in a classic study of undergraduate calculus courses that has been , students from many different backgrounds are more academically successful when they

“work with their peers to create for themselves a community based on shared intellectual interests and common professional aims.”

Relationships with faculty also are highly significant.

A large 2014 survey by revealed that college graduates who believed they had a professor who (1) cared about them as individuals, (2) made them excited about learning and (3) encouraged them to pursue their dreams reported being far happier and more successful than their peers years after graduation.

A recent graduate of the University of North Carolina at Charlotte’s , a prestigious scholarship for academically talented students interested in civic engagement, told us how the mentoring of transformed her view of herself:

“I arrived at UNC-C shy and uncertain. But Dr. Zablotsky taught me how to go and get what I wanted. She made me do all the work, but coached along the way and helped me develop great confidence in myself.”

What matters for all students

Critically, what we’re describing here doesn’t apply only to privileged, 18-22-year-olds at elite institutions.

In fact, , scholars at the Association of American Colleges and Universities, have shown that high-impact educational experiences like internships, undergraduate research, capstone courses and study abroad have particularly positive outcomes for students who traditionally have been underserved in American higher education.

A study at the University of California, Davis reinforces this finding by demonstrating that beyond the typical requirements for biology courses is particularly significant in preparing African-American undergraduates to successfully pursue graduate study and careers in the sciences.

Results from the also show that institutional prestige and financial resources do not determine the quality of student opportunities:

“Institutions with lower selectivity profiles can and often do offer experiences with faculty that are at least comparable to those at more selective institutions.”

As the NSSE director notes: “Doing those things may not cost any more than not doing them.”

Powerful education, in other words, is available to all students at all institutions, if they intentionally choose experiences that are challenging and relationship-rich.

Acting on what matters most

Douglas Spencer, a 2016 福利亚洲国产精品 graduate and now young alumnus trustee, captured what’s at stake in recent remarks to fellow students.

Doug described coming to campus without a strong sense of who he was as a black man or of what he might do with his life. Then, challenged by friends and professors to think more deeply about his own identity, “I unlocked some sort of hidden energy I did not know I possessed.” He began to read not just for class, but (even more) in his free time. Inspired by this reading and his other studies, and echoing ,

“It became clear to me that the only way I would find real success was if I learned to thrive in times of uncertainty.”

Colleges and universities play an outsized role in shaping the lives of individual students like Doug.

Indeed, we, as educators, cannot recall a time when it mattered more for higher education to cultivate students capable of acting entrepreneurially, ethically, cooperatively and creatively to address complex problems in local, national and global contexts.

That starts with students beginning the academic year ready to act on what matters most for their own learning.

This article was originally published on .