Gettysburg Spring 2009 : IFC
FROM THE PRE SIDENT My Vision for Gettysburg College WHEN BOARD OF Trustees Chair Jim Weaver ’64 asked me to serve as interim president last spring, never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that less than a year later, I would be chosen to serve as Gettysburg College’s 14th president. I am deeply grateful for the trust the Board of Trustees has placed in me, and I will respond to that trust by working as hard as I can to help Gettysburg College more fully realize its potential as one of the nation’s best liberal arts colleges. I take on the role of president with great seriousness, with great enthusiasm, and with great passion for this institution that has played such a significant role in my life and has opened so many doors to me. I know that many of you share that same passion. The Presidential Search Committee asked me to describe my vision for Gettysburg College in my conversations with them this winter, and I want to share a piece of that with you. This vision has evolved from my experience as an administrator and faculty member here at Gettysburg and also from conversations with students, alumni, parents, faculty, and staff. It is a vision that will no doubt continue to evolve, but will also continue to focus on preparing our students to take leading roles in their professions and communities — for it really will be our alumni who will bring distinction to Gettysburg College. Our alumni will be known for having had a Gettysburg experience grounded in academic excellence. They will graduate with a broad and deep liberal arts education that will form a basis for life-long learning. They will be known for their intellectual curiosity and their capacity to think critically, to express themselves clearly, and to understand how to apply multiple perspectives to solve complex problems. But beyond that, our graduates will be known for their strong sense of responsibility to others, to society, and to the world; and they will be known for acting on that sense of responsibility. Our alumni will engage in a wide variety of professional pursuits — medicine, research, teaching, public service, law, business, music — but what they will have in common are the desire and ability to put their superb education to good use. Wherever you go, when you mention Gettysburg College, you will find someone who can share a story about a Gettysburg College graduate whose actions will make you very proud of your own association with the College. While this vision might sound idealistic, I would suggest that it is attainable. To realize this vision, we must: • Continue to attract the very best faculty and staff and support them as they deliver a profound and contemporary liberal arts education to our students; • Continue to emphasize learning opportunities for students outside the classroom that will engage them in independent and creative thinking — through independent study projects and research collaborations with faculty; • Continue to build co-curricular experiences that complement the academic learning experience and that build habits of civic engagement and public service; and • Continue to work toward a Gettysburg community in which diversity of thought and experience are welcomed as part of our everyday interactions, and which sends Gettysburg stu- dents out into the world and brings the world to Gettysburg. It is no accident that each of these initiatives begins with the word continue. Although the foundation for this vision is already here, we must press ahead aggressively in each of these areas. In these challenging times, the Gettysburg experience must prepare students to live full and effective lives, marked by intellectual curiosity, open-mindedness, a sense of civic responsibility, and a desire to make the world a better place. There has never been a better or more important moment for Gettysburg to offer a compelling liberal arts education. I am honored and humbled by the faith the community has placed in me to lead Gettysburg College and by the support that so many of you have offered. I look forward to working with you as together we help our gem of an institution, Gettysburg College, to shine in new ways. Janet Morgan Riggs ’77 President
From The President
My Vision for Gettysburg College
WHEN BOARD OF Trustees Chair Jim Weaver ’64 asked me to serve as interim president last spring, never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that less than a year later, I would be chosen to serve as Gettysburg College’s 14th president. I am deeply grateful for the trust the Board of Trustees has placed in me, and I will respond to that trust by working as hard as I can to help Gettysburg College more fully realize its potential as one of the nation’s best liberal arts colleges. I take on the role of president with great seriousness, with great enthusiasm, and with great passion for this institution that has played such a significant role in my life and has opened so many doors to me. I know that many of you share that same passion.
The Presidential Search Committee asked me to describe my vision for Gettysburg College in my conversations with them this winter, and I want to share a piece of that with you. This vision has evolved from my experience as an administrator and faculty member here at Gettysburg and also from conversations with students, alumni, parents, faculty, and staff. It is a vision that will no doubt continue to evolve, but will also continue to focus on preparing our students to take leading roles in their professions and communities — for it really will be our alumni who will bring distinction to Gettysburg College.
Our alumni will be known for having had a Gettysburg experience grounded in academic excellence. They will graduate with a broad and deep liberal arts education that will form a basis for life-long learning. They will be known for their intellectual curiosity and their capacity to think critically, to express themselves clearly, and to understand how to apply multiple perspectives to solve complex problems. But beyond that, our graduates will be known for their strong sense of responsibility to others, to society, and to the world; and they will be known for acting on that sense of responsibility. Our alumni will engage in a wide variety of professional pursuits — medicine, research, teaching, public service, law, business, music — but what they will have in common are the desire and ability to put their superb education to good use. Wherever you go, when you mention Gettysburg College, you will find someone who can share a story about a Gettysburg College graduate whose actions will make you very proud of your own association with the College.
While this vision might sound idealistic, I would suggest that it is attainable. To realize this vision, we must:
• Continue to attract the very best faculty and staff and support them as they deliver a profound and contemporary liberal arts education to our students;
• Continue to emphasize learning opportunities for students outside the classroom that will engage them in independent and creative thinking — through independent study projects and research collaborations with faculty;
• Continue to build co-curricular experiences that complement the academic learning experience and that build habits of civic engagement and public service; and
• Continue to work toward a Gettysburg community in which diversity of thought and experience are welcomed as part of our everyday interactions, and which sends Gettysburg students out into the world and brings the world to Gettysburg.
It is no accident that each of these initiatives begins with the word continue. Although the foundation for this vision is already here, we must press ahead aggressively in each of these areas. In these challenging times, the Gettysburg experience must prepare students to live full and effective lives, marked by intellectual curiosity, open-mindedness, a sense of civic responsibility, and a desire to make the world a better place. There has never been a better or more important moment for Gettysburg to offer a compelling liberal arts education.
I am honored and humbled by the faith the community has placed in me to lead Gettysburg College and by the support that so many of you have offered. I look forward to working with you as together we help our gem of an institution, Gettysburg College, to shine in new ways.
Publication List
