CA M PUS N E WS
from the
PRESIDENT BY G E NE PFE IFE R • PRESIDENT, B E THANY LUTHERAN COLLEG E
Growing opportunities When I arrived at Bethany almost six years ago, I was already quite familiar with the College. One of Bethany's best known characteristics is the institution's reputation for its student-centered focus and helping students succeed. Bethany graduates take that solid foundation provided by caring and mentoring professors and move on to be committed and consistent contributors to their professions, families, churches, and communities. In recent years, national polling organizations such as U.S. News and Washington Monthly have started recognizing colleges and universities, like Bethany, that help their graduates achieve success beyond their time on campus. The term being using to measure this success is referred to as an individual's social mobility. We've published a few articles about this in recent years. Social mobility refers to the ability of a person to move upward in income and social class after earning a college degree. Bethany Lutheran College is ranked among the top colleges in the United States (by U.S. News) for its graduates' social mobility. The recognition tells the important story of colleges that are doing a great job educating students from a variety of academic and socioeconomic backgrounds.
"Some might ask, what exactly do you mean by providing graduates with eternal value?" We're pleased that national publications are seeing this and telling the impact of a college education. However, this concept of social mobility isn't new to us—internally it's something we've known about for years. We're proud that Bethany graduates are becoming contributors beyond what would have been predicted by college entrance scores or where they went to high school. Recently, some have debated the value of a college education, but when that talk arises, we'll gladly discuss how Bethany 4
graduates are making a genuine difference in society. But we also know that social mobility isn't the greatest benefit of a Bethany education. Usually, the benefits of attending a Christian college aren't measured by national rankings. Something else is happening at Bethany that has considerably more value, and perhaps it's not always obvious to the casual observer. The Bethany characteristic about which I'm most pleased is that the College provides graduates with something that has eternal value. Some might ask, what exactly do you mean by providing graduates with eternal value? Are you referring to a legacy of some kind left to the world by Bethany graduates? Are Bethany alumni making such a profound mark on society that their contributions will endure for centuries? Perhaps these types of contributions to the world will be the result of a Bethany graduate's contribution to society. However, what I'm referring to here is the eternity of peace our God in heaven promises to those who put their trust in Him. You might be thinking, Bethany has always been a Christian college focused on Christ's teachings, what's different today? In recent years, Bethany's student profile has changed in some ways, and shouldn't be surprising. Bethany was founded by descendants of Norwegian, Christian immigrants. Those early students were in many cases the next generations of these Euro-centric families. We're grateful some of those families are still encouraging new generations to attend Bethany, and while we continue to actively recruit students from our traditional backgrounds, those are not the backgrounds of many Bethany students today. Today at Bethany, we see students looking for opportunity from other places both near and far. Among BLC students are those that come from large American inner cities, those from non-European backgrounds, and those from countries thousands
