Office of the Provost

A Letter From Provost Deb Harless

Dear Bethel Parents and Families –I am delighted you and your student have joined us at Bethel! Each time we welcome new students and families to Bethel, I am reminded of my own experience as a Bethel student. I loved my student days here. Bethel marked me in significant ways. I learned to think better and to connect my faith and values with what I was studying. I was also challenged to explore God’s calling in my life. My faith became my own—I understood better what I believed and why through my experiences at Bethel. And I made friends for a lifetime. I returned to Bethel 31 years ago to be part of the faculty—what a privilege it’s been to be part of a place that had such a profound impact on me. Bethel is very intentional about providing a high-quality education that is anchored in our Christian faith. We remain keenly focused on creating life-changing educational experiences for all of our students. Bethel’s founder, John Alexis Edgren, said, “Measure our performance by what God accomplishes through our graduates after they have been prepared at Bethel to go out into the world to serve.” People often ask me what’s kept me at Bethel for so long. My answer to that is clear—it’s seeing what God does in students’ lives during their time at Bethel and then seeing how they lead and serve in significant ways after they graduate. Thank you for trusting us with your student. We are excited to be part of God’s work in your student’s life. We pray that these will be remarkable years in which your student grows and thrives intellectually, spiritually, and relationally. Debra K. Harless ’83 Executive Vice President and Provost