4 minute read
Lunch at High Noon
From the President
I want you to imagine you are sitting in my office on the third floor of the administration building.
We are enjoying a conversation about the future of Walla Walla University. I invested in some freshly rolled Dora’s Deli burritos and perfectly salted corn chips—which have fueled your creative energies. I’m not sure whether you (a) intend to quit your job and come work for WWU, (b) fund a million dollars in new scholarships, or (c) rally 100 alumni to build a new academic pavilion. But this is clear to me: You are intent on moving something of consequence at your alma mater. Late career/early retirement stuffed with ocean cruises, tee times, and a buffet of Instagram reels isn’t for you.
You didn’t come this far to waste your powerful season of life. You crave legacy, influence, transformation.
But then your rhetorical crescendo is interrupted. The door to my office swings open. An unscheduled prosecutor stands in the doorway. The uninvited critic begins his interrogation.
“Hey, are you the president of this university? I’ve got a question for you. Is Walla Walla University still … ”
I’m anticipating the next word.
“Adventist?” (Yes. Deeply so. More than ever before.)
“Affordable?” (Very much so. Decidedly manageable.)
“Excellent?” (Across the board, by multiple critical measures.)
But these words are not what comes next out of the mouth of our noontime guest.
“Is Walla Walla University still … relevant?”
The impertinent visitor has brought a pertinent query. He has asked, quite possibly, the most important question of all.
“Is Walla Walla University still relevant?” (I repeat the antagonist’s question.)
“Yes, as relevant as ever, and more so than ever before. I’ll give you three reasons for my conviction.
“First, as we speak, we are flooding the world with physicians and dentists, nurses and therapists, pharmacists and veterinarians, accountants and communicators, teachers and pastors, engineers and technicians, writers and orators, pilots and auto mechanics, entrepreneurs and leaders. Our academic program, our preparation of students, is carefully geared for supply of needed jobs in the church, the United States, and the world. Nearly every industry we supply is asking for more hands-on-deck. And we are a trusted, reliable supplier. The whole of our curriculum is acutely relevant, and constantly under academic fine-tuning. Marketplace relevance is an essential north star. We deliver.
“Second, we are, today, infusing the planet with good people. WWU graduates continue to have a well-earned reputation for empathy, emotional maturity, social intelligence, compassion, critical thinking, work ethic, humility, curiosity, service—good citizens in the neighborhoods of the planet. The Adventist philosophy of education—growing the whole person—thrives here. This is why we insist on physical education, literature, history, religion, logic, speech, biomechanics, Beowulf, and the Battle of Bull Run. We are not only preparing students for graduate schools, professional schools, marketplace performance—we are growing human beings.
“Third, we are not only relevant because we (a) meet the needs of the marketplace and (b) the greater need for good neighbors and citizens of the world. We are relevant, most of all, because we soak hearts and minds in the ways and means of Jesus Christ during the critical years of brain development. We immerse young women and men—in the essential months, when frontal lobes are getting final wiring, in worship of God, ethical reflection, theological consideration, the grace of Jesus, and the power of the Holy Spirit. We are highly relevant because God is, and forever will be, in season and out of season, the most real and relevant Fact of our lives. Nothing is more important than spending years 18-25 in deep and daily consideration of Him. This makes us unique and rare in American higher education. This makes us eternally relevant.”
I’m not sure how our lunch conversation ends. I guess that’s up to you.
