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When
Union's presidential search began last year, you had already accomplished
a great deal at larger, better-known institutions. What encouraged your openess
to the presidency at Union?
I would like to think that we responded in a
faithful manner to a situation that the Lord opened for us. Friends, close
colleagues, and several Tennessee Baptist pastors encouraged Lanese and me
to allow my name to be considered by the search committee.
Union has a rich 170 year tradition on which to build, though it has really been the last two decades or so that Union has begun to move to the forefront among Christian Colleges. Recent recognitions by Peterson's Competitive Colleges and U.S. News and World Report underscore the quality education provided at this university. The university has in very recent years become a member of the Coalition of Christian Colleges and Universities. Union has an excellent faculty, outstanding students, and very capable trustee leadership. In addition the school has loyal alumni, strong support from Tennessee Baptist churches, a positive standing in broader Baptist and evangelical circles, as well as in the local community. It is an honor to be at Union at this time.
How
did your background shape your calling to serve through Christian higher
education?
Those who knew me in
high school and college years probably would not have selected me to be involved
in higher education. But that only underscores that I am here because of
God's leadership, enabling, gifting, and calling.
I had the privilege of growing up in a committed Christian home with parents who took me to church from my earliest days. When I was nine years old I trusted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior and was baptized in the Hunter Street Baptist Church in Birmingham.
Like others who grew up in the 60's my life was shaped by the events of those times— some of which were rather traumatic. My early years at the University of Alabama were times of personal struggle and direction seeking. Following a time of spiritual renewal after my sophomore year I began also to get serious about academic pursuits, soon followed by a call to vocational ministry. Through years of education at Grace Seminary, Southwestern Seminary, Texas Christian University, and the University of Texas at Arlington – in addition to a variety of ministry experiences – God's call seemed to focus and develop. Doors have opened in the area of Christian higher education in teaching, administration, and leadership. My responsibility is to be faithful to God s calling and the opportunity that has now come at Union University.
The
Union family has already heard much about your academic and professional
accomplishments; what are your interests outside of the office?
I enjoy sports of all
kinds, but especially basketball. I like to watch and play, though what was
already limited ability has greatly decreased! I will certainly look forward
both to working with the athletic department and to watching the Union
teams—both men and women—play on every occasion possible.
I like to read and try to find time to read fun things like mystery novels—works other than professional books. But I have to confess that readings in theology, history, and higher education are very satisfying—even fun. I like all kinds of music from classical to country, from Bach to Brooks. I love the great Christian anthems, the old hymns of the faith, but I equally enjoy much of contemporary Christian music as well.
Could
you introduce us to the new first lady and the rest of your
family?
Lanese also grew up
in Birmingham and attended Hunter Street Baptist Church, but we didn't really
get to know each other until we were students at the University of Alabama.
We were married in June, 1975 and have spent 21 wonderful years together.
She is a dedicated Christian who loves people. Without question she is my
greatest asset and will be a marvelous first lady for Union University. I'm
sure students, faculty, staff – the entire Union family – will
soon agree with that assessment.
The Lord has blessed us with three wonderful sons: Jonathan (17), Benjamin (15), and Timothy (14). Together we look forward to becoming a part of the Union family.
As
you prepare a new vision of leadership at Union University, what are the
key areas you wish to address?
I will seek to continue
the mission of Union University by remaining faithful to our heritage of
academic excellence and distinctive Christian commitment in every discipline
across the university. Some areas of the university can now be characterized
by the pursuit of excellence. But throughout the entire university we must
become excellence-driven. Excellence, not just compliance, must become the
goal of our teaching, research, service, administration, student development,
as well as in the construction and management of our facilities and grounds.
We want to be excellence-driven, not out of pride but because we want to do all things for God's glory. We believe He cares about our work and wants to be involved in everything we do.
We must establish the priority of being a Christ-centered university. We will seek to be distinctively Christian in carrying out our mission. I want to ensure such commitments by encouraging faculty, staff, and students to integrate faith in all learning and doing, recognizing that all truth is God's truth.
Our vision must be supported by a commitment to the values of being people-focused and future-driven. These characterizing qualities must be extended to every offering of the university by ensuring the best in support for the present faculty and staff, by recruiting the most qualified faculty for superb teaching, and by seeking to attract the best students possible for study at Union.
It is my hope for Union to become a Great Commandment institution, one where we place priority the love of God and love of others, where faculty and staff will invest themselves in students, helping them develop Christian minds and hearts in order to become leaders and change-agents in the world.
Where
would you like to see Union University at the end of your presidential
tenure?
I would like to see
a university with a great faculty committed to excellence in teaching, research,
publication, and service. I would like to see a staff that cares for and
enables students. I would like to see a campus with quality facilities that
are also aesthetically pleasing. I would like to see a university that serves
as a resource to businesses, to the world of health care and education, and
to the churches of the entire southeastern United States.
I hope that Union will be a shaper of Christian higher education throughout the nation. I hope Union will be known as a place that prepares gifted and convictional leaders to influence our changing world.
I believe that a great commitment to the Great Commandment will result in a great university. Above all I would hope people would say we maximized our potential and were faithful to God's leading in all things.
Since
its founding in 1823, Union has remained committed to the timeless traditions
of Christian values and liberal arts education. How do you feel Union will
adapt to the challenges and changes expected in the 21st Century?
We will seek to be a
future-directed university by being faithful to our heritage. We will give
thanks for our Baptist heritage and move forward with an unapologetic commitment
to truth, as completely revealed in Jesus Christ.
We will seek to develop an organization that can be positioned to maximize the windows of opportunity the Lord has presented to us. All of our resources and efforts must be aligned to help us become a mission-driven, vision-driven institution.
We want to place priority and emphases on developing new educational programs and impacting new markets we have not attempted to reach before. We will be prepared for the 21st century by having both a short term focus and a long term view in all our planning processes. We will need to be prepared to address social, cultural, and intellectual changes that characterize the beginning of not only a new century, but a new millennium.
I believe we will be prepared to address these changes. It is my hope and prayer that Union University will be a leading edge witness to our community, to churches, and to the world of higher education as we seek to be a beacon of truth in all areas of learning and practice.
How
would you define your leadership style?
I think the most important
role of presidential leadership is to set vision, define priorities, and
accept responsibility. I would describe myself as a team-oriented, relational
leader. I will work to build an effective leadership team that works together,
emphasizing complementary administrative strengths, that both gives vision
to the university and carries out that role through enabling servant leadership.
We will work to build community, collegiality, and a shared vision for the
university.
How
will Union relate to the Southern Baptist Convention?
I want to enhance Union's
positive and constructive relationship with the people and churches of the
Tennessee Baptist Convention in particular and the Southern Baptist Convention
in general. We will seek to be agents of reconciliation to a broken and hurting
world as we seek to relate to as many aspects of Southern Baptist life as
possible. We will seek to magnify our Christian commitment, to be faithful
to our Baptist heritage, and to articulate clearly our evangelical convictions.
We will find areas of agreement to work with others within the essentials
of historic Christian faith, valuing and building on our various strengths
in the body of Christ, while having an attitude of service and graciousness
to all people.
We will be denominationally loyal without being parochial, centering our unity on the person and work of Jesus Christ. We will strive to be open-hearted, while unapologetically affirming our commitments to revealed truth, which is the foundation of all we believe, teach, and do.
In a world characterized by growing secularization, relativity, pluralization, and privatization, we will seek to be faithful to the truthfulness of Holy Scripture, living under its authority, while seeking to avoid legalism and judgmentalism. We believe that these commitments provide the important framework through which we understand and interpret our world, the events of human history, as well as our responsibilities toward God and one another in this world. We want to have a Kingdom perspective in all we do so we can join with Southern Baptists around the world in carrying out the Great Commission in this generation.
How
will your administration reach out to alumni, encouraging deeper involvement
with their alma mater?
We had an excellent
alumni meeting this summer at the national meeting in New Orleans during
the Southern Baptist Convention. I look forward to meeting alumni and will
make myself available to speak in churches or community settings, to meet
representative groups in order to build relationships so that we can move
forward together with a common vision and common purpose for Union University.
I want to work hard to develop a historical consciousness for the entire
university to develop an appreciation for our past as we look to the future.
I want the alumni to meet the other members of our leadership team, both those with prior service to Union and the new members of the administrative team as well. I believe the alumni will share my enthusiastic excitement about the leadership team that has come together.
We want to find ways for alumni to be involved in shaping our future, directing new students our way, and investing in the resource base of the university. I hope that in the near future more than 50% of all alumni are annually investing in the mission and work of Union University. We want to encourage deeper involvement by enhancing alumni appreciation for the education they received.
I pledge to listen and learn from alumni and to work with alumni leadership in Tennessee and throughout the country to advance the mission of the university that we all love.
