|
 by Dave Mitchell
Professor of Business and Economics |
 |
In January 2001 President Bob
Duffett approached me outside of Smith Hall to ask me whether I would consider leading a
task force. The purpose of the task force would be to enable Dakota Wesleyan to
communicate more effectively to prospective students and others its religious character.
His concern was that, in a day when effective programming and marketing put a premium on
clear, focused mission and messages, we needed to take a hard look at what we were in fact
doing regarding to our promise of preparing students for a lifetime of faith (along with
learning, leadership and service), and how well we were communicating that part of our
mission. To use his words, there was no longer any room for fuzziness.
My first response was to ask whether he thought our primary
need was for increased clarity, or whether he thought we needed to explore a significant
shift in our historic position, as expressed in the current mission statement. I indicated
that I was not interested in leading an effort to make a major shift from what I
considered to be distinctive aspects of Dakota Wesleyan-inclusiveness and diversity. His
immediate response was to affirm our distinctiveness, and to emphasize that the challenge
was to determine how we could more intentionally deliver on the promise and communicate
our religious character.
He talked enthusiastically about the potential for a
college like DWU to appeal to students who want an atmosphere that affirms the relevance
and essential unity of the twin quests for intellectual and spiritual development
(Wesley's knowledge and vital piety).
As a result of our conversation, I readily agreed to accept
the challenge.
The next step in the process was for Bob and me to discuss
potential members of the task force. Our objective was to select a group that would be
balanced in a variety of ways: by religious perspective, by role at DWU, and by length of
service to the college. The initial group included five faculty members, five staff
members and one student. Eventually, we added three more staff people.
Our first task was to identify the potential scope of the
project we were undertaking. Five questions became the focus of our work:
| 1. |
How should the Christian identity of the college be
expressed to external constituencies (prospective students, parents, supporters)? In
particular, how can the college be more clear about its identity while remaining committed
to a tradition of openness and diversity?
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| 2. |
What internal interpretive tools and development processes
need to be created or enhanced in order to enable faculty, staff and students to
communicate effectively with others about the religious character of the college? How can
campus people be enabled to express their own perspectives as part of the diverse
community, while still contributing to an integrated and focused sense of what the college
is like?
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| 3. |
What principles should be adhered to in the hiring process
to ensure that the college employs people who can embrace the religious character of the
college, including a commitment to fostering dialogue and accepting diversity?
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| 4. |
How should the curriculum be designed to most effectively
engage students in dialogue and spiritual development as part of the holistic education
referred to in the DWU mission statement and other foundational documents?
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| 5. |
In what ways does the college's co-curricular programming
currently support its commitment to nurturing spiritual development? In what ways does
that programming need to be enhanced? |
The task force has been engaged in working
on these issues, in cooperation with several other groups on campus, including the
faculty, the student life and campus ministry programs, the human resources department,
and the marketing staff. To date, the following actions have been taken:
| 1. |
Several extended discussions focused on the issue of
language. We wanted to be certain we were choosing words and phrases that would resonate
with our key external constituencies, particularly prospective students. The task force
members who are engaged in marketing indicated that the discussions have been helpful to
them in their ongoing efforts to shape the messages of the college.
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| 2. |
The task force has developed a statement on the religious
identity aspect of the college's hiring policies, which is intended to guide campus
personnel engaged in search processes. The full three-page statement provides substantial
context for the policy. A shorter version of the policy is being designed for inclusion in
letters of response to applicants, to encourage them to consider the kinds of expectations
we have of employees with regard to nurturing spiritual development.
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| 3. |
Following some discussion by the task force regarding
issues of curriculum, the faculty discussed and adopted a change in the general education
requirements, which adds an another course in religious studies. The new requirement now
includes one course in religion and a second course in either religion or philosophy. The
faculty have also discussed ways to incorporate the theme of spiritual development more
broadly into the curriculum. A promising avenue appears to be in connection with a new set
of curricular themes called The Wesleyan Imperatives, one of which deals with issues of
meaning.
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| 4. |
Preliminary work has been done on developing internal
training tools. Those with front-line responsibility for interpreting the college, such as
admissions staff, coaches, faculty, student ambassadors and development personnel, need to
have available a set of "talking points" that are consistent across the campus,
but do not compromise the diversity, which is an essential quality of the college. One
idea being explored is the development of both a viewbook and a CD, which contain images
of the religious variety on campus, as well as the commitment of the college to encourage
students and staff to engage in ongoing spiritual development. These materials could
conceivably be used directly with constituents, but initially their primary purpose would
be to enable campus personnel to develop ways to better talk about DWU's religious
character.
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| 5. |
This spring, a working group of the task force will survey
students and staff to develop assessment data on existing co-curricular opportunities for
spiritual development, and to identify areas where new programming might enhance the
student experience. The results of this study will be made available to appropriate staff
with co-curricular program responsibilities. |
Judging from my participation in this
effort, Dakota Wesleyan University's commitment to the spiritual development of its
students and staff is alive and well, and there are exciting possibilities on the horizon.
Though the Christian Identity Task Force may not continue beyond this spring, its work
will hopefully have laid a foundation for continual improvement in this vital aspect of
our mission.
Dakota Wesleyan University
1200 W. University Ave
Mitchell, SD 57301
800-333-8506 |
