Message From The President
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This is a time for alliteration at Sterling College: freshman, faculty, facilities, finances and, above all, faith and friendship. All are related elements of “developing creative and thoughtful leaders who understand a maturing Christian faith.” Enrollment has grown significantly each of the past three years as we shaped the student body to meet demand. Matriculants join small cohorts with leaders dedicated to their spiritual, academic and spiritual success. Enhanced faculty (four new endowed chairs) have led their programs, particularly in graphic arts, business, (a new MBA program online, unique real estate and franchise development programs), communication (an affiliation with Walden Media in film, a debate program ranking 31st in the country), music, biology (special emphasis on pre-med) and education (our own charter school on campus). Improvements in our facilities in progress this year include a new football field and track, a health and fitness center, a retail center with our expanded book store, a sandwich shop and a variety store. The college is growing in every financial metric: annual giving, planned giving and endowment. Most importantly, we focus on enhancing students’ Christian world views through study, seminars and mission trips, a major feature of our three-year strategic plan. Here two orders of reality are united existentially which too frequently tend to be placed in opposition as though they were antithetical: the search for truth and the certainty of knowing the fount of truth. Sterling’s size allows individual attention from faculty and staff, and the president’s office and home are always open to students, for they are the reason the institution exists.
In Kansas, the sky rolls with the same rhythm of blue, white and gray, and darkness will ever be splashed with stars. The Sterling that each student makes within himself/herself will never change. No one will tear its building down, or take away its friendships, its adventure or its promise. We cherish the quiet words of faith and friendship which herald change and hint of feelings deep and difficult to say – love, faith and comradeship.