Southwestern Adventist University Rolls Out Its Foundation for Excellence

On July 1, 2020, Southwestern Adventist University launched A Foundation of Excellence – Strategic Plan 2020-2023.  For the past two years, administrators, faculty, and staff have intentionally worked to chart the direction of the University. 

This new plan is built around six goals: enhance quality academic programs, promote an environment that inspires personal faith and Christ-centered relationships, create a transformative and immersive experience in all phases of university life, establish the university as an innovator in Christian higher education, ensure the campus facilitates a vibrant environment for student learning, and develop and implement a sustainable financial model that ensures financial vitality.

“The carefully drafted thirty objectives set forth within these goals will be used as benchmarks to measure progress towards achieving success,” said University President, Ken Shaw.  “Laying out clear goals and objectives is vital to advancing a university.  I look forward to working closely with our excellent faculty, staff, and administrators to meet and even exceed these expectations in the years to come.”  

Developing this strategic plan was no small undertaking. The President’s Cabinet began by spending a week in the summer of 2018 formulating initial goals; then over the course of the next two years, the plan was refined with the valuable work of stakeholders through various committees and workshops. 

“We are grateful for those that contributed to the plan, and particularly grateful to those that participated in the two-day session conducted by the Florida Hospital Innovation Lab, as well as the 2019 colloquium planning and prioritization meeting, Board of Trustees committees, five task force committees, three workshops with faculty and staff, and individual academic department meetings,” shares Donna Berkner, Vice President for Academic Administration. “The planning process has ensured that we have a document that is ambitious, systemic, and practical.”

As a campus dedicated to providing Christ-centered education, a noteworthy feature of this plan is an updated set of seven core values designed to encourage students, employees and graduates to continually seek wisdom, live with integrity, be good stewards of resources, treat others with respect, be humble, unselfishly serve others, and remain forever faithful. 

“Values drive the mission and decisions of an organization,” says Russ Laughlin, Vice President for Spiritual Development. “Southwestern Adventist University’s values are grounded upon our knowledge of God as revealed in the Bible, designed to deepen our faith in Him, and intended to impact our campus and the world through unselfish service.”

Through God’s abundant blessings and by the hard-work of devoted staff, faculty, and administrators, this bold plan will ensure that students from all corners of the world receive the holistic Christian education of Southwestern Adventist University.
“I am proud of this document and what it represents to all of the students and future students at Southwestern Adventist University, writes Larry R. Moore, Chairman of the Board, “I look forward to witnessing the outpouring of God’s blessings on this university during the next three years.” 
To view the new Strategic Plan and to learn more about the University’s core values, click here.