BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (ABP) — Samford University president Andrew Westmoreland, speaking during his inauguration Nov. 2 as the school's 18th president, shared his vision for Samford and affirmed that he would do his best to lead the Baptist school with “a commitment to that excellence that honors God.”
Speaking to more than 1,500 people, including representatives of 67 universities and colleges, Samford trustees and faculty members, and students, the new leader stressed that Samford should build on its strengths through strategic planning, increasing its endowment and being mindful of the needs of students. He added the university should keep “good faith” with the depth and breadth of its Baptist constituency by always subscribing to the eternal truths of the Bible.
“I believe our Christianity is no excuse for a lack of scholarship,” he said. “Instead, our faith should move us to the highest standards for excellence. And in that search for excellence, we do not fear the discovery of any truth, because all truth is God's truth.”
Westmoreland noted that Samford's diverse institutional profile “is not easily adapted to a standard rubric.” He referred to an academic program that combines the liberal arts and various graduate and professional offerings; a teaching-centered approach with growing interest in research; and a student body from 49 states and 27 nations.
“My vision for our future is that we ought to embrace this somewhat peculiar arrangement, that we ought to celebrate the opportunities these programs afford us, and that — in every case — we ought to make them as strong and challenging and as deep as we can — at all levels of the university.”
Quoting former president Harwell Davis as saying “it is largely the student body that makes the spirit of an institution,” Westmoreland said, “That spirit soars at Samford.”
He reminded his audience that students “are our great prize.” He added, “we ought to look at the ways in which our physical campus either inhibits or promotes the kind of community that we aspire to build (and) seek to limit the inhibiting factors and expand the opportunities.”
Westmoreland paid homage to the past, noting it was almost 165 years ago, on Nov. 15, 1841, that Baptists gathered in Talladega to authorize a plan leading to the establishment of Howard College, Samford's predecessor institution.
“Great tasks, requiring great commitment, lie ahead of us,” Westmoreland said. “We may be encouraged in the knowledge that our predecessors faced even greater tasks, and that their efforts met with success.”
Westmoreland, 49, succeeded retiring president Thomas Corts, coming to Samford after eight years as president of Ouachita Baptist University in Arkadelphia, Ark.
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