Swartzendruber Takes Office
Loren Swartzendruber, eighth President of Eastern Mennonite University, began his first semester of duties this month.
Upon taking office, President Loren Swartzendruber immediately proposed a multifaceted agenda for EMU, including issues of relating to the Board of Trustees and raising funds.
"The first goal is to strengthen church relations," Swartzendruber said.
Strengthening church relations was a step that involved a number of school interests such as adhering to policies going on within the church, and also pulling students from the Mennonite churches to EMU.
In relation to church relations, Swartzendruber said he wanted a clear definition of with whom the school must relate: "It's important that we're all on the same page with the governance of the Mennonite boards," he said.
Swartzendruber said that it isn't unusual for an institution of higher learning to operate under a "dual board" arrangement. The governing boards include the 18-member EMU Board of Trustees and the 10-member Mennonite Education Agency (MEA). Both have played an influential and guiding role in the founding and functioning of the school since 1917 and before. (The MEA was originally the Mennonite Board of Education.)
He compared this governance to the University of Tennessee, for instance, which has both a board of regents and is responsible to the state education department. For private Christian colleges, though, this dual board arrangement is highly unique because most church-related institutions have only local boards, he said.
Regarding the Mennonite Confession of Faith, Swartzendruber said it will continue to be the guiding faith statement for EMU, all the while, though, recognizing differences of interpretation. He clarified that as a Mennonite university with an Anabaptist heritage, EMU "will be expanding in that frame" rather than "veering off into a liberal arts frame" that considers the church relationship incidental.
Swartzendruber also wants to bulk up on finances, especially for building projects and scholarships. Key needs in the area of building projects include the Commons Phase II (turning the old gym into a theatre) and replacing the turf on the turf field.
One goal Swartzendruber has is to define the entrance points of the campus more clearly. While portions of EMU such as the south side are somewhat unclear, other borders such as on the west atop the hill need little defining.
While he didn't state an amount of money to be raised for these projects, he later told Richard Parker in an interview with WVPT that the university will likely launch a $30 million capital campaign over the next five to six years. This will be in addition to the $1.4 million needed annually toward operations, he said.
As for the student body and needs, Swartzendruber had a number of goals.
Referring to the percentages of Mennonite and non-Mennonite students, he said, "I'd like to see us stay at 50/50… I think we should be welcoming to other expressions, but we ought be clear about our (Mennonite) identity."
One way in which he plans to keep Mennonite enrollment figures high enough is to "spend time in the church" and to visit Mennonite high schools. He also has plans to make a stronger case to local high school students to come to EMU.
Other goals of Swartzendruber include recruiting "gifted faculty members" and asking if there are new majors that should be considered.
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