Change is in the air. As we all adjust our regular footpaths to accommodate the plaza and adapt to the new renovations of various offices around campus, we are also bracing ourselves for an even bigger change: a new president.
As a representative of the community, The Guilfordian offers the following description of our wants and needs in a new leader.
The next president should lead the college in our ever-continuing mission to live the core values and testimonies that we preach, so that they are more than just pretty flags. This will be an immense challenge to meet while providing the excellent education Guilford is known for.
Our next president must possess integrity in every situation, believe in equality and be a humble, approachable and fully-engaged member of Guilford society.
He or she must believe in community. That involves being present and active in school life, attending sporting events, theatrical performances and protests.
In short, the president’s face and name should be known to every member of the community, no matter their position. The new leader must strengthen Guilford’s commitment to all forms of diversity. This means active support of the diversity work already underway.
One of the president’s main roles should be advocating for justice in all its forms for every community member. Everyone, regardless of background, should feel appreciated and accepted. New ideas, whether from a student organization, the multicultural education department or the diversity action committee, are all vital.
The new president should continue Kent Chabotar’s financially stable path, but without forgetting the importance of all the core values, values that Chabotar guided the community to first articulate. The new president should be a good steward of Guilford’s resources by making the campus physically beautiful and sustainable, without sacrificing community, diversity, equality, excellence, integrity and justice.
Above all, these values should be espoused and endorsed by the new president.
And while we believe in serendipity, we too must embody our core values throughout this presidential search process and beyond.
