Northwestern is being redefined. Well, its mission statement is, anyway.
The Strategic Planning Committee (SPC) recently revised NW’s mission statement and divided it into two parts: a shorter mission statement and an identity statement.
“The mission statement is what we want to happen when a student is at NW,” said provost Jasper Lesage, “and the identity statement is how we’re going to do that.”
The revised yet unapproved mission statement says, “Northwestern College is an intentional Christian academic community engaging students in courageous and faithful learning that empowers them to follow Christ and pursue God’s redeeming work in the world.”
The new, unapproved identity statement says, “Northwestern College is a Christian college in the Reformed tradition, founded in 1882 by the Reformed Church in America. We are committed to providing a Christian liberal arts education in an undergraduate, intercultural and residential environment. We offer bachelor’s degrees in a variety of traditional and professional programs.”
Lesage said the purpose of the mission statement is “to capture key components found in the ‘Vision for Learning,’” a statement created in 2006 that gives a more detailed description of the college’s learning goals and objectives.
The SPC decided the mission statement need to be revised to make it more up-to-date.
“We wanted a clear statement to define and remind us of why we’re here,” Lesage said. “We’re also hoping the updated statement will speak to perspective students and make them think, ‘I want to find out more about that place.’”
President Greg Christy will ask the Board of Trustees to approve the revised mission statement and the new identity statement at the semi-annual meeting in early October. This is the last step in adopting the two statements that will define NW’s mission.