Personal Philosophy

During my sophomore year of college, Dr. Herman Glaess required me to write a personal mission statement for his Human Relations class. Though I've made some minor revisions since then, this has served as my philosophy and mission since then.

Faith

My faith is the first tenet of my philosophy -- a statement of who I am. Unfortunately, in today's society I feel like I need to qualify this statement. On the one hand, I do not associate with the "Christian right" and often feel that their work does more to separate people from God than to connect them with Him. On the other hand, neither do I associate with far leftist movements, such as the Jesus Seminar, that do not engage people in the big questions of a loving God who chose to become one. Finding myself somewhere in the middle, I believe that my relationship with Jesus is characterized by paradoxes that I cannot understand, but instead accept by faith. Since I have worked at a number of Christian universities, I have developed a faith statement that expands what I believe, though I admit that I've done so with no small degree of reservation. Because I also work in a number of public settings, I have also identified my thoughts and beliefs about the role of faith in the public sector.

Dignity

This point of my personal philosophy reflects the individual side of my commitment to diversity. To be clear, I do not align with individualistic definitions of dignity. As I see it, dignity is not something that I award to those who achieve success or who hold values and beliefs that fit well with my own. Dignity is deeper – something that each person has simply because she or he was created in the image of God. In naming this point of my philosophy "dignity," I aim to emphasize that all people are valuable simply for their own sake.

Communities of Difference

This point reflects the communal side of my commitment to diversity. I believe that God created people to live in community. Some people have wrongly defined community in terms of commonalities. Instead, I align with the writing of Dr. William G. Tierney who has suggested that "we build the idea of community around the concept of diversity." Tierney has argued that traditional definitions of community that emphasize what is shared in common tend to silence divergent voices, especially those historically marginalized on the borders of the community. True community, in contrast, engages all the participants in dialogue; communities grow by honestly engaging more diverse voices, and not necessarily by gaining greater consensus. In all that I do, I desire to create communities that value difference and dialogue.

Servant Leadership

I expand upon this concept in my philosophy of student affairs, but briefly stated, I believe the best leaders are servants. Further, great leaders balance their service to a community with service to a dream. This is no easy task, and certainly not a task for timid leaders. Servant leadership is powerful and it requires a deeply refined ethical foundation. My desire is to lead by serving in a manner that is consistent with my most deeply held ethical principles. (See "The Paradoxes of Being a Servant Leader")

The Sunrise

I grew up in a small town in Iowa. My family lived on top of a hill and we could see at least 10 miles in any direction; as a child, I most loved looking to the east early in the morning. A sunset can be spectacular, but it lacks the power of a sunrise – the freshness of a new day coupled with the anticipation of that moment when the first light of the sunrise pierces the horizon. For me, the symbol of the sunrise brings together the concepts of forgiveness, reconciliation, and new beginnings. I know that I have made many mistakes in my life, and I have hurt people that I love. I have depended upon their forgiveness and willingness to reconcile and begin anew. In that same spirit, my desire is to be a forgiving person who engages in relationships characterized by reconciliation and new beginnings.