| Student Development Officers Hear From Singer/Songwriter Michael Card |
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NASHVILLE, Tenn.—Senior student development officers from CCCU campuses met for their annual conference Feb. 20-22, 2008, at the Loews Vanderbilt Hotel in Nashville, Tenn. Michael Card , author, singer-song writer and theologian brought three challenging sessions to the group. He used the lives of Job, David, and narratives from the gospel of John. Card challenged attendees with themes such as: The God Who Takes Everything Away; The Wilderness Experience; Incarnational Living; and Why We are NOT our Gifts.
In the opening session of the conference, Kimberly Thornbury, vice president for student services & dean of students at Union University (TN), and two of her staff, reported on the devastation at Union from the Feb. 5 tornado and the miraculous ways in which the community has come together. The SSDO Commission led a time of prayer for the Union University community. Eastern University (PA) Vice President for Student Life Betty-Ann Brigham presented a check from the Eastern University students who had taken up a fund-raiser to support the students at Union University.
Roundtable discussions focused on:
- Athletics: Supports, Challenges and Opportunities
- Student Mental Health Concerns
- Setting up a Residential Model for Student Development Leadership
- Designing a First Year Experience Course
- Preparing for a New President
Other highlights of the conference include devotional thoughts from Joy Jewell, Geneva College (PA), and Jim McCormick, Colorado Christian University (CO), as well as a session with author Matthew Paul Turner, who read and spoke about his life's work, connecting with today’s college students. Jane Higa, Westmont College (CA), also provided an update on the SSDO Campus Audit program.
“I would highly recommend the conference for three reasons: refreshment, renewal and reaffirmation,” says William “Coffee” Washington, senior vice president for student affairs at Trinity International University (IL). “Being around colleagues who, in many ways, can commiserate, understand and walk in the wilderness puts the journey and our work in perspective, I came away totally refreshed and encouraged. My spirit has been renewed and rejuvenated. From roundtable discussions to the tone and tenor of the speakers, it allowed me to understand and re-engage with my sense of calling. In terms of reaffirmation, I was able to have God speak boldly and softly in the work that I am called to. The encouragement and support of colleagues definitely helped underscore the transformational influence that God has allowed us to have.”
McCormick says the highlight for him was the camaraderie with other senior student development officers, and that he took home with him the view on crisis management given by Union University staff. The annual conference is valuable, he says, “for the opportunity to hear each other and where our campuses are and take solace that things are pretty much the same everywhere in terms of challenges; to gain knowledge about how we as CSDOs are facing those challenges; and to fellowship with other believers that have huge administrative duties in the process.”
The Council for Christian Colleges & Universities is a higher education association of 182 intentionally Christ-centered institutions around the world. There are now 105 member campuses in North America and all are fully-accredited, comprehensive colleges and universities with curricula rooted in the arts and sciences. In addition, 77 affiliate campuses from 24 countries are part of the CCCU. The Council’s mission is to advance the cause of Christ-centered higher education and to help its institutions transform lives by faithfully relating scholarship and service to biblical truth.
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Posted
February 27, 2008
For media inquiries, contact:
Nate Mouttet
nmouttet@cccu.org
voice: 202.546.8713 ext. 329
