An Opportunity to Reaffirm Our Values

Steve Bahls, President

Augustana, like other colleges and universities, can play an especially important and needed role in our country during times of deep division. It’s all too easy for Americans to surround themselves with others who think the way they do, in order to reaffirm their beliefs, rather than explore and challenge them.

In this environment, how will Augustana respond? The Augustana community will continue to be guided by its values – academic freedom, respect for difference, a commitment to building community. We do so to help heal our fractured society.

During these times of challenge and opportunity, the leadership of Augustana will be guided by these principles:

1. We value critical thinking. We challenge underlying assumptions (even our own assumptions) by integrating learning from many different fields. Critical thinking is hard work and requires us to consider and value the ideas of others, even when we disagree. This commits us to listen carefully, gather viewpoints, respect facts, think logically, and look at ideas from different perspectives. Our faculty are resolved to ensure all students develop the critical thinking skills that will enable them to be an effective generation of leaders.
2. We nurture rigorous, respectful debate. A study by the Pew Research Center found that 40 percent of 18-year-olds believe that if speech offends it should be prohibited. We must model for our students the abiding truth that the antidote for much of what we consider offensive is not less speech; it is more speech, to challenge and expose those whose intent is to offend. We must help students understand that language should invite conversation.
3. We practice unwavering hospitality. True to our roots as a school for immigrants, Augustana today welcomes a student body drawn from throughout the world and from historically marginalized groups in our own country. An inclusive Augustana is not simply critical to our mission; when a college community is made up of those representing a diversity of ideas and experiences, a richer climate for learning is the result.
4. We believe each of us has a calling. Critical thinking and passion are wasted in the absence of purpose. We believe students are best served when they are led to a deliberate and intentional reflection on their talents, skills and passions, and how these connect in a principled way with calling and career. A hallmark of an Augustana education is to encourage students to ask who they want to be as a person before asking what they want to do as their job.

Many observers of higher education predict that the coming years will be among the most turbulent for colleges in a generation. Perhaps. But I trust they will provide us with unparalleled opportunities to equip our students with the skills they will need to be America’s next generation of leaders.