This will go far to give our students additional opportunities for recreation. In addition, the availability of enhanced fine arts series, speakers series, recreation in the student center, an enhanced placement office and a myriad of opportunities for students to serve in leadership positions will all better prepare them for life after college. The single most important change in higher education today is the recognition that it is not enough to teach students subject knowledge. They also need to enter business, be effective citizens and raise families with knowledge of interpersonal skills, problem solving, a strong ethical orientation, time management, personal planning skills and other broad abilities. There is a limit to what faculty members can offer in their classrooms.
Student activities can greatly supplement their learning.
I would like to survey the extent to which we are measuring our academic successes. The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools has a requirement that we identify learning outcomes that we expect from our classes and then measure the degree to which we meet them. We can probably do a better job in this area. If so, we can learn more about the teaching techniques we need to maintain and those we need to change. We want to better focus on what it means to be a Baptist institution, especially as it relates to teaching and learning.