Passing on the light in the face of darkness
We often invoke our school’s motto when referring to the distinctiveness of our community – In Lumine Illo Tradimus Lumen. We can only pass on the light, however, if we keep it burning.
In Lumine: The President’s Blog
Partnering for a pathway to higher education
The work Bryan Station High School and its academies are doing to empower individuals goes hand-in-hand with our mission at Transylvania and we value that work.
Remarks at the 2018 Academic Convocation
Erica Horn is a Transy success story—not because she pursued advanced certifications and degrees and has established herself as a respected professional, but because, from that position of privilege and comfort, she has reached out to others who need a little extra assistance.
Remarks to the Transylvania Class of 2022 at the First-Year Induction Ceremony
Good morning and welcome to Transylvania. We’re delighted to kick off a new school year by honoring you, the class of 2022, and your family members who have joined you here today. All of us at Transylvania are honored that you have chosen to spend four pivotal years on our campus, and we take our commitment to you and to your education very seriously. I have recently navigated the process of selecting a college with both of my daughters, and I am now in the middle of that process with my son. I know how trying it can be. So let me first offer my congratulations on your having reached this milestone. As students, I expect you feel some relief and not a small amount of anxiety. Those jumbled feelings are perfectly normal. Talk with your roommate, your floor mates, your classmates. I expect you’ll find they all share your excitement and your concerns. It’s a while ago now, but I remember experiencing a similar sense of trepidation when I first arrived on campus. As the son of immigrants and the first in my family to go away to school, I was lost. In fact, I was so homesick, I decided to withdraw after a couple of weeks and drove home on a Friday afternoon. The next morning my father told me to have a job by Monday morning. So I called a friend who had a construction company to ask for a job. He
Read “Remarks to the Transylvania Class of 2022 at the First-Year Induction Ceremony”
Signature Programs Alone Will Not Save Our Colleges
The forecast of a major contraction in higher education, especially among small, private liberal arts schools, has college administrators scrambling to find ways to save their schools. Some are implementing “signature programs” that organize and supplement the academic curriculum to add value to a student’s education. Signature programs are designed to support and enhance the educational experience of college students. The organizational coherence of these programs makes it easier to demonstrate the relevance of liberal education and the ways in which such an education can lead to success in the world. At Transylvania University we take advantage of our size, location, and academic calendar to offer programs that tie courses to the real world. Our location, for instance, in the heart of downtown Lexington, Ky., makes it possible to connect students with alumni mentors through the 100 Doors to Success mentoring program and provide internships to any student who wants one. We recently invested almost $1 million in digital liberal arts to ensure that our students understand, use, and critique technology to better make their way in the emerging digital world. Our academic calendar includes May term, during which students take one highly innovative course. May term courses are typically team-taught, travel courses, or integrated into our community. Each of these initiatives adds value to our students’ experience. And while they might qualify as “signature programs,” they do not constitute the identity of our school. They are not