Hello, Samford, Beck Taylor here, and welcome to this June edition of Beck’s Bench, the
final episode for this academic year.
Well, this year’s theme for our campus was hope – the hope we find in Jesus, the hope
that we share with a world that needs nothing more, and the hope we find in each other as
we faithfully strive to sustain and strengthen the mission of this great university.
And that hope was on display last month as 1,217 new Samford graduates received their
well-earned diplomas.
Our academic year began as we celebrated yet another year of undergraduate enrollment growth.
Students and families are choosing Samford in record numbers, and they tell us they're
drawn to Samford’s Christ-centered educational mission, to faculty and staff who engage their
minds and hearts in innovative academic programs, and to a community that allows students to
flourish as they learn more about themselves and the world around them.
And just between us, I have it on good authority that we’ll once again welcome a record freshman
class this coming fall.
Samford’s faculty members continue to receive national and global recognition for their
outstanding accomplishments and acts of service.
As just one example, Dr. Valerie Prince, professor in Samford’s McWhorter School of Pharmacy,
was appointed the 168th president of the American Pharmacists Association, which is the nation’s
oldest and largest pharmacy organization.
And our own Dr. Timothy George, professor in the Beeson School of Divinity, was named
this year’s president of the Evangelical Theological Society, which is made up of more
than 4,000 scholars, teachers, pastors, and students dedicated to theological research
and teaching.
Samford also continues to receive national recognition for the quality of our academic
programs.
As just one example, earlier this month, U.S. News & World Report ranked Samford’s Cumberland
School of Law 4th in the nation for Trial Advocacy in its Best Law Schools rankings.
And it’s not just Samford’s faculty and programs that are winning awards.
Just last week, Samford’s acapella choir, under the direction of Dr. Philip Copeland,
won first place at the CantaRode International Choir Festival in the Netherlands.
We are enjoying a historic season of success for the Samford Bulldogs.
As of this recording, our athletic teams have won ten – yes count them – ten conference
championships so far this year, an all-time record for the Bulldogs.
And even as we celebrate our student-athletes' successes in competition, we’re also proud
that our teams posted a Graduation Success Rate that ranks it first among Division 1
schools in Alabama, first in the Southern Conference, and tied for sixth among all 351
Division I schools nationally.
Go Bulldogs, indeed!
There’s so much more I could say about other areas of the university that shine.
And even as we celebrate all of Samford’s accomplishments this past year, I’ve never
been more excited about our shared future.
In December, after a year-long conversation that involved more than 5,000 people, our
board of trustees unanimously adopted Samford’s new strategic plan, called Fidelitas: Faith
and Future.
This bold new aspirational plan calls for Samford to be nothing less than the premier
school of choice among national, comprehensive, Christ-centered universities.
The plan highlights eight areas of emphasis that impact every corner of campus, including
academic distinction, student engagement, faith formation, employee elevation, athletic
success, community celebration, financial stewardship and strength and global impact.
These priorities will animate all that we do at Samford in the coming years and set
an exciting course for our growing and vibrant campus community.
This past fall, we completed a beautiful and transformational renovation of Buchanan Hall,
home to Samford’s music division.
And future academic renovations are being planned for Davis Library, Dwight Beeson Hall, Brooks
Hall, and Robinson Hall and the law library.
Other important campus spaces are also being improved.
Even as I speak, the Caf – that beloved space where so many Samford people have shared
fellowship and food – is undergoing renovation that will greet students
this fall as they return to campus.
And of course, construction continues on the new Campus Recreation, Wellness and Athletic Complex
that will be complete in the Fall of 2024.
We’re also finishing plans for new freshman and upper-division housing, including new
Greek housing, that will once again increase Samford’s undergraduate residency rate to
at least 75%.
Of course, we couldn’t do any of this without the generosity of so many in the Samford family.
We’re grateful for the support you are providing to Samford.
As an important example, on April 4 this spring,
Samford Giving Day resulted in a record-giving amount
from a record number of donors over an exciting 24-hour period.
Samford, it’s been a great year.
We thank God for so many blessings.
I love this place as I know you do, and together, we will continue to pray that the Lord sustains
us as we place our hope in him.
For God.
For Learning.
Forever.
Until we see each other again in the fall, I’m Beck Taylor, wishing you a wonderful
summer.
May God bless you, may God bless Samford University.