By: Joel Pearsall, NNU President
“We do college different.”
This statement was made recently by an NNU staff member while talking to an alum whose child was considering NNU. As she was explaining how we build relationships and develop students in ways most schools don’t, she realized that “We do college different!”
Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary defines “different” as: “1. partly or totally unlike in nature, form or quality; 2. Not the same: such as distinct, various, another; 3. Unusual, special.”1 But I am even more enamored with the first definition for “different” contained in the Oxford English Dictionary: “1. Superior, eminent.”2 I am convinced that this definition actually best describes NNU and what we do here. In fact, I do not think it is an overstatement or hyperbole to declare: All that NNU does in educating and transforming its students is superior and distinguished in its character and success.
If I was afforded 4-5 pages of this issue of The Messenger, I could provide a great deal of evidence to support my bold declaration, but our editor has convinced me that none of you would then read this issue! 😉 So, let me provide a too-brief statement of support for my declaration: For over 100 years NNU has been seeking first the Kingdom of God, because we are convinced that seeking God first allows us to properly align and prioritize all of life. The proof? The lives of our students and alumni. They are living examples of the truth of this declaration. It shows up in various ways: international trips to serve others (like engineering students solving a problem in a foreign country and nursing students providing medical care where there is desperate need), graduates who choose to accept less salary to help those on the margins learn skills that allow them to support themselves . . . the list is endless.
But you don’t have to accept my declaration based only on these examples–this issue of The Messenger is filled with evidence of how NNU is superior to, and distinguished from, other colleges and universities. So, I hope you read all the articles and testimonials in this issue and, as you do, I believe that you will agree that seeking first the Kingdom of God has had a profoundly positive impact on NNU students across our 111 years of existence. That’s how we do college different!
Blessings,
Joel Pearsall, President
- “different.” Merriam-Webster.com. 2024. https://www.merriam-webster.com (July 4 2024).
- “different.” Oxford English Dictionary. 2024. https://www.oed.com (July 4, 2024).
