In my new role as president of Brenau University, I am asked a lot of questions. The most popular ones are along the lines of, “What are your priorities for Brenau?” and, “What are you going to do?” Having been on the job for a scant amount of time within the context of this 141-year-old university, it would be presumptuous for me to say that I have this grand vision and the steps in place to carry it out.

My initial approach is one of listening and learning. I am eager to know what drew alumni, faculty, staff and friends to Brenau, what keeps them engaged and what aspirations they have for the university. I am so intent in this endeavor that I encourage you to attend one of our alumni and friends gatherings over the coming months. Let’s call it Anne’s Listening and Learning Tour.

Lest you think listening and learning is all I will be doing, let me assure you I also will do many things that any good higher education administrator knows to do. First and foremost is to consistently remind myself and others that students are central to all we do. Students are the reason Brenau exists.

We live in a society and culture that demands of higher education leaders what we should be doing anyway: demonstrating the value of our degrees. This includes demonstrating the value of the investments by students, their families, lending agencies and the government. We will do this through excellent continuous assessment of academic programs, cocurricular programs, support services, housing and food, and safety and security, to name a few. We will do this through seeking third-party external validation, including accreditations. We will do this by examining all aspects of the student experience and finding strategies to retain more students.

And we will do this through publications like Brenau Window. In the following pages you will read how academics are front and center in everything we do here at Brenau University.

I look forward to working with each and every one of you as we prepare students to lead extraordinary lives of learning and leadership. I can promise you we will think big, accomplish much together and have fun along the way.

It will be a grand adventure.

Anne A. Skleder, Ph.D.
President, Brenau University