As I reflect on the recognition of Black History Month every February, I am reminded of two things that have both historical and present-day relevance to our university. First, our university’s founder, Woodbridge N. Ferris along with his wife Helen, built our institution on the premise that anyone could attend. ANYONE! Regardless of background, ethnicity, gender or anything else, Woodbridge and Helen made the Ferris education possible, providing a dedicated and specialized workforce for the state of Michigan.
Now, 140 years later, our university continues in that same spirit.
Our student body is made up of a diverse group of learners that want to prepare themselves for the world of work and have entrusted our university to that task. Black History Month reminds me of our founder’s vision for the institution that carries his name, and I come to work every day with his example of higher education leadership as a north star.
Secondly, the conversation that I started last month centered around community, or a common unity, is reflective of the inclusive and educational nature of Black History Month. Our bulldog community here on campus is a vibrant community, and I fully hope that each of you will engage with this community. That includes meeting new people, joining an RSO geared towards a new interest and spending time learning from peers who come from a totally different background than you. This is what the college experience is for!
As you embrace your commonality, you learn from the not-so-common to strive for understanding.
I urge you to invest the time needed to truly understand each other. I genuinely believe that doing so will help all of us achieve a deeper level of common unity. I know our campus will be better off for the efforts.
I firmly believe that our founder wanted this institution to emulate a CommUNITY that reflected not only the best of its students and employees, but the depth and breadth of its students and employees.
Together, let us commit to moving our great university in that direction.
Common Unity…CommUNITY!
Go Dawgs!