What are your highest priorities -- and are they different than previous administrators?

My first major task as president has been to begin the process of creating a new strategic plan, which will set the priorities of FPU for the next five years and provide general guidance on how to achieve those goals. I have called together a talented group of leaders from across campus and we are now in the midst of this important work.

Beyond that, I share the priorities of all past FPU presidents: make sure that this university remains centered on Christ, that we build on our academic excellence and that we continue to look forward for new opportunities to spread our mission while preparing students to take on leadership roles in the ever-changing job market.

How does the university find a balance as it seeks donations from evangelicals who desire outward expression of their faith -- and it recruits diversity in students who don't count themselves as part of the evangelical movement?

At FPU, we see faith as active, whether a Christian calls himself or herself an evangelical or not. Christians must live their faith every day in all parts of their lives: at work, at home, at school, in the community and, of course, in church. Our donors -- many of whom are living examples of faith in action -- support us because of our mission and this vision of holistic living faith, and our students experience it inside and outside the classroom.

As Menno Simons, the Anabaptist leader for whom Mennonites are named, said: "True evangelical faith cannot lie dormant. It clothes the naked. It feeds the hungry. It comforts the sorrowful. It shelters the destitute. It serves those that harm it. It binds up that which is wounded. It has become all things to all people."

What is the one good book you're currently reading -- and why?

"The Advantage: Why Organizational Health Trumps Everything Else in Business," by Patrick Lencioni.

This wonderful book defines healthy organizations not simply by spreadsheets and profit statements, but by wholeness, consistency and unity. Not only does a healthy organization rise to the top of its field, it is not burdened by politics and is a place where good employees want to stay and give their best.

Like the Valley, FPU's greatest asset is its people, those who study here and those who are employed here. Maximizing what our people can contribute over the course of their careers is the best way for us to extend and enrich the mission of the university.