Mike Minyard Posted September 25, 2008 Share Posted September 25, 2008 You are welcome to watch a special webcast for alumni from your computer tonight. Mart Green and the Green Family's gift of $70 million have brought about sweeping changes at ORU. [*:34xaa8ym]Leadership has changed. [*:34xaa8ym]The new leaders are listening and responding to the students, faculty, staff and alumni. [*:34xaa8ym]The campus is undergoing major renovations. [*:34xaa8ym]Alumni involvement is at an all-time high. Join others all over the country for an informative, live webcast with Mart Green, ORU Trustees Board Chair, on September 25 at 7 p.m. Central time (5 p.m. Pacific, 8 p.m. Eastern). During the webcast, you can submit questions for Mart. Requires Windows Media Player. Click here to watch: http://alumni.oru.edu/martgreen/index.php Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SOLO_Gold Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 I watched only a small portion of the webcast. How much, if any, was focused on the role of athletics? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmh8286 Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 I watched only a small portion of the webcast. How much, if any, was focused on the role of athletics? Senior, I only watched a small part, too, but in the part I watched Mart Green wouldn't rule out the possibility of ORU having a football team someday ! I believe they said that the entire video would be available on the alumni web page - you can watch the webcast in it's entirety if you want. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Minyard Posted September 26, 2008 Author Share Posted September 26, 2008 Mart is committed to athletics. I hope that the new president has the same commitment. I've often heard Mart say that he would love for us to win the NCAA Championship in basketball. So he wants us to be competitive on a national level. Wanting and having are two different things, but he does find it important. He's also said that he wants us to be to Charismatic Christians as BYU is to Mormons and Notre Dame is to Catholics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmh8286 Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 Mart is committed to athletics. I hope that the new president has the same commitment. I've often heard Mart say that he would love for us to win the NCAA Championship in basketball. So he wants us to be competitive on a national level. Wanting and having are two different things, but he does find it important. He's also said that he wants us to be to Charismatic Christians as BYU is to Mormons and Notre Dame is to Catholics. In that regard, charismatic Christians do not have a central figure or organization to rally around, like Mormons do in Brigham Young or Joseph Smith, and the Catholics do in the Pope, and both groups do in their central church organizations. That being the case, making ORU comparable to BYU or Notre Dame will be a big challenge. Great goal, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bogus Smith Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 In that regard, charismatic Christians do not have a central figure or organization to rally around, like Mormons do in Brigham Young or Joseph Smith, and the Catholics do in the Pope, and both groups do in their central church organizations. That being the case, making ORU comparable to BYU or Notre Dame will be a big challenge. Great goal, though. How about Jesus?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Minyard Posted September 26, 2008 Author Share Posted September 26, 2008 How about Jesus?? And maybe mainstream Christians would have been a better way to describe it. I'm not quoting him word for word, but basically he wants us to be the #1 pick for Christians. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmh8286 Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 How about Jesus?? Both the Catholics AND the Mormons would make that same claim. My point is that not all Charismatics are unified under a single flag, or whatever you want to call it; they are far more independent. It's hard to imagine a situation where all good Charismatic kids would aspire to come to ORU; on the other hand, I have several families that I know to be Mormon in my practice, and to my knowledge every child in those families that has gone to college has gone to BYU. The attraction to Notre Dame may not be that strong for Catholics, but I'm sure that it's a place held near and dear in many a Catholic heart. I don't see Charismatics ever being so unified - that's all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Minyard Posted September 26, 2008 Author Share Posted September 26, 2008 Well ORU better develop a strategy in order to position itself as a leader in the Christian world even if that means they have to water it down. I don't ever want ORU to step away from the original mission of the university. That's not what I want at all. I just think ORU has to be a little more realistic, and relax a little bit more in order to succeed. Enrollment numbers are mediocre and alumni giving is poor. A new president alone isn't going to significantly change those outcomes. There is a good core of people that extremely passionate for the university, but the average graduate just doesn't seem to be that fired up about ORU. I think a lot of that has to do with needless rules or fines. I'll never understand the facial hair rule. It has nothing to do with salvation, and it's a rule that doesn't improve the college experience. There are far more negatives with rules such as that one. So ORU has to position itself so that the perception of ORU improves overall. There are many positives about ORU right now, but there are several things that need to change to help improve the two most important things to any university (enrollment and donations). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SOLO_Gold Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 Well ORU better develop a strategy in order to position itself as a leader in the Christian world even if that means they have to water it down. I don't ever want ORU to step away from the original mission of the university. That's not what I want at all. I just think ORU has to be a little more realistic, and relax a little bit more in order to succeed. Enrollment numbers are mediocre and alumni giving is poor. A new president alone isn't going to significantly change those outcomes. There is a good core of people that extremely passionate for the university, but the average graduate just doesn't seem to be that fired up about ORU. I think a lot of that has to do with needless rules or fines. I'll never understand the facial hair rule. It has nothing to do with salvation, and it's a rule that doesn't improve the college experience. There are far more negatives with rules such as that one. So ORU has to position itself so that the perception of ORU improves overall. There are many positives about ORU right now, but there are several things that need to change to help improve the two most important things to any university (enrollment and donations). Word on the street is that you may not have to try to understand this rule for much longer.....but that's just the word on the street Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmh8286 Posted September 27, 2008 Share Posted September 27, 2008 Well ORU better develop a strategy in order to position itself as a leader in the Christian world even if that means they have to water it down. I don't ever want ORU to step away from the original mission of the university. That's not what I want at all. I just think ORU has to be a little more realistic, and relax a little bit more in order to succeed. Enrollment numbers are mediocre and alumni giving is poor. A new president alone isn't going to significantly change those outcomes. There is a good core of people that extremely passionate for the university, but the average graduate just doesn't seem to be that fired up about ORU. I think a lot of that has to do with needless rules or fines. I'll never understand the facial hair rule. It has nothing to do with salvation, and it's a rule that doesn't improve the college experience. There are far more negatives with rules such as that one. So ORU has to position itself so that the perception of ORU improves overall. There are many positives about ORU right now, but there are several things that need to change to help improve the two most important things to any university (enrollment and donations). Those are some great observations, Mike. Before I came to ORU, way back in the late 70's, I attended (and graduated from) a small Assembly of God college in Southern California. The beliefs and world view at that college were VERY similar to those of ORU - virtually identical. But we definitely were not under the rules that existed at ORU. I'm sure that there was some kind of a dress code, but it never influenced what I wore. Hair could be worn however you wanted - on top of your head AND on your face. We had chapel THREE days a week - but we were allowed 13 chapel misses per semester. It was a very relaxed, Southern California environment. In spite of the greater level of freedom that we had in a lot of areas, there were great Christian kids there, and probably LESS straying from the rules regarding drinking, drugs and the like than there apparently was at ORU (based on what I've read on the board). The reality was, the rules at ORU didn't really bother me all that much - except aerobics - ugh!! But I know that they have been a pain for a lot of people. On the one hand, the continuation of traditions that have separated ORU from a lot of other places is kind of nice. On the other hand, in many ways they really seem out of touch with the times. Oral set those rules forty five years ago - when the world was A LOT different. I think if they want to be able to attract students of this era they are going to have to relax some of those things. Based on my experience, it won't lead to the corruption and secularization of the university. And that's all I have to say about that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Minyard Posted October 17, 2008 Author Share Posted October 17, 2008 Here is the video with Mart Green where he takes questions live from alumni who tuned in on September 25. http://video.oru.edu/alumniweb/09252008_360.php Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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