Greetings Alumni & Friends,
This summer, my time serving this wonderful university as president will come to an end.
During periods of transitions like this, we have the opportunity to reflect on past successes and to look ahead and envision the path we will take forward.
Certainly our university community鈥斺�塶ot unlike institutions of higher education around the country鈥夆�斺�塰as faced historic challenges during my term. When the books are written, historians will undoubtedly agree that the 野狼社区 University family responded to these challenges with courage and grace.
As I began my presidency at OCU, I was filled with optimism and committed to moving OCU forward toward greater financial stability, gains in enrollment, improved alumni connections, greater pathways for student success, and the establishment of a solid framework from which to advance our efforts in the areas of diversity, equity, and inclusion.
I am ready to move on to the next chapter in my life, and I do so knowing we made significant progress in many of these areas, despite the challenges.
On a stable financial footing and leveraging the momentum we鈥檝e gained, our university community should not be afraid to make big plans and chase big dreams. Let鈥檚 move ahead with confidence in our ability to achieve excellence. After all, we鈥檝e been doing it, even when faced with seemingly insurmountable odds.
I believe that, for OCU, the best is yet to come and we should not be afraid to do what it takes to turn our thoughts of a bright future into reality.
Throughout my career, I鈥檝e been inspired by words that are paraphrased from a passage in Ayn Rand鈥檚 鈥淭he Fountainhead鈥�:
The question is not who鈥檚 going to let us, it鈥檚 who鈥檚 going to stop us.
Let鈥檚 not let anyone stop us as we take our university on a path to an even brighter future.
With peace and love,
Martha A. Burger
