The new statement reads:

鈥淲e the community of learners鈥攕tudents, faculty, and staff鈥攐f 草莓社区 value:

Academic Excellence
As a teaching university, we prioritize student learning. Our approach to teaching and learning is equitable and engaged as we seek to inspire curiosity, creativity and academic achievement. 

Peace and Justice
As a leader in peacebuilding, conflict transformation, and restorative justice, we pursue peace by teaching and practicing intercultural understanding, justice and equity, and environmental sustainability. We value diversity and seek to form unifying, inclusive leaders.

Active Faith
As a community, we seek to embody faith in action and serve and learn together to repair harm and restore hope. Shaped by Anabaptist-Mennonite beliefs and practices and the life and teachings of Jesus, we practice compassion, mutual love, and appreciation for the diversity of religious and cultural expressions represented in our community.鈥�

The goal of the process, as outlined in the Pathways of Promise strategic plan, was to invest in clarity and consistency regarding EMU鈥檚 values. These values will be consistently communicated across the university and used to amplify the EMU value proposition. The refreshed values connect more seamlessly with the university vision statement, which frames the strategic plan.

The process began in January 2024 with discussions about the scope of the review and revision, an audit of several peer schools鈥� value statements, conversations with the Executive Leadership Team about essential components, and drafting of a test revision. Throughout the spring, a total of 14 focus group sessions were held across campus, which included three student meetings, two Board of Trustees committees, and nine faculty and staff meetings. About 40 students and 100 faculty and staff participated in these sessions. Feedback from the focus groups was gathered and analyzed and used to create a final revision. The Board of Trustees approved the new statement at its June 14 meeting.

Dean Daniel Ott facilitated the re-envisioning. 鈥淭he campus conversation about shared values was an inspiring process,鈥� he said. 鈥淥ur students, faculty, staff, and supporters love EMU. This process gave them an opportunity to name and articulate the values that drive our work.鈥�

EMU鈥檚 previous values statement read: 鈥淓MU鈥檚 mission and vision are grounded in the enduring biblical values of Christian discipleship, community, service, and peace.鈥�

For more information about EMU鈥檚 2023-28 strategic plan, Pathways of Promise: Preparing Tomorrow鈥檚 Unifying Leaders, visit:

Their response, by and large, is that 鈥淓MU changed my life.鈥�

鈥淓MU changed my life in terms of values, in terms of lifelong friends, in terms of where I met my spouse, in terms of how we are raising our children,鈥� Huxman said, echoing those answers.

鈥淚t’s one of the reasons that we get up, even though our days are very, very full, and do what we do,鈥� she continued. 鈥淲e have this incredible honor of walking with students on this formative journey in their lives.鈥�

Huxman spoke on the transformative power of higher education and the importance of developing students as 鈥渨hole people鈥� as one of four area college and university presidents at a panel discussion on Thursday, Aug. 22. The annual Presidential Address, hosted by the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Chamber of Commerce, also featured remarks from Mr. Charlie King, interim president of James Madison University; Dr. David Bushman, president of Bridgewater College; and Dr. John Downey, president of Blue Ridge Community College. The sold-out event was held at EMU鈥檚 Martin Chapel and attended by about 100 guests. This marked the first time it has been held on a college campus, and will rotate between schools in future years.

The quartet of college presidents was given an opportunity to share their goals for the coming year and provide an in-depth update to the crowd of business and community leaders. Huxman is chair-elect of the local chamber of commerce and will officially begin her term as chair in October 2024.

Huxman outlined two evergreen goals at EMU. One of those perennial goals is to go 鈥渁ll in鈥� on delivering 鈥渁n exceptional student experience year in and year out,鈥� she said. The other goal is to lean into EMU鈥檚 five-year strategic plan, Pathways of Promise, which opens new pathways of access, achievement, action, and alignment for EMU students and employees.

The university is in the second year of its first-ever comprehensive campaign for people, programs, and facilities, and is pivoting to raise more money for financial aid. While the school has seen its graduate enrollment increase by 50%, it has missed its enrollment targets at the undergraduate level.

鈥淎nd so we are doubling down on additional ways in which we can get people to take a second, a third, and a fourth look at EMU because we are not as expensive as you think,鈥� Huxman told those gathered at the Presidential Address (the average net cost for an EMU student in 2022-23 was just $15,309).

Updates

• The university has received a large amount of grant funding. A $1.9 million grant from the National Science Foundation supports at-risk student success in STEM. EMU has received more than $2.5 million in grant funding for Eastern Mennonite Seminary, which supports a 鈥淭hriving in Ministry鈥� program and Christian caregiving initiative.

• EMU is launching a new Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.) in Peacemaking and Social Change program. The program will become the second doctoral program offered at EMU, after the Doctor of Nursing Practice.

• EMU is responding to a growing need in the community by helping teachers who are on a provisional license get the education they need to keep teaching.

• The school was recently recognized for its commitment to improving experiences and advancing success for first-generation college students. Thirty-five percent of undergraduate students at EMU are first-generation college students.

The Harrisonburg and Rockingham County area, with its four colleges and universities, is 鈥渁n educational mecca,鈥� Huxman said. Together, the four institutions boast a combined enrollment of about 32,000 students and a workforce of about 4,800 employees.

鈥淲e don’t take it for granted at all that out of 185 college towns in the nation, we are in the top 10,鈥� Huxman said. 鈥淎nd that doesn’t just happen automatically. It’s because there is support from the community. It is the fact that we get together. We support one another.鈥�

Following the Presidential Address, guests were invited on a campus tour of the University Commons, the new state-of-the-art track and field complex, and the Suter Science Center.

Read WHSV-TV’s coverage of the event .