In the weeks following the July 4 holiday, the Green Mountains of Vermont and the Norwich grounds have proven quite green indeed as we begin the inevitable slide towards fall, replete with the familiar sound of the Corps of Cadets forming on campus. I’m sure the weather will cool, the days shorten, and the call of “back to school” will become increasingly prevalent in the coming days. Construction on our beautiful campus has continued at a feverish pace as we enter the final stretch of facilities improvements in the Forging the Future Campaign, with the opening of Mack Hall set to take place in about a month. If you haven’t had a chance to visit campus in recent years, we welcome you back for Homecoming 2018, Residency 2019, or a stop on your travels to see the many changes. I’m looking forward to the wonderful new facilities we will have available for future Residency Conference students, as well as alumni who decide to continue their education!

Congratulations to our newest alumni, who attended the 2018 Residency Conference and completed degrees across many important fields. As I noted in my remarks at commencement, “the world needs your talents and wisdom now more than ever, especially with the challenges that confront us as leaders and citizens, and for some, citizen-soldiers. It is now up to you to go out and do great things: for yourself, for your family, for your community, for your country. Expect Challenge. Achieve Distinction. And most important, live the Norwich motto, I Will Try. Keep these ideas close to your heart and what you have done here will be but a stepping stone to the great things that await you.” I truly believe these words as I see all of the wonderful things our graduates have accomplished!

Among the highlights of the 2018 Residency Conference was the Todd Lecture Series talk delivered by Vinh Giang on The Psychology of Illusion, the Power of Perspective. Our students and community thoroughly enjoyed the internationally renowned magician and motivational speaker’s time with us and the important message he conveyed about the power and importance of understanding different perspectives and personal growth. I highly recommend you watch the replay; I know you will enjoy the talk.

I am excited about some new developments that are designed to support our alumni, many of whom continue learning and seeking education throughout their careers. Earlier this year, Dr. Kristen Pedersen was appointed the Director of Continuing and Professional Education (CPE) and brings with her a wealth of experience in designing and delivering the ongoing learning experiences many of our alumni seek. Our team continues to expand, as new professional staff have been hired in recent months with the goal of better serving our alumni in their professional development—as well as the organizations or businesses in which they work. 

The Norwich University Leadership and Change Institute (LCI) is one particularly valuable avenue for professional development now available to our alumni, students, and the organizations in which they work. Dr. Stacie Morgan and the LCI team are a great resource and would be happy to assist in providing guidance and professional leadership development opportunities, grounded in the current literature and approaches to high-performance leadership. The LCI is emerging as a great resource for individual professional development and also offers organizations and employers resources to enhance effectiveness and growth. Please visit the LCI website to learn more.

The demands of career development in the technologically and fast-paced environment in which we live require on-going and frequent education of all types. We are all continual learners (sometimes more formally, students) and must remain so in a technologically-mediated world.  Many notable authors have written extensively on the role of technology and the accelerating pace of change across industries and government, and what this means for life-long learning. With this in mind, Norwich University and the College of Graduate and Continuing Studies can best serve our alumni by hearing directly from you and your employers about what is needed to remain productive and relevant in today’s competitive world. Please let us know how we may assist you in your personal and professional development, and we will do our best to be your life-long learning partner.