Rev. Dr. Tom Greib, Chairman of the Board of Trustees for Kentucky Wesleyan College – and a Class of ’78 graduate – announced today that the Board of Trustees has approved a five-year contract extension for President Barton Darrell.
President Darrell (’84) gladly accepted the extension before a celebratory crowd gathered in Tapscott Chapel this morning.
Dr. Greib publicly thanked “Bart” for his effective visionary leadership, passion, and his ability to collaborate, before turning the mic over to Dr. W. L. Magnuson, Professor of Chemistry and family friend of the Darrell’s.
According to Dr. Magnuson, what Bart has brought to the campus since becoming president on September 6, 2014, is “character, off the scale energy, enthusiasm, leadership, determination, and most of all, his love for students.”
Senior Accounting Major, Jennifer Walker-Crawford, commented on what she has seen from a student’s perspective during the last two years, recalling President Darrell’s vision for instilling “The Wesleyan Way” into the culture of the campus. The four core values in the Wesleyan Way are 1:) we succeed with honor, 2:) we support each other, 3:) we compete with integrity, and 4:) we love each other.
“Our purpose is guided by our values. And those values are shaped by the hearts and spirit of our family here at Wesleyan,” Walker-Crawford explained. “I thank President Darrell for the foundation he has laid by inspiring us to embrace our identity.”
By the way it sounded from his acceptance speech, Darrell is just getting started.
“We are going to do great things – not just good things. We have done some amazing things because of the team that we have here… People who understand that we have a vision and a purpose to provide an education in today’s world. And that education is and must continue to be grounded in faith because what the world needs now more than anything is what we produce. We produce people with values; we produce people with integrity who know how to compete with integrity.
“To the church community in Owensboro, I commit to you that you will be part of us. And we are going to be part of you because we are grounded in faith. We invite you to be more a part of what we do here.
“To the Owensboro community, I say thank you for the unbelievable environment that you allow us to live and thrive in. And I say to you, like we say to our students, to think about who you are and maximize that. I invite the city of Owensboro to be even more involved with us. We want to make Kentucky Wesleyan College the mecca of affordable, private, faith-filled education.”
President Darrell serves on the board of directors for the following organizations: Owensboro-Daviess County Regional Airport, RiverPark Center, Greater Owensboro Chamber of Commerce, Southern Kentucky Performing Arts Center, and the National Association of Schools and Colleges of the United Methodist Church.
