The President’s Blog

The quest motif has been a recurring theme around the world in our art and in our literature. Whether it is western culture and the search for the Holy Grail, or Tolkien’s stories, or whether it is an eastern tradition like the Buddhist themes in Siddartha’s quest for enlightenment, we humans are often in a quest mode. I believe that Pellissippi State is in that mode as well.

We are at a point in our organizational life that we are seeking to become something more than we have been. I know that we have always been good and always true to our mission and to our community. But now, I think we realize we have everything in place to be a really great institution of higher learning and have committed to becoming that.

I saw evidence of this throughout this past week as faculty prepared for and delivered the first class sessions of the semester. There was little, if any, of the usual shuffling of students in and out of rooms once class began. I saw students in their seats, fixated on the task at hand, and I saw faculty hard at work delivering on the charge to make it the most important day of the semester. It was an impressive first day.

I think that our first President’s Convocation will be an important event as well. Our students will get to come together, as they rarely do, and join us in our quest on that day. We are providing them with one of our very best in Ed Francisco to guide them during this time, and I believe that we will be a better institution at the end of the day.

I hope that you will join us on September 8 in the PAC. Encourage your students to join us. We will begin promptly at noon.