Rock Jones installed as president of Ohio Wesleyan
11-10-2008DELAWARE, Ohio – Declaring “this is our time,” Rock Jones, Ph.D., a clergy member of the Arkansas Conference, was installed Oct. 10 as the 16th president of Ohio Wesleyan University, one of the nation’s leading liberal arts colleges.
“The mission statement of Ohio Wesleyan University indicates that we fulfill our mission when we are successful at three things: imparting knowledge, developing and enhancing certain important capabilities with our students, and placing education in the context of values,” Jones told the standing-room-only crowd gathered for his inauguration. “Never before has our world stood in greater need of an institution with this mission.”
Jones comes to Ohio Wesleyan from Hendrix College in Conway, Ark., where he served most recently as executive vice president and dean of advancement. He succeeds Mark W. Huddleston, Ph.D., now president of the University of New Hampshire.
Jones said the world “needs individuals who possess capacities of the intellect refined by a liberal arts education and sharpened by experiences in the world.” He continued, “We must prepare graduates empowered with the capacity to think critically and to communicate with clarity and depth; prepared to interact across the boundaries of culture and history; gifted with powers of empathy and discernment; and grounded with moral foundations and a keen understanding that there are better and worse ways to order one’s life and to order the life of one’s world.”
During his address, Jones also challenged the campus community and others to look for ways to enhance the rigorous educational opportunities already offered to Ohio Wesleyan’s 1,850 undergraduate students.
Jones, who took office July 1, has initiated a review of the university’s programming and will lead discussions to explore what he described as “even more opportunities for our students to test the theories of the classroom through engagement with the world.”
Enhancements to be studied include additional summer research and internship opportunities, increased opportunities in the fine arts, and expanded mission trips to increase service-learning opportunities for students.
Jones plans to take this message to an even larger audience. From October through July, he will embark on a national “In Concert with Rock” tour. During the 30-city tour, he will meet with Ohio Wesleyan graduates, parents and friends to discuss their thoughts about the university and its future.
