Reaching Forward and Back

Headshot of a woman in a blue shirt

President Jenifer K. Ward

Dear Luther Community,

When you receive this magazine in your mailboxes, I will be handing over the keys to the president’s office to my successor, Dr. Brad Chamberlain. Brad serves as Luther College’s provost, and–while we did not anticipate that he would be taking the relay road race baton from me one day–we have been running side by side for some time now.

I likened the college presidency to a relay road race in a chapel talk in 2021. The legs (presidencies) themselves have a beginning and an end, but they are part of something bigger. And while presidents need to run the best race possible while holding the baton, they are only one leg in a race that started before they arrived and will continue long after they are gone.

When a new president arrives from outside the institution, the pass of the baton can be abrupt: one runner stops, and the next runner starts. In Luther’s case, Dr. Chamberlain and I have the opportunity to make this transition more like a true relay, where I am reaching forward and he is reaching back to receive the baton. We are losing no time with a hard stop.

Certainly there have been obstacles in the path during my leg—a pandemic here, a shifting higher education landscape there—but there have also been great gifts along the way. What I wish for my successor is that he will have what I did: the constant presence of supporters cheering and shouting encouragement and running alongside on the road, hands outstretched with bottles of water and other forms of sustenance.

Thank you, Norse, for running with me. The race will continue, and as of February 7, 2025, Dr. Chamberlain will carry the baton and I will be cheering with you in support of his leadership of this great college.

Soli Deo Gloria,

President Jenifer K. Ward