Learning Goals
What Are You Learning? And How Do We Know?
Through thoughtful assessment.
Throughout the 2023–24 academic year, the Executive Committee and Faculty Organization Committee collaborated with various college constituencies to define Luther’s core values. This effort sought to clarify a shared understanding of the institution’s identity by exploring the questions: Who are we, and what principles guide our work?
The resulting core values serve as a framework for decision-making and initiative development, offering a meaningful resource for faculty, staff, students in leadership roles, and teams working on projects connected to institutional identity. The five core values established reflect a broad spectrum of academic, personal, and communal qualities, encapsulating both our current identity and our aspirations for the future.
Excellence
We prioritize excellence, so we
- challenge each other to grow in our learning, creating, and competing
- accept risk and equip ourselves to serve with distinction for the common good
Inclusivity
We are committed to inclusivity, so we
- embrace the diverse identities and perspectives that enliven our campus
- strive to be a community where people of all backgrounds and identities flourish and belong
Curiosity
We cultivate curiosity, so we
- ask big questions and tackle tough problems
- take joy in learning and in a sense of wonder
Sustainability
We pursue sustainability, so we
- care for one another, for our place, and for the planet that sustains us
- prepare globally engaged leaders who understand and confront a changing society
Community
We live and learn in community, so we
- strive to be transformed by encounters with one another
- support one another and sustain lifelong relationships
Luther’s Mission, Our Mission
In the reforming spirit of Martin Luther, Luther College affirms the liberating power of faith and learning. As people of all backgrounds, we embrace diversity and challenge one another to learn in community, to discern our callings, and to serve with distinction for the common good.
As a college of the church, Luther is rooted in an understanding of grace and freedom that emboldens us in worship, study, and service to seek truth, examine our faith, and care for all God’s people.
As a liberal arts college, Luther is committed to a way of learning that moves us beyond immediate interests and present knowledge into a larger world—an education that disciplines minds and develops whole persons equipped to understand and confront a changing society.
As a residential college, Luther is a place of intersection. Founded where river, woodland, and prairie meet, we practice joyful stewardship of the resources that surround us, and we strive to be a community where students, faculty, and staff are enlivened and transformed by encounters with one another, by the exchange of ideas, and by the life of faith and learning.