This is the second piece in a series of articles examining Milligan University’s plans for the future. The series will explore plans for development and advancement in academics, student life, business and finance, institutional advancement, and enrollment. This article addresses future plans for student life.
While Milligan’s academic programs are undergoing development, students can also expect to see changes in student life as well, including campus activities, spiritual life, athletics, and more.
Milligan announced new initiatives for the athletic department on Oct. 5. Athletic Director Christian Pope, who began the role in June 2021, sent an email to students detailing the upcoming changes. To learn more about the new athletic initiatives, see the news release here.
Athletic initiatives – Athletic Director Christian Pope sent an email to students detailing the athletic department’s new initiatives on Oct. 5.
Campus Minister Rich Aubrey said he plans to expand campus ministry activities. This expansion includes efforts to increase the amount of small-group Bible studies in which students can earn up to five SFP credits for each semester.
“I see that growing. It’s my vision that we would continue to grow that,” he said. “That’s an area that I hope really grows and helps change how we keep track of SFPs and all the components that fit into what it means to be quote on quote spiritually formed.”
Several of these small groups have been formed by sports teams and dorm life as well as other students. Aubrey also plans to encourage service throughout the community, after the COVID-19 pandemic kept students from doing so over the last two years.
“The students are at the center of campus ministry,” Aubrey said. “I think most students would rather hear from another student. You have plenty of opportunities to hear old people like me get up there and talk, but there’s great value in hearing one of your peers share something about their journey or faith or what they know.”
Students also had the opportunity to share their opinions about campus ministry activities through a survey sent to their emails last week. Director of Campus Activities Brealle Davis will also be sending out another survey so that students have a chance to provide feedback on what they would like to see added or changed in campus activities.
Dean of Students Tony Jones detailed how Milligan also plans on focusing more efforts on mental health.
“One of the shifting priorities in the Student Development area has been in response to mental health,” Jones said. “Students have made it clear that they desire more programming regarding this through conversations with Student Development staff and direct requests to engage more in this conversation.”
Jones thinks that students have become more willing to discuss and share their struggles with mental health, thus the push to focus on it more.
“The Student Development staff has planned over the summer to continue to discuss mental health programming through residence life and campus ministry,” he said. “Our goal is to continue to grow Bible studies and small groups, as well as having critical conversations on campus. We view mental health as a topic that will come up often, both as the central theme of some of the programming and in other times to be woven into a discussion that is primarily about something else.” For more information on Milligan’s student life, visit https://www.milligan.edu/life/.
Headline photo by Chase McGlamery