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By Heidi Wheatley
Life University has done the impossible.
It has come back from the brink of extinction and is once again a bustling and
energetic campus. On Dec. 7, the Life community celebrated the decision by the
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) which re-affirmed the university’s
accreditation. Two weeks prior, the university was pleased to receive a six-month
deferral from the Council on Chiropractic Education (CCE) concerning its accreditation.
The Life community will continue to work on its plan, leading to a site visit
in the spring of 2005, followed by a decision in July 2005. Both SACS and CCE
have commended Life’s faculty for maintaining the quality of the academic
program despite the circumstances of the past two years.
“The past several years have been very challenging and heart-wrenching
for me,” said Dr. Chuck Ribley, chairman of the Board of Trustees. “I
knew deep down this day would come and words cannot express the tremendous joy
I feel. I extend my heartfelt appreciation to all those that have supported
the university over the past two years because without their commitment, we
wouldn’t have made it to this day.”
“This is a tremendously happy day for everyone associated with Life University,”
remarked President Guy Riekeman, D.C. “People have sacrificed countless
hours out of their personal lives to ensure this outcome. The dedication of
the faculty, staff, students and alumni is unlike anything I’ve ever seen.”
Two years ago Life’s gorgeous 90-acre campus was a virtual ghost town
due to the loss of CCE accreditation, causing student enrollment to plummet
from more than 3,000 to less than 1,100. SACS also placed the school on probation
due to financial concerns and a number of administrative problems and independent
auditors cited the school with a “going concern” qualification because
they did not believe the institution was financially viable.
Under the leadership of Dr. Chuck Ribley, the Board of Trustees regrouped and
brought in Dr. Michael Schmidt to serve as interim president.
“Dr. Chuck Ribley was the epitome of determination as he assumed a thankless
job in the midst of crisis and stood in the face great adversity without wavering,”
said Dr. John Downes, dean of the College of Chiropractic.
Schmidt saw the university through its bleakest days including significant budget
cuts and the elimination of many faculty and staff positions. Life’s Board
of Trustees next named Ben DeSpain, Ed.D. the president of the university in
November 2002.
Under DeSpain’s direction the university successfully challenged the CCE’s
denial of Life’s reaffirmation in court, resulting in a preliminary injunction
restoring the school’s accreditation. DeSpain is also credited with providing
faculty and staff the opportunity to be a part of critical decisions on how
to stabilize the university and move it forward.
“Dr. DeSpain gathered a group of administrators whose devotion to the
university was unwavering in the face of almost certain collapse,” said
Dr. Marc Schneider, assistant to the provost. “If the faculty and staff
would have lost faith, the institution would have crumbled long ago.”
“There was an immediate camaraderie established. We recognized and capitalized
on each other’s strengths for the sake of the organization,” said
Dr. Cynthia Boyd, assistant to the president. “It has been one of the
greatest privileges of my life to work in an environment where people checked
their own interests at the door and came together in support of a common vision
and higher purpose.”
“A sense of unrealized potential keeps the talented engaged in the battle,”
said Downes. “In a crisis situation you build a team by finding people
who, when they see a crisis, don’t look for help but become the help.
These individuals have little regard for themselves and instead focus on those
that are in need and do what needs to be done to achieve the desired result,
which for us was re-affirmation of accreditation.”
The university was making significant strides but still lacked the ability to
garner widespread support, the ability to produce the revenue it needed and
the confidence of alumni and the chiropractic profession. This resulted in Life’s
Board of Trustees recruiting Dr. Guy Riekeman to serve as the next president.
Riekeman attracted a new team of upper-level administrators to lead the university’s
final opportunity to secure accreditation with the CCE and reaffirmation with
SACS and move the university forward. Dr. Brian McAulay, provost, Bill Jarr,
vice president for operations and finance, Dr. Tim Gross, director of clinics
and Heidi Wheatley, director of communications and postgraduate education, joined
Riekeman and the Life community to take on a task many thought was impossible.
What those naysayers underestimated was Riekeman’s ability to harness
the spirit and passion of the Life community and to build critical relationships
within the profession and area community, all of which restored people’s
faith in the institution, energized a battle-weary campus and drew student inquiries
and donations by the thousands. Riekeman was the leader the campus needed to
provide focus, vision and integrity. Under the direction of Riekeman and his
new administration impossible feats became possible. Miracles happened beginning
with the failure of the Georgia Board of Regents to finalize the deal DeSpain
had previously arranged to sell the campus to Southern Polytechnic University.
With the campus secure, President Riekeman and his team directed additional
energy to increasing enrollment. In January 2004, alumnus Joe Lupo, D.C. formed
a team of volunteers including Drs. Hank Cousineau, Corey Rodnick and Randy
O’Dell to host dozens of career nights across the country and at their
own expense. Thanks to their efforts and confidence in the school and its new
administration, enrollment at the university currently exceeds 1,200 students
and inquiries have increased substantially.
“There was no choice for me,” said Dr. Joe Lupo who practices in
Michigan. “The university absolutely had to remain in existence and it
was the right thing to do. Budget and staff limitations made recruiting difficult
for the university so I pulled together a volunteer team of field doctors to
ensure students continued to enroll.”
Despite enrollment increases, financial problems continued to plague the university.
The new administration faced the reality that if the “going concern”
qualification issued by auditors two years prior was not removed before the
SACS site team visit in November, a positive accreditation decision would be
nearly impossible to obtain. Jarr and his team worked tirelessly to tighten
budgetary controls while Riekeman and a team of volunteers set upon the daunting
task of raising $3 million dollars to balance the budget.
“When I first came to Life I remember telling the president that I thought
it would take two years to remove the ‘going concern’ qualification,”
said Jarr. “Then the reality set in that we would not be afforded that
much time so my team and I buckled down and worked diligently to ensure the
qualification was removed before the SACS site visit in November.”
On Sept. 30, 2004, just shy of six months from when they began, Riekeman announced
the university had surpassed its goal by raising an impressive $4.85 million
in cash and pledges. That money, combined with conservative budgeting, the creation
of a tactical development plan and other initiatives resulted in a second miracle,
the removal of the “going concern” qualification by the auditors.
The university came back from a $19 million loss in 2003 and, for the first
time in three years, was operating with a small surplus.
Under the guidance of Provost Brian McAulay, the university prepared CCE and
SACS reports and conducted accreditation site visits for both agencies. Both
site teams praised the progress the university had made and recognized that
it truly was a new Life University.
“Our team developed comprehensive and insightful reports,” said
McAulay. “Compiling information for our self study reports was no easy
task and everyone worked tirelessly to ensure they were comprehensive. The site
teams did not find any concerns other than what we had self-identified and that
speaks volumes as to how critically we examined our programs.”
“The positive decision by SACS is the culmination of the efforts of many
that will receive no public recognition,” said Downes. “They will
only benefit from the personal satisfaction that they stayed the course and
paid the price that was required to succeed. This is truly a story of the triumph
of the human spirit.”
Life University has overcome impossible odds to win re-accreditation through
SACS and looks forward to its ongoing work with the CCE. The faculty, staff,
students and alumni have proven that anything is possible if you recognize the
potential for success, focus on key goals and work relentlessly. Life’s
celebration will continue in the coming weeks but now the university is focusing
its full attention on increasing enrollment, developing a strategic plan for
the next three years and implementing ongoing development plans.
“We are absolutely moving forward at full steam,” said Riekeman.
“We have accomplished what many have said was impossible and our efforts
after this moment will be focused on continuing to build the University into
the finest chiropractic institution in the world.”
Life University is the “come back kid” of the profession and its
battles are being won as a result of the tremendous sense of purpose held by
the faculty and staff that stayed to fight. What’s next for Life University?
According to Riekeman “the sky’s the limit, so stay tuned because
we’ve just reached the starting line.”
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