A Vision for Success
By Dr. Guy Riekeman
There are rare moments in the history of any profession when events and individuals converge so perfectly as to create a new unforeseen reality and the promise of a greater future. As Dr. Ribley commented this week, “You’ve been getting ready for this your whole life.” That statement implies that there is an issue of fate at work here. I have the privilege of being part of a tradition of chiropractic. My father graduated from Palmer in 1947. I followed him in 1972, as did my brother in 1974. In a few months I will experience the joy of seeing my daughter and son in law enter the profession. My experience before my appointment as the new president of Life has been multifaceted, beginning with Palmer, private practice, Renaissance and Quest, and ending with my tenure as President and Chancellor at Palmer. Over the past five-and-one-half years Palmer University has experienced an amazing return to its former stature:
The vision of an institution is not found in the buildings or the manicured grounds, but in the people that inhabit those buildings and walk those grounds. The president reflects the values of an institution and creates a vision that is either:
Who in the profession, both students and chiropractors, doesn’t know the names of every college president? Who doesn’t evaluate National by the image presented by Dr. Winterstein, or Palmer Chiropractic College West by Dr. Peter Martin or Life-West by Dr. Clum?
What is my vision for Life University’s College of Chiropractic?
My first priority is to rebuild confidence in the institution by assuring accreditation, welcoming prospective students, and securing financial resources.
In the very near future you will see the top people in the profession lending their names and support to this effort. Second, the Board has charged me with the task of creating the premier academic program based on Life’s mission and tenets. Third we will cultivate and hire the brightest minds in the profession in science technique and the discipline of philosophy. Fourth, we will integrate Life fully into the chiropractic educational and academic arena, and begin to effect a dialogue with the profession, academicians, and students. In the past there has been a perception that Life embraced an “isolationist” position in the profession. That is no longer true. The Board of Trustees has created a new vision at Life in response to its institutional history, alumni input, changing student needs and demands of consumers. The recently inaugurated Life Source Seminars are just one example of the new direction. These seminars feature diverse chiropractic speakers who are leaders in many varied arenas. We invite everyone, alumni, students, and chiropractors from all walks of the profession, to join us at the seminars, especially the July 22-25, 2004, program where you can participate in my inauguration and then celebrate chiropractic.
About the author: Dr. Guy Riekeman, the newly announced president of Life
University, is the former president and chancellor of Palmer Chiropractic University
System. He is also a former vice president of Sherman College of Straight Chiropractic,
a noted lecturer in the chiropractic profession, and a 1972 graduate of Palmer
College of Chiropractic.
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