Gordon Bietz Announces RetirementOn April 21, Gordon Bietz met with Southern’s Board

of Trustees and the following day met with faculty and

staff to announce that come May 2016, he will be retiring

as president of the university after 19 years of service. He

began his announcement referencing Ecclesiastes 3 —

“To every thing there is a season, and a time to every

purpose under heaven.”

The announcement came as a bit of a surprise to

everyone, and this is a goodbye not ready to be said. Those

who had the opportunity to develop the current capital

campaign with Bietz over the past three years have expressed

much appreciation for their time together. Though sad to see

him go, those working to further the campaign will eagerly

utilize the months before his departure.

The plans for the campaign are well under way and will

in no way be put on hold due to Bietz’s announcement. The

time spent working with him has set the campaign up for a

solid continuation as the team of volunteers and staff work

toward the groundbreaking of the first project, the Student

Life Center.

It is a blessing to have the help of volunteer leaders who

will continue to guide the success of the plans put forth.

They have all worked hard to set this project in motion and

are excited to continue the great work as they press toward

the finish line.

Many prayers and well wishes are with Bietz as he prepares

to begin a new chapter in his life. The primary goal for

campaign staff and volunteers is to accomplish the student

life center groundbreaking within the next few months

to ensure that Bietz is able to witness the beginning of

something he had such a large part in creating.

Campaign for Excellence in Faith and Learning Cabinet Members

Chris McKee – Co-Chair

Terry Shaw – Co-Chair

Gordon Bietz

Ken DeFoor

Franklin Farrow

Lars Houmann

Lisa McCluskey

James Ray McKinney

Gordon Retzer

Ron Smith

Daniel Turk

ISSUE 2 • SUMMER 2015

P.O. Box 370Collegedale, TN 37315

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We thank Moriah Aterberry, ’15, for her work on this campaign report.

Excitement Builds for Student Life CenterWith so many new things happening at Southern,

members of the Advancement team along with administration have been taking time to personally visit alumni and friends. Their goal is to raise awareness about the upcoming changes and increase excitement about Southern’s future.

Robert Bovell and Kenny Turpen, two of the regional relationship managers in the Advancement office, hosted separate dinner receptions on April 11 and 12 to share updates with current and future stakeholders of the university.

Bovell organized the first event, which was held at the home of Scott, ’88, and Karen (Wilkins) (attended) McClure in Silver Spring, Maryland. Alumni, parents of current students, and other friends of Southern were in attendance. Turpen hosted the second reception for a group of healthcare professionals in Nashville, Tennes-see, at the home of John, ’93, and Cindy Boskind.

President Gordon Bietz attended both events to help present the updates and information on the capital Campaign for Excellence in Faith and Learning. “I always enjoy fellowshipping with alumni,” said President Bietz. “I am always impressed with their continued interest in Southern.”

The assembled friends of Southern expressed excitement about the university’s plans for a new student life center. A sophomore high school student,

who attended the Nashville event, was so excited that she encouraged her father to give as much money as he could to ensure the building’s completion by the time she arrives as a freshman in the fall of 2017.

Bietz shared that in everything it is important for each person to remember “the mission and vision of Southern, and the fact that we have great plans for the future and an opportunity for each person to be a part of their alma mater’s future in a meaningful way.”

John Wagner is no stranger to the campus of Southern.

Prior to his retirement, he spent three years, 1983-1986, as

the president of the university. Though his time here was

short, he never lost his connection to the institution. During

Wagner’s time as president, Gordon Bietz was pastoring at

the Collegedale Seventh-Day Adventist Church, giving the

two men time to build a connection and a friendship that

has lasted all of these years.

In mid-January, the Advancement Office said their

goodbyes to Vice President Chris Carey, who played a vital

role in many duties inside and outside of the department

during his 10-year tenure. Bietz, seeing the need for the

gap to be filled, reached out to Wagner to fill the position

temporarily as the interim vice president.

Wagner, who admits that he’s flunked retirement four

times, graciously accepted the opportunity to join the

“A-Team.” Wagner said he “liked the challenge of working

with people who have developed a pattern of success.” One

of the major roles that Bietz wants him to fill is as liaison

between advancement and administration. This was another

large contributing factor to Wagner accepting the temporary

position; he would be able to work closely with his old

friend, Bietz.

Wagner said that he felt very welcomed by the team and is

excited to continue the work on the Campaign for Excellence

in Faith and Learning. “It’s a huge goal,” Wagner said, “and

if God blesses us with success, it will transform this campus.”

John Wagner Joins the A-Team

God is good … all the time! We are pleased to

report that from June 1, 2012 through May 31, 2015

the Campaign for Excellence in Faith and Learning

has cumulatively received $26,990,017.61. This is the

largest amount of gifts Southern has received over a

three-year period.

The Advancement team is working diligently

to inspire and invite others to join you in support

of our Vision 20/20 for Southern. One goal is to

honor Gordon Bietz by securing the $9.9 million

cash in hand and $21.29 million in pledges required

by the Board of Trustees to break ground on the new

student life center prior to his retirement.

Campaign Financial Report

$70,000,000

$60,000,000

$50,000,000

$40,000,000

$30,000,000

$20,000,000

$10,000,000

$0Capital Endowment Annual Fund

Remaining to Goal

Cash and Pledges

Student to Student Endowment Established

It is a tradition for the senior class to raise money to

purchase a senior class gift to benefit future generations

of students at Southern. In past years, the senior class has

chosen a tangible gift to improve the campus, such as a

bench, drinking fountain, sign, or painting. However, this

year’s graduating class decided to break the mold.

“We didn’t want to give something just because it had

our name on it,” Janice Cosme, class president, said. “We

wanted to do something that could really make an impact

on somebody’s life.

The officers of the Class of 2015 knew from personal

experience that many students have a difficult time finan-

cially supporting their education, so they came up with the

idea for a new Student to Student Scholarship Endowment

Fund. In order for this fund to be successful, the students

were given a goal of $25,000 to reach within three years.

To ensure that everyone has a fair chance to receive the

scholarship, the requirements will be simple. The future

recipients of the endowed scholarship will need to have a

minimum of a 3.0 GPA, be working to contribute toward

their tuition, and agree to give back to the fund once

they’ve graduated.

In order to help raise awareness and funds for the gift,

the senior class hosted a 5K race on Sunday, March 22.

The event was a success with more than 100 participants

and $1,440.02 raised. Cosme hopes that in the future

Southern students will continue to grow the fund by

making it an annual tradition.

Each senior was encouraged to give a minimum gift of

$20.15 to help grow the endowment and to reach one-third

of the total goal this year. So far, 244 students have given a

total of $9,129.37.

The class officers will continue to spread the word to

all seniors and are excited to see their gift succeed. “We

want to give other students the opportunity we had,”

Cosme said. “Just because someone doesn’t have the

means financially shouldn’t be a reason they can’t have

the Southern Experience.”

Student’s Film Earns Top RecognitionEach year, senior film students in the School of Visual

Art and Design (SVAD) are challenged to produce a short

film for their final project. Nick Lindsay, a senior film

student, faced that challenge this year. He and his two

team members, Mark Combariote and Dillan Forsey, sat

down at the beginning of the year to brainstorm, but they

had little inspiration.

“I’d been praying about a project to do,” Lindsay said.

“We had all tried really hard to come up with different

ideas, but nothing seemed to work.”

Not willing to give up hope, Lindsay continued to pray,

and during the first week of school he received an answer.

One Sabbath at the Connect service, Ed Rusk gave his

testimony of the trials he’d been through with the loss of

his brother and his struggles as a marathoner. He shared

that even with all of the trials he faced, God continued

to be a strong cornerstone in his life.

When David George, an SVAD professor and mentor

to the film students, saw the lead for Ed Rusk’s story, he

realized it was the perfect project for Lindsay and his team

members.

“Nick is very mission-oriented, and he cares very much

about the quality of the work he does,” George said. “He

sweats the details.”

Lindsay likewise felt that this was the story God wanted

them to share. After a year of interviewing, filming, and

editing, the team completed their short film, I Will Not

Fear.

The film premiered at SONscreen, a Christian film

festival held this year at La Sierra University in Riverside,

California, on April 2-4. Of the nine short films submitted

by Southern students, I Will Not Fear received the most

recognition. It won best documentary short, best cine-

matography, and audience choice award. “The audience

choice award meant the most to us, because that means

the audience connected with it,” Lindsay said. “That’s

the ultimate goal—not to make a good film but to make

a difference and connect with people.”

The team is extremely grateful for the gifts from

anonymous donors who helped fund the project. With

all of the equipment needed, their expenses would have

been almost unbearable without the generosity of

those who gave.

As for the future of the film, Lindsay hopes that they

will be able to present it at the General Conference

Session to be held July 2-11 in San Antonio, Texas.

Their hope is that the exposure won’t stop there. “Our

goal for the film is to show it to as many people as possible

in an environment that is supportive to the message of the

film,” Lindsay said.