Values

At our fall 2007 beginning-of-the-year meeting, we worked in teams to list those values that were most important to us as a College. These values were shared and discussed in our planning and “What We Believe” sessions, College blog, and other College-wide meetings. I listened to your feedback, gathered input from our Commission and other stakeholders, thought about the criteria for shared values, and compared our current values to the input you provided. Keeping our values simple and memorable was important. While reviewing the list of values, I began to group them according to their similarities. For each group or family of values, I looked for words or “parents” that best described each list and came up with the following.

(Parents) (Values in Action)
Authenticity and Empathy = BE REAL

Be Real doesn’t mean telling people whatever is on your mind or being unprofessional, but rather, helping real people navigate through the real world. Real people care, are appropriately vulnerable, and separate themselves from the noise to focus on the goal.
I try to better understand students, fellow employees, and myself in an effort to help us all improve.

Proactivity and Commitment = BE BOLD

Be Bold means taking personal responsibility and being a value-added part of the whole. Thoughtfully stepping up to solve problems and exemplifying what we represent.
I take personal responsibility for adding value.

Interdependent Achievement and Legacy = BE BETTER

Be Better means striving to continuously improve. The very core of our mission is about helping people learn, grow, and achieve. We desire that for our students and ourselves as we seek to better the community we serve.
I believe we should be better than we have to be.

At the conclusion, Be Real, Be Bold, Be Better summarized best your feedback and met the criteria for shared values. Too often values are passive platitudes that fall short of inspiring outcomes. I have attempted here to take our collective values and suggest action that challenges us toward the next level. This simple phrase (or slogan, or mantra) encompasses our values, is easily remembered, and sends the message that we are serious about what we do; that we care about each other and the people we serve; and that we strive for continuous improvement.