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Dear Clarke Community,
A new academic year is nearly here. Across campus, the signs of preparation are everywhere: fresh paint, newly waxed floors, reorganized offices and classrooms, and a reconfigured dining hall preparing to welcome students. Less visible, but no less important, are the many hours faculty and staff have devoted to revising curriculum, establishing new processes, and preparing to offer students an education grounded in Clarke’s mission and values.
The 2026–2027 academic year will look different in some important ways. At the same time, much of what is most essential about Clarke remains unchanged: our commitment to students, the strength of our relationships, and our shared belief in the importance of education that forms the whole person. As we begin this year, we will be called to hold continuity and change together, building on what has long defined Clarke while adapting thoughtfully to what this moment requires.
One of the most significant changes this fall is the arrival of Dr. Michael Gleason as Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs. Michael brings experience in both academic affairs and student life from Wartburg College and Washburn University, along with a strong commitment to Catholic social teaching and social justice that resonates deeply with Clarke’s mission.
He will lead a three-dean structure designed to bring academic affairs, faculty support, and student affairs into closer alignment. Together, this leadership team will help coordinate the many dimensions of the student experience, including curriculum, faculty support, student life, and belonging.
One important focus this year will be making it easier for students to navigate the practical demands of college. Through our continued work with Credo and its Moving the Needle program, faculty and staff are streamlining financial clearance processes and improving communication at key points in the student journey. These changes may happen primarily behind the scenes, but they can make a real difference in whether students feel supported, remain enrolled, and succeed.
We will also deepen our attention to vocation through a new NetVUE-supported initiative that will bring faculty and local employers together to consider how Clarke’s mission can help students connect their education, gifts, and values with the needs of their communities. That work reflects both continuity and change: it is rooted in Clarke’s longstanding commitment to whole-person formation while helping us imagine new ways to prepare students for lives of purpose and service.
Even as we adapt to new structures and ways of working, the traditions that welcome us into a new year remain. Fall student-athletes are beginning to return to campus, followed by general move-in and CONNECT Orientation for new students from August 20 through 23. I look forward to welcoming nearly 300 new students and their families through events including the Ice Cream Social, Airband, Convocation and Tree Planting, and the first all-campus Mass of the new year. These traditions do more than mark the beginning of a semester. They invite new students into the relationships, values, and shared life that make Clarke rich and distinctive.
No single update could adequately recognize everyone whose work has prepared Clarke for the year ahead. I am deeply grateful for the care, flexibility, and commitment that have made this new beginning possible.
The year ahead will ask much of us. It will also bring new students, renewed relationships, fresh possibilities, and the familiar energy of a campus coming fully to life again. I look forward to beginning it together.
With gratitude,
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