New grant to bolster program, “help students fulfill calling, purpose”

A new $50,000 grant to Carson-Newman University will support students in their development as servant-leaders; a goal pulled directly from the school’s mission statement. The Capacity-Building Grant comes from The Educating Character Initiative, a part of the Program for Leadership and Character at Wake Forest University.

According to Carson-Newman’s Dr. Jeana Partin, the award bolsters the University’s efforts of helping students grow and succeed both academically and spiritually. Implemented by the school’s Student Success Center and Teaching and Learning Centers, the efforts will ultimately result in students using their God-given gifts to serve others, she noted.

“We are excited about the opportunity to support our C-N students through this new character initiative,” said Partin, C-N’s dean of Student Success. “These funds will provide the resources to build a character strengths coaching program to help our students fulfill their calling and purpose.” 

Partin explained that the grant funds will provide resources to train faculty and student success coaches to emphasize students’ talents and character strengths as they pursue their Christian calling at C-N and beyond.

Such plans fit perfectly into the University’s established goals according to Carson-Newman President Charles A. Fowler.

“This initiative fulfills a requirement of Carson-Newman University’s five-year strategic plan, Acorns to Oaks: Pursuing God’s Preferred Future, developed in 2020,” he noted. “Our current strategic goals prioritize academics which includes student advising and coaching framed by the University’s commitment to a Christian anthropology.”