Published on October 1, 2018  

The next thing I heard was that “Samford University in Birmingham” was one of the two.  I pulled a business card from my pocket and turned around to hand the card to the mother of a prospective student, as the mom was making casual conversation with a flight attendant.  We exchanged the customary “small world” banter, then I tried to explain that I wasn’t really eavesdropping on their conversation (which I suppose isn’t entirely truthful). 

When the plane landed, we finished our chat.  In response to my question about why her daughter is drawn to Samford, she said that every encounter with Samford had felt very personal—and that it was clear that Samford is a place that values individual students.   

The world is better because of the goodness of so many people associated with Samford.  (By the way, I checked the definition of “goodness” just now:  “the quality of being good, in particular.”  It fits.)

 
Samford is a leading Christian university offering undergraduate programs grounded in the liberal arts with an array of nationally recognized graduate and professional schools. Founded in 1841, Samford is the 87th-oldest institution of higher learning in the United States. Samford enrolls 5,791 students from 49 states, Puerto Rico and 16 countries in its 10 academic schools: arts, arts and sciences, business, divinity, education, health professions, law, nursing, pharmacy and public health. Samford fields 17 athletic teams that compete in the tradition-rich Southern Conference and ranks 6th nationally for its Graduation Success Rate among all NCAA Division I schools.