Aug 21, 2009
Special Program Update and Omniquest Selection
As our new academic year will begin in just a little more than two weeks, it is time once again to share our Friday message series with you. I hope summer 2009 has been enjoyable and productive for you, and we will all begin the new academic year with great enthusiasm.
I open with two important messages - one about a special program just completing their current academic year, and the other about our new Omniquest selection for the upcoming fall term.
Northwood University works year round to help our students become future leaders of a global, free-enterprise society. Knowing it is never too early to learn the values and ethics of enterprise and entrepreneurship, we are reaching out to 8th grade students in Detroit as well.
Cornerstone Schools opened its doors in 1990, when a small committed group of business, civic, and religious leaders conceived of Cornerstone Schools as an answer to Archbishop Adam Maida’s challenge to the Detroit Economic Club “to make all things new again." The school is committed to high academic standards and parental involvement, unique course offerings, a passionate and industrious staff and faculty, rigor and discipline in both academic standards and personal conduct, and a Christian-centered learning curriculum.
The opportunity to partner with Cornerstone Schools was developed from the vision of the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Northwood University, Dr. J Ferron. Dr. Ferron had the idea to bring the two organizations together, both sharing a similar passion for ideas, education, and liberty. Discussions began in July 2007 and the program started in August 2008. The first year will conclude today, August 21, 2009 with student business plan presentations.
Associate Professor Brennan Brown has been the lead faculty for this endeavor. In 2009, approximately 50 visits to Cornerstone’s Nevada and Redford campuses were made, teaching 70 8th grade students about the importance of enterprise and entrepreneurship and introducing them to the Northwood Idea.
During the first semester, the students were introduced to market-based economics, the philosophy of a free and civil society, free enterprise and entrepreneurship. During the last half of the year, students built their own business plans and were coached along the process by a group of expert faculty members and industry leaders.
Upon completion of the course, each student will be presented with a certificate of achievement. In some cases, students who successfully complete the course will be rewarded with Northwood University scholarships which are payable over four years to students who apply and are accepted to attend any Northwood University residential campus.
Also, the President of the Foundation for Economic Education (FEE) and former Northwood University professor, Dr. Lawrence W. Reed, made an in-kind contribution of 225 books for the Cornerstone endeavor. The books serve as the textbooks for the course and they are Economics in One Lesson by Henry Hazlitt, The Law by Frederic Bastiat and Anything That’s Peaceful by Leonard Read. In addition, FEE has pledged to continue their support of this project on an annual basis. As a result, Cornerstone School’s 8th Grade students now own these books and will keep the books and their timeless messages long after class is over.
During a gathering of Northwood faculty and Cornerstone students, friends and family today, Mercedes Webster was announced the winner of the 2009 “Best Business Plan” award. She developed a business plan called “Animal House - where we treat your pets like our own.” During her presentation, she created an income statement to illustrate how, in the first year, her veterinary clinic will show a profit of nearly $70,000. As a result of her performance, Mercedes Webster earned a $10,000 scholarship to Northwood University. Congratulations, Mercedes! We look forward to you becoming a future Northwood University student.
We also learned today that due in part to our successful program, Cornerstone Schools 8th grade scores on the Stanford 9 Achievement Exam in economics were substantially higher than in previous years and, in some cases, 15% higher than the national average. That’s amazing progress and encouraging to know Northwood played a large role in making that happen.
Many Cornerstone and Northwood faculty and staff have helped Cornerstone students understand the value of the Northwood Idea - private property rights, free markets, the profit and loss system and limited government – and it has been both an honor and privilege to be a part of this endeavor.
The distinguished French novelist Victor Hugo said, “There is one thing stronger than all the armies in the world and that is an idea whose time has come.” From day one, Northwood University has always been about ideas that promote a free and civil society. Our Cornerstone Schools partnership allows Northwood University to show how the power of ideas can transform young lives even in one of the most economically depressed areas in our country.
Congratulations to the students who participated in this first class of the Cornerstone/Northwood venture. And thank you to all those who made it possible to reach out even further to the future leaders of a global free-enterprise society.
I’m pleased to announce the Omniquest program selection for the fall term 2009 is Ten Powerful Phrases for Positive People by Rich DeVos, a true entrepreneur leader, and friend of our University. Dr. DeVos is the co-founder of the Amway Corporation, and Chairman of the National Basketball Association’s Orlando Magic.
Dr. DeVos’s book is based on his life and business experiences, and the influential people he has met that have had the most profound impact for him. His message is that incorporating the ten phrases into our daily lives will have life-changing influences for everyone, and is the second of Dr. DeVos’s books to be part of our Onmiquest program; the first was Compassionate Capitalism: People Helping People Help Themselves, the Omniquest selection for fall 1994. It is similar to the practical life lessons from two of our most recent Omniquest selections - The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch and Jeffrey Zaslow, and Simply Success by Jack Miller. The messages Dr. DeVos shares with us are found throughout the book and have been part of his life for over 50 years as the Amway Corporation is, like Northwood, celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. We know you’ll appreciate and learn from all Dr. DeVos’s “powerful phrases.”
Enjoy your weekend!
Keith A. Pretty, J.D.
President and CEO
Northwood University
4000 Whiting Drive
Midland, MI 48640
989.837.4203 (phone)
989.832.9590 (fax)
