Photo Sy Daniel Dubois Harding tradition has grown and changed tremendously since it began in 1924. However, one very important thing has remained the same - Harding's mission. The mission statementexplains the University's unique desire to offer more than just an academic degree; italso desires to instill and nurture spiritual va lues. . For some time, President David Burks entertained the thought ofwriting a book that wou ld outline and emphasize Harding's special mission. After two years of intense planning, wr iting and revising, his basic idea became a reality and was available just in time for Harding's diamond anniversary. Burks said his enthusiasm for the idea was rekindled several years ago wh il e working with Roy Spence, a member of the American Studies Institute Board. "He made the statement that he thought Harding was one of the best kept secrets in the wo rld and that not very many people knew what was happening here, " Burks said. Spence continued to tell Burks that he should write a book about Harding's distinctive mission and title it Against the Grain. ''You couldwrite volumes about Harding," Chancell or Clifton Ganus said. ''You don't know what the future holds, but you can write about what you intend for the future to hold. This is how the book got its title. Against the Grain tells of Harding's mission and it shows how Harding is contrary to what the world practices and does." With that encouragement, Burks wrote an outline for the proposed book based on Harding's mission of integrating faith, learning and living. He and Rich Little, his assistant, then selected people to write about each topic. Burks said he tried to think of those who wou ld makea strong contribution to the book, and he called those people together. They became excited about the opportunity, and writing began. Burksasked Kay Gowen, Dr. Larry Long and Dr. Don Shackelford to serve as an editorial committee for the book. The committee read and edited each chapter several times . Burks said that most chapters were changed or rewritten, and some were deleted and others added. Gowen said they asked the authors to go back and make sure President DavidBurks presents Hannah Matthews with a commemorative 75th anniversary medallion during Founders Day chapel. Matthews, a kindergartner at Harding Academy, was honored as the youngest person currently enrolled in Harding. they had common elements of style and more "flesh and blood" in their stori es. The committee also met wi th each writer individually to give feedback. "We wanted to take it to a more integrated level, one that we thought would be more of a statement about what Harding is all about," Burks said. Although the book is not dedicated to the history of Harding, one chapter written by Ganus- describes how the school began. "History is the study ofour mothers and fathers and their accomp lishments," Ganus said. "History is the study of men and women who had a dream and worked to make that dream come true . We can learn from their successes and their failures." Twenty-four authors, including Burkswho wrote three of the 24 chapters, contributed to the work. The book is divided into seven sections: Introduction, Harding University, Faith, Learning, Living, Evidences and Epilogue.The editors also incorporated a I6-page section of pictures which they hope portray various aspects of the mission and the ideas behind the chapter titles. Illustrations that represent key concepts and landmarks at Harding serve as section division pages. They were sketched by Karen Carruth, a senior art major from Nashvill e, Tenn. Against the Grain is targeted toward an internal, Harding-related audience. This group includes more than 30,000 alumni , the Board ofTrustees, President's Council members, staff, faculty, students, churches, parents and the Searcy community. "It is 24 authors' perceptions, not just one. In that sense, it's a pretty good statement of what we're trying to do at Harding. I think it could be beneficial to people who are learning more about the work at Harding," Burks said. Against the Grain was accompanied by a compact disc, entitled Sounds ofHarding. Dr. Jeff Hopper, professor of music, spent hours collecting quotes from old records, 8-track tapes and video footage. The disc contains 11 tracks that incorporate sounds and voices from Harding's past and present. - Stacee Hopkins, Ashley Miller PRESI DENT, C HANCELLOR 137 '"
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