Undergraduates everywhere zealously protest everything from the Israel/Palestine issue to free speech to diversity and inclusion.
College presidents across the country search anxiously for effective strategies, realizing that no easy answers or enduring solutions exist.
Westmont strives to take a different approach.
“Our Community Life Statement presents truth-centered attitudes and practices,” said Westmont President Gayle D. Beebe. “This document keeps us from becoming polarized and gives us the ability to maintain a cohesive community while learning to live together with difference.
“We cultivate a robust, strong and healthy culture, but stress points and inevitable differences of opinion always emerge. If we can stay in community, we can learn to give the benefit of the doubt to others and get through it together.”
The Westmont campus life office has a free speech and peaceful assembly policy that outlines designated places on campus. Westmont students learn how to live together with difference, to ask lots of thoughtful questions and to express their point of view respectfully and effectively.
Westmont’s president continues to make a big impact.
Beebe, now in his 18th year as Westmont’s eighth president, has created significant forward momentum as he pursues the college’s next horizon.
His achievements include: three successful capital campaigns raising more than $500 million; new and renovated construction projects totaling more than 400,000 square feet, including Adams Center for the Visual Arts, Winter Hall for Science and Mathematics, the Global Leadership Center, an observatory, renovated athletic facilities, and the purchase of two downtown Santa Barbara buildings (Westmont | Grotenhuis Nursing and the Keith Center).
He also plannned and introduced several new academic and athletic programs, all while facing the devastating consequences of the Tea Fire, the Thomas Fire, the Montecito Debris Flow, and the global pandemic.
“Each of these crises deepened my knowledge of God,” said Beebe. “I believe God is present with us in suffering and uses it as an opportunity for us to learn and grow.”
Beebe’s book explains how we can benefit from suffering.
An active scholar, he published his most recent work “The Crucibles that Shape Us” in 2024. The book examines seven types of ordeals most people face in their lifetime. He calls these crucibles and explains how each one can benefit us — if we allow it.
In chapter three, he explores the challenge of Human Treachery, discussing the basic need of individuals, families and communities to cultivate reliable bonds of trust.
Beebe highlights “the need to learn how to read the intentions of others, to pay attention to how human treachery can shape us, and to develop a capacity for self-protection without becoming paranoid.”
Chapter six considers the trials of Human Suffering. “I first started thinking through human suffering when I attended Princeton Seminary,” Beebe says. “I faced some of the most significant trials we encounter during this time and discovered ways God is present with us in the midst of suffering.
“I believe life brings us to a series of moments for growth. The way we respond determines whether we learn and develop from the challenge. The experience of suffering also includes our response to it. Human volition comes into play whether we respond negatively or positively.”
Beebe says his deepest learning about human suffering occurred after the premature death of his father, who died at age 60 of a heart attack.
Human suffering also hit Beebe hard when Don Green, his favorite pastor and mentor, died on Mt. Hood after a widow-maker tree collapsed on him, leaving his wife and four young children behind.
Students often struggle to identify their calling.
When a student expresses frustration about how to choose a major or a career path, Beebe advises: “The safest time to experiment with potential careers occurs at the age of 18 to 22 years, because young people have time to recover. I encourage them to take advantage of the opportunity to experiment.”
He always starts by urging students to find an internship or volunteer with an organization that deals with issues that interest them.
“I tell them to notice what they’re drawn to and ask themselves if it could become a vocation,” he said. “I also point out that their first position may or may not become their main job, but it will help them define more clearly what truly interests them.”
Many people wonder about the focus of Westmont Downtown.
Beebe played a key role in initiating Westmont Downtown in May 2015. This popular addition to Westmont focuses on nursing, but includes a semester-long academic program centered on social entrepreneurship.
The experience connects students to 20-hour-per-week internships with local businesses and agencies. They also take classes downtown in entrepreneurship, leadership and management.
Beebe’s favorite subjects include global leadership and education.
“I entered higher education in 1992 with a job that involved me with expatriate communities from Guatemala and Korea,” said Beebe. “I was living in Los Angeles, a city that looks like the world. It’s a microcosm of the global community.
“That experience triggered my interest in global affairs. I learned that you understand a culture by engaging with the people.”
During Beebe’s tenure, Westmont has expanded its study-abroad programs, which now offer a variety of opportunities in Jerusalem, Cairo, Europe, Northern Europe, India, Mexico and Asia. During both semester-long programs and summer trips, students live overseas and travel with Westmont professors.
Westmont is committed to leading and serving in every sphere of society.
“One thing I love about our students is how smart and fun they are,” said Beebe. “They possess a deep curiosity and a strong desire to learn, and I find their joyfulness especially meaningful.
“We want students to become aspirational so they help their part of society flourish. We do this by cultivating an atmosphere that leads to flourishing. We also emphasize that our vision of what needs to get done always exceeds any inconvenience, which is simply a byproduct of achievement.
“Anything worth doing will always bring a double-edged sword of challenge and opportunity,” he said. “To achieve life-giving results, we encourage students to rise above the challenges and embrace the opportunities.”
Beebe focuses personally on self-improvement and community service. Each day, he rises early and starts the morning with reading, prayer and meditation.
“My job involves dedicating a lot of energy to others, and this practice restores me,” he said. “I strive to improve myself daily as I read, pray and reflect.”
Beebe believes strongly in giving back to his community, so he has served on several nonprofit boards.
“My mother loved music and years ago I played the cello and piano,” he said. “I’m interested in music, so I served on the symphony board for nine years. I’ve also belonged to boards for United Way, Partners In Education, Oaks Christian School and several state and national level boards focused on higher education.”
He points to his meaningful work and the wonderful friendships he has developed as highlights of his career. “Peter Drucker once said that all good plans eventually degenerate into hard work,” he said. “That’s true of my experience, but it’s also the foundation for making a contribution that will outlive us.
“At Westmont, we live and work in an incredible community where major donors have become friends of the college and helped us make a significant impact. It’s an amazing place that allows us to pursue excellence every day. I love the work.”