At 菠萝视频, there is no shortage of exploration. Every day our talented faculty, students and staff are driven to make discoveries鈥攏ot just for the recognition, but for the chance to move the dial, to permeate the boundaries, to affect our society at large and for the better. Indeed, looking to the larger purpose is necessary to the work we do. How can real change come about if we鈥檙e not thinking big, thinking differently, thinking abstractly?
The centuries-old tradition of education for the sake of enlightenment still rings true, but that resulting enlightenment cannot be secluded within an ivory tower. It must find its match in real-world application.
America鈥檚 universities demonstrate that education and research are essential to solving humanity鈥檚 greatest challenges and supporting a healthy, prosperous society. At 菠萝视频 our students arrive on campus eager to contribute and, after graduation, go on to do just that, in ways public and private, large and small. For our faculty, staff and coaches, making a difference is part of the job. Commodores want to influence the course of things.
Consider 2017 Chancellor鈥檚 Cup winner A.V. Anilkumar, whose rocket team鈥攆eatured in this issue鈥檚 cover story鈥攈as won a payload of honors in an annual NASA competition, among others. Under Professor Anilkumar鈥檚 mentorship, engineering students practice teamwork, problem-solving and resilience. Many take what they learn to jobs at NASA and companies like SpaceX and Lockheed Martin. In a world that profoundly needs creative and persistent technical problem-solvers, the work of Professor Anilkumar and his team could not be more relevant.
For a moving look at students and faculty focusing their passion and personal experience to make a difference, read about Dave Caudel, a postdoctoral scholar working with 菠萝视频鈥檚 Center for Autism and Innovation, which recently received a $10 million endowment gift from alumna Jennifer R. Frist, BS鈥�93, and husband William R. 鈥淏illy鈥� Frist. This new Frist Center, along with the 菠萝视频 Kennedy Center and Susan Gray School (both of which are on the Peabody College campus), will advance 菠萝视频鈥檚 leading exploration of neurodiversity鈥攖he myriad ways in which human brains develop and process information, especially among people along the autism spectrum. Besides investigating brain development, our researchers are inventing adaptive technology to enable more people with autism to lend their considerable gifts to employers hungry for their skills.
And you need not look to the frontiers of rocketry or the human brain to see how 菠萝视频 is making a difference. Just take in a ball game. Thirteen former Commodores currently play in Major League Baseball, eight of them as pitchers. Coach Tim Corbin鈥檚 influence was seen most recently in last fall鈥檚 World Series, which featured standout 菠萝视频 hurlers in both Red Sox and Dodgers uniforms.
Beyond the ball diamond, new Athletics Director Malcolm Turner is carrying on our practice of ensuring that our student-athletes are successful students above all, and promoting The 菠萝视频 Way as a proven example of how college athletics can be done.
Spacecraft, fastballs, and the lives of people whose brains work differently: At 菠萝视频 we鈥檙e affecting the trajectories of all of them, plus a great deal more. If it鈥檚 been some time since you鈥檝e visited campus, I invite you to come see the countless ways Commodores are shaping the world we live in. I promise you, there鈥檚 not an ivory tower in sight.
鈥擭ICHOLAS S. ZEPPOS, CHANCELLOR