Luxton Interviewed by Mitch Albom

On Thursday, Aug. 27, President Andrea Luxton and two colleagues from the Michigan Colleges Alliance joined Mitch Albom for “Mitch Albom & Friends.” Albom is an internationally renowned and best-selling author, journalist, screenwriter, playwright, radio and television broadcaster and musician. The livestreamed night of stories, laughter and music raised funds to make college in Michigan accessible for students at Have Faith Haiti Mission, an organization operated by Albom in Haiti.

Albom and Have Faith Haiti Mission work with the Michigan Colleges Alliance (MCA) so that when Mission students earn a place at an MCA college, MCA provides at least partial scholarships for all 52 students from the Mission.

Albom talked with Robert Bartlett, MCA president, Mathew Johnson, president of Albion College, and Andrea Luxton, president of Andrews University, about MCA schools.

“The teachers, the faculty that choose to work in our kind of institutions do so because they have a real mission for teaching and for students,” said Luxton. “And that makes a huge difference….everything really is about enabling a student to reach their fullest potential.”

Later, she commented on the value of the international community at Andrews. “I sense that most of our students, no matter where they come from in the U.S. or around the world, they want to make a change in a bigger place than just their own home. They really want to make an impact….when you put different cultures and different nationalities together, that’s hugely exciting. And everyone benefits. Everyone benefits.”

Michigan Colleges Alliance (MCA) works to strengthen the shared capacity of 14 leading independent, four-year colleges and universities grounded in a liberal arts and sciences tradition, to broaden college choice and access in Michigan, and foster career outcomes for MCA graduates. While individually, MCA campuses are smaller, collectively, MCA is the “third largest university” in the state.

To view a recording of “Mitch Albom & Friends,” visit michigancolleges.org/mitch.