The mission statement of Brigham Young University states, “All instruction, programs, and services at BYU, including a wide variety of extracurricular experiences, should make their own contribution toward the balanced development of the total person.” The cover story of this edition of the college magazine about our hosting of the National Collegiate Landscape Competition made me think about this goal to aid in the growth of our students. For students in the landscape management program, this competition is certainly one example of an extracurricular experience that contributes to their balanced development. It is interesting that as they learn how to effectively make plants grow, they, in turn, grow themselves in many ways. We congratulate our student team for winning first place in the competition and thank our hard-working faculty for their efforts to put on an exceptional competition at BYU. We are blessed in this college to have so many different opportunities for our students to enjoy meaningful extracurricular experiences. From internships to mentorships, from field work to lab work, from applied research to basic research, from study abroad to study at home, we are committed to expand our student’s experience beyond what they get in the classroom. We want to give them real-world, authentic learning opportunities that will help them be successful in their homes and communities, in graduate or professional schools, and in employment. In short, we want to help with their balanced development. We hope you will want to help, too.
Dean James Porter