Leadership on the Mountain summit outlines the value of trust among Liberty faculty, staff

Over 500 Liberty University faculty and staff members gathered in the Montview Student Union, Alumni Ballroom June 18-19 for the second annual Leadership on the Mountain summit, an opportunity for those in leadership roles across campus to reflect, connect, and recommit to leading with integrity and purpose, all with the shared mission of Training Champions for Christ. The event was facilitated by Liberty’s Human Resources Department.

The summit’s theme, “Trustworthy Leadership – Living What We Lead,” focused on the core responsibility of every Liberty leader: building and sustaining trust through character, consistency, and alignment with the university’s mission. Whether in TED Talk-style messages or in an interview/panel format moderated by Human Resources staff, leaders from a wide range of departments across the Liberty spoke on how they have sought, built, and experienced the value of trust within an organization.

Each day, the summit included a worship time and prayer for Liberty’s leadership and for God’s direction within the university. The summit was hosted by Joseph “SoJo” Sojourner, an Atlanta-based strategist and communicator who led audience engagement activities and introduced multiple speakers.

Chancellor Jonathan Falwell shared a message on “Living What You Lead,” explaining how leadership comes from God’s purpose for one’s life and is a position of stewardship, shepherding, and being a Christ-honoring example.

“Every room you walk into as a leader here at Liberty University, your job is not to be celebrated; your job is to celebrate others,” he told the attendees. “Your job is to make sure that you’re doing everything that you possibly can, so that those people can rise to a higher level and accomplish more and do more and be better at what they do. Your measure of success is the success of the people you lead.”

He spoke about his father, Liberty founder Dr. Jerry Falwell, and the importance of developing a positive legacy that will last. He said his father’s impact is felt by those who met him and saw his intentionality firsthand as he made time for informal conversations and prayer, no matter how busy he was. Falwell said that each person — regardless of their occupation or notoriety — can have the same impact.

Featured guest speaker Jamie Winship, a bestselling author and Identity Exchange co-founder, shared stories from his career about following God as a “living sacrifice,” citing Romans 12:1-3, and about being a co-creator with God in forming opportunities for others to find Christ. In times of seemingly immovable obstacles to his ministry, Winship said he seeks the wisdom of Christ through prayer and allows the Holy Spirit to lead, even when it seems unexpected and unnatural.

Winship also joined a panel with Liberty Head Men’s Basketball Coach Ritchie McKay and Vice President of Spiritual Development Josh Rutledge, where they addressed leadership styles, seeking support systems in times of self-doubt, and bringing one’s identity in Christ into a vocation instead of letting a vocation be one’s identity.

Multiple Liberty leaders shared about different aspects and pursuits of truth and how they’ve seen it built and rebuilt in their personal and professional lives, as well as examples in Scripture. Claudia Dempsey, online chair of operations for the John W. Rawlings School of Divinity, spoke on God’s faithfulness and the assurance that He is who He says He is. Professor of Evangelism Dr. David Wheeler addressed how to rebuild trust through consistent humility and Christian compassion.

Executive Director of Equal Rights & Title IX Kasey Smith and Executive Director of Institutional Compliance Joanna Roush each spoke about how they hire qualified and professional staff members who are motivated daily to ensure the safety and compliance of the university. Vice Provost of Institutional Effectiveness and Research Deanna Keith, who has led Liberty’s recent reaccreditation process with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC), spoke on the effort of ensuring Liberty’s academic mission for another 10 years and how it opened her eyes to the countless leaders and team members it takes to make the university function on a daily basis. Executive Director of Talent Development Steve Ferro offered tips on how to navigate complex compensation conversations while building trust through healthy communication.

A panel of Vice President of Development for Athletics Engagement Mike Hagen, Assistant Director of Enterprise Architecture Carolyn Peck, and Director of Analytics and Decision Support Ivie Lilly focused on how to develop trustworthy leaders through fairness of opportunity, providing professional development, and balancing oversight with giving employees freedom to offer their unique insights. Similarly, Liberty CFO and Treasurer Rob Ritz outlined how to communicate clearly with team members, build credibility so that trust can be maintained during challenges, and be accountable about decision-making. Sharing a personal story about seeing the failures and successes of leadership styles in his time in the U.S. Marine Corps and using 1 Timothy 4:12 as a reference, Helms School of Government Dean Jason Bohm said leaders who trust in God in prayer, lead by example, firmly set the team standard, and remain authentic will find success in completing a mission.

During the final session, President Dondi E. Costin spoke about the dangers of feeling entitlement as a leader, which he called a “poison to trust” within an organization. He recounted the biblical story of King David who failed to be the humble leader who fought on the front lines alongside his people and, in staying in Jerusalem in comfort and pride, exercised his influence negatively when he coordinated the affair with Bathsheba and her husband’s death. In doing this, David “degraded the trust” of his army, his household, and beyond.

In an onstage conversation with Executive Vice President of Human Resources Steve Foster, Costin said Liberty’s goal of forming a quality culture can only be achieved if every leader takes action.

“Unless and until every single leader at every single level has the same kind of interest in having the kind of culture we are aspiring to, it’s never going to work. (Events) like this are intentional in an effort to make sure the words we’re saying aren’t just words but are translating to actual behaviors at every single level.”

The summit also served as an opportunity for attendees to become connected with RISE Leadership Training and Champion Culture, the leadership and workplace cultural development programs facilitated by Human Resources.