Many students have wondered what brought about so many changes on campus this year. The Nehemiah Initiative connects and explains each seemingly sudden change. From housing and dining to construction and athletics, each decision has been made as part of a larger vision for the future of Azusa Pacific University.
When I stepped foot back on campus after summer break, my heart hurt as I reflected on how different it felt in comparison to my freshman year.
Since the spring, our student body has expressed the same thought: What is happening on campus?
Minor things we once relied on were pulled out from under us with virtually no explanation, things that may not seem important, but as students, we depended on them as part of our routine.
I’m sure I’m not the only one who used to need a caramel macchiato to get me through the day; black coffee just doesn’t produce the same effect.
And I really did want to live in University Village (UV).
I remember thinking: Do APU’s staff and faculty realize how crazy this feels as a student? Don’t we deserve to know why?
There have been forums, construction tape, blueprints, announcements, and emails—email, after email, after email—so many emails.
Is APU okay? How serious is this? What didn’t I know?
It turns out that the missing piece was something called the Nehemiah Initiative.
Officially launched in 2024, The Nehemiah Initiative is the strategic plan that connects all of the dots that have seemingly appeared sparse.
Meet Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer, David Shynn and APU alumnus Nathanael Forrey ’25, who currently works as a strategic planning analyst. They are both instrumental in the facilitation of this project.
Forrey first described to me the shifting market APU is sitting in.
“We know with pretty good certainty that less people are going to college and Christian colleges, in the next several years,” Forrey said. “That causes a lot of increased pressure and some threats to higher education in general.”
Because of this, APU had to make a choice: to continue with the current trajectory, or to preemptively shift the timeline to prepare for a generational adjustment.
“Recognizing that the landscape of higher education is rapidly changing, and as stewards of APU, it is imperative that we remain anchored to our mission and responsive to our surroundings,” Shynn said.
This relates to the misconception that many decisions were made hastily as a response to an internal crisis. However, although many decisions were made for the good of APU’s current students, many more were focused on the sake of the university’s future community, a community that will face different challenges than we do currently.
“We can’t just be moving in the same direction that we have been or continue old habits just because that’s the way we’ve done them,” Forrey said. “The Nehemiah Initiative is meant to be a driver of innovation.”
The Nehemiah Initiative is rooted in four pillars: Proclaim God First in All Things, Advance Academic Distinction and Student Transformation, Unite in Purpose, and Optimizing Operations for Success.
Referencing the third chapter from the book of Nehemiah, APU continues to remain steadfast in its mission of discipleship within higher education and aims to reconstruct our university to reach our highest potential.
The first pillar of The Nehemiah Initiative is Proclaim God First in All Things. Photo courtesy of Gissel Lopez.
Pillar 1: Proclaim God First in All Things
This pillar represents APU’s drive to be faithful to our purpose in Christ, and to make sure that “every aspect of APU life, from academics to community engagement, is infused with our Christ-centered mission.”
“We want to be able to look back at this season and say that it was led by the Holy Spirit and that, by our own strength, we could not have known the opportunities and the outcomes that would open up,” Forrey said.
Within this first pillar was the redesign of APU’s Bible and theology curriculum, which aims to provide students with a “more holistic view of scripture,” as well as integrate credits with general education (GE) requirements, further strengthening biblical education. This collaboration also allows students to obtain a Biblical Studies minor.
Pillar 2: Advance Academic Distinction and Student Transformation
This pillar focuses on driving academic excellence and competitiveness. Partially funded by the sale of UV, the optimal academic portfolio was designed to develop programs that align with the market both academically and fiscally. APU aims to provide students with opportunities to be challenged in their intellectual growth and prepared for the job market post-graduation.
“Part of the Nehemiah Initiative is identifying new programs to develop ways that current programs could be restructured, renamed, et cetera, for maximum impact and reach,” Forrey said.
Continuing within APU’s growing competitive sphere, this pillar redesigned the GE core curriculum for the first time since 2014. This strengthens APU’s liberal arts foundation, providing students with critical-thinking skills grounded in a Christian worldview.
“The redesign of the GE curriculum, which decreased the total number of units, restructured it in a way that is more cohesive, where classes are actually building on each other and culminating in a way that hopefully sends students off into the world with a greater sense of vocational calling and spiritual purpose,” Forrey said.
Not only are students gaining a more extensive scope of liberal arts education, but they are also given the tools to understand why it matters.
“The big emphasis is on real-life application, which is important as freshmen who are just beginning to familiarize ourselves with the college lifestyle,” said Pitzil Avila-Castellanos ’29, a computer science major.
Not only is APU planning to strengthen our campus intrinsically, but it also aims to be a stronger active presence in our local community.
Sometimes, it can feel like we are living in a bubble on campus. While this is not inherently a bad thing, our university wants to further emphasize connection and outreach to local schools, churches, and organizations.
While APU is continuing to explore possibilities, there is already a foundation set.
“Dual enrollment initiatives are already part of our current strategic enrollment plan,” Forrey said. “We have already identified certain high schools that are ready and willing partners.”
Along with academic partnership, APU is also planning to support high school students seeking faith-based service projects. This involves the development of our new Institute for Faith, Leadership, and Service.
Pillar 3: Unite in Purpose
This pillar is dedicated to the cultivation of a united and thriving APU community through improving our campus tangibly in regard to infrastructure and architecture.
APU’s administration is currently creating an architectural plan for campus renovations.
“[The plan] can support students going into the future, [in terms of] how they can support new programs we might launch, even thinking about the path students are taking through campus and how that can improve community and foster spiritual life with the things you’re encountering throughout the campus,” Forrey said.
In terms of athletics, this pillar aims to emphasize community engagement while remaining fiscally sustainable. Moving athletic divisions falls into this, as does the revival of football.
This transition from NCAA Division II to Division III, which will be completed in Fall 2028, is estimated to save millions annually and revitalize the campus community. Along with this, APU will add two additional women’s sports, an exciting prospect for a campus with an overwhelmingly female population.
APU’s East Campus is undergoing renovation as part of the strategic plan, including the new Military and Veteran’s Center. Photo courtesy of Gissel Lopez.
Pillar 4: Optimize Operations for Success
This pillar focuses on operational efficiency. This consists mostly of logistical numbers and data, but there are two factors that have recently captured the attention of our student body.
One of the biggest changes is the university’s new dining services, APU EATS.
APU EATS was recently redesigned to provide students with better quality food and to maintain fiscal responsibility within our dining services. Bondi Bowls, an acai bowl eatery started by alumna Bailey Wilson ’18, opened on October 22.
Among already implemented changes, students can look forward to extensive renovations, which include live cooking stations, the use of meal swipes in Shalom, and the overall renovation of the Dining Hall and Cougar’s Den spaces.
This pillar also includes a category called “Space and Real Estate Improvements.” This is where UV fits in.
The proceeds from the sale of UV allowed APU to cut its debt in half, while also maximizing the underutilized real estate on our East Campus in order to make the most out of the space we already have.
“Those funds, just like they’ve been invested to new and expanded programs, are being used directly to benefit quality of life at APU and our students, clearing our debt and spending less on it every month is going to help us be nimble, help us be more effective in our operations, and help us ensure our academic programs are going to benefit students,” Forrey said.
When asked about the potential reopening of Smith Hall, Forrey explained that while there are no current plans, students can expect consistent work happening in terms of housing and potential large-scale additions should the student population render a need for it.
Founded on these pillars, The Nehemiah Initiative is occurring in two phases, and we are currently living in Phase 1 (2024-27). Phase 2 will run from 2028-2030.
Throughout both phases, The Nehemiah Initiative is intended to be a living document that moves with us, not against us. Acknowledging that our campus is complex, the administration seeks input from voices in all parts of our community.
“Rather than using a fixed multi year plan, the Nehemiah Initiative is designed to be responsive to an evolving higher education industry,” Shynn said. “The administration and the board regularly review progress and strategic assumptions, making adjustments as needed.”
Along with consistently reviewing this document, administration also welcomes input from our campus community.
“The Strategic Idea Pipeline is a way currently for faculty and staff to submit opportunities that support the Nehemiah Initiative, so it could be business ideas, it could be things that support our mission or improve morale and student transformation on campus,” Forrey said.
This means that any faculty or staff member has the ability to contribute to the future of our university on behalf of their programs, their departments, or for our sake as students.
In the future, they hope to create a space for student feedback as well.
“There are legitimate criticisms from students that we’re hearing and we want to amend for future communication,” Forrey said.
So, if your brain feels full reading this, know you’re not the only one. Being a student in a transition period is strange; those who came before us won’t understand, and it is only the people who come after us that will get to reap the benefits of our construction zone.
Students should know that here is a method behind the madness.
The Nehemiah Initiative is drawing APU into a bright future, one where students learn in a rigorous academic environment, engage in broadened opportunities within our campus and local area, and are rooted in a more intimate God-centered community that encourages and uplifts each other.
This initiative is not a response to APU’s failures, it is an extension of its mission, and our mission is in great hands.
“The work that is before us is bigger than any of us, and can be accomplished only when we lock arms, acknowledge our need for one another, and submit ourselves to the only One who can make all of this happen,” President Adam J. Morris said.
Just like Nehemiah, we are faced with a task of rebuilding. But Jerusalem’s wall was not rebuilt in a day, nor by one individual. Section by section, dozens of people worked tirelessly to help repair what had been destroyed.
“I would encourage readers to join us in prayer for APU and the Nehemiah Initiative as we seek to faithfully strengthen and enhance how we deliver on the mission of this God First University,” Shynn said.
Section by section, APU is being rebuilt for the glory of the Lord.