North Park President Mary K. Surridge recently discussed North Park鈥檚 mission, its unique student body, and how being a college athlete taught her vital leadership skills in a wide-ranging podcast interview.
Hosted by Melissa Morriss-Olson, who previously held executive-level management positions at North Park, the podcast series features leaders and innovative thinkers in higher education. In Surridge鈥檚 June 13 episode, she and Morriss-Olson talked about being women in leadership roles.
Morriss-Olson noted that this was the first time she鈥檇 interviewed a university president who, like Surridge, had been an elite college athlete, playing NCAA Division I basketball while a student at Northwestern University. Surridge said the experience continues to shape her.
鈥淎ll of the different elements that make up who we are, I call on every one of those things,鈥� Surridge said, adding that playing on a team taught her the importance of collaboration and how important it is for each player to come 鈥減repared and poised鈥� for the team to succeed.
Later in the conversation, Surridge said: 鈥淚 think daily about my identity as a child of God, as a mother, as an encourager, as a friend, I think about myself as a recruiter, as a coach, and as a continual learner.鈥�
Of North Park, Surridge noted that North Park has survived and thrived for 132 years, despite ongoing struggles brought on by the pandemic and a competitive market.
Morriss-Olson is on the faculty of Bay Path University, where she served as provost from 2010鈥�20. The podcast featuring Surridge is titled 鈥淔rom Bowties to Neckties to Pearls,鈥� a reference to a line in President Surridge鈥檚 2017 inauguration speech. It鈥檚 available for free on