On June 1, 2006, AndrewWestmoreland became Samford University's 18th president. In his first year as president, he has created an exciting atmosphere of anticipation about Samford's future.

As Samford president,Westmoreland accepted the challenge of completing construction projects for athletics and performing arts, building refurbishing, parking and infrastructure. To date, more than $50 million has been pledged and given for "The Promise for All Generations," the multiyear campus improvement plan launched in 2004.

Previously,Westmoreland served as president of Ouachita Baptist University in Arkadelphia, Ark. Before his selection as Ouachita's president in 1998, he had served on the administrative staff for more than 19 years in various capacities.

Westmoreland is a graduate of Ouachita, having received a bachelor's degree in political science in 1979. He earned a master's degree in political science from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, and a doctorate in higher education administration from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.

Throughout a career in higher education, Westmoreland has excelled. He led recordbreaking fund-raising campaigns as vice president for development and later as president at Ouachita. As president, he continued to teach an undergraduate course in political science. Baxter Press published his book, Leading by Design, in 2005.

In Arkansas, Westmoreland was a member of many boards for charities and corporations, and he plans to continue his community involvement as president of Samford.

He is a member of the Chairman's Circle for the Birmingham Regional Chamber of Commerce. He has been president of the Association of Southern Baptist Colleges and Schools, and serves as a consultant-evaluator for the Higher Learning Commission for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.

Westmoreland is no stranger to NCAA athletics, having been an avid supporter of athletics at Ouachita and a leader in the Division II Gulf South Conference.

A native of the Batesville, Ark. area, Westmoreland graduated from Batesville High School in 1975. He is married to Dr. JeannaWestmoreland, who served on the faculty and as dean of Ouachita's School of Education before the family's move to Birmingham. TheWestmorelands have one daughter, Riley Elizabeth, a senior at Spain Park High School in Hoover, Ala.