Dr.
Randy Lowry was appointed the 17th president of
Lipscomb University in July, 2005. Prior to his appointment
he served as Professor of Law and Founding Director of the
Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution at Pepperdine
University School of Law in Malibu, California. The Straus
Institute has repeatedly been ranked number one in the
nation by U.S. News, ahead of schools such as Harvard and
Ohio State. President Lowry joined the Lipscomb University
community after a career in higher education which included
eleven years serving as Assistant to the President of
Hamline University (St. Paul, Minnesota) and Willamette
University (Salem, Oregon) where the president was Dr. Jerry
E. Hudson, a Lipscomb University graduate. During the last
19 years, Lowry led Pepperdine's effort in the new field of
dispute resolution as a tenured Professor of Law, author,
teacher and mediator. He has held visiting academic
appointments at City University of Hong Kong, Bond
University in Australia, Hamline University, University of
Idaho, Vermont Law School and Abilene Christian University.
Lowry's lifetime
commitment to distinctively Christian education is the
outgrowth of his education at Pepperdine University, a
sister school to Lipscomb University, where he received his
Bachelor of Arts and Master of Public Administration
degrees. Subsequently, he completed his Juris Doctor degree.
He is particularly interested in the academic preparation of
young adults in a context where faith informs their study
and their lives. President Lowry is a lifelong member of the
Church of Christ most recently serving for seven years as an
Elder at the Conejo Valley Church of Christ in Thousand
Oaks, California.
President Lowry is a
popular speaker at conferences and lectureships hosted by
many different organizations. They have included the Tulsa
Soul-Winning Workshop, the Red River and Yosemite
Encampments, lectureships at Pepperdine, Abilene, and
Oklahoma Christian universities, the Elders Workshop at
Harding University as well as special programs at Faulkner
University. Lowry's love for Christ and commitment to the
church has been the motivation for his service to churches
in the areas of conflict resolution, strategic planning and
leadership development.
Randy is married to
Rhonda Gail Appleby whom he met during her first week as a
Pepperdine student. They have three natural children: John,
married to Melissa, lives in Nashville and is the Vice
President of Strategic Resolution Group, LLC and the father
of the Lowry's grandson Weston; Janet, married to Richmond,
lives in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, where she is the
Director of the Study Abroad Program at High Point
University; and Melinda is a senior at Wheaton College in
Illinois and the Spiritual Captain of its national
championship women's soccer team. Randy and Rhonda also
count as part of their family Mark Lamb, a young man who
came to live with them during his senior year in high
school, who works in property management in Southern
California.
