Laura Galloway began her new role as dean of Whitworth University’s School of Business on July 1.

Galloway has relocated to Spokane from San Diego, after previously working for University of Massachusetts Global, a California-based online institution, most recently as associate vice chancellor for institutional curriculum, assessment, and academic policy. Prior to that, she served as associate dean at the university’s School of Business and Professional Studies.

Why Whitworth? How did this opportunity come about?

It was something I sought out.

I had finished with Westmont College in December of 2025. I finished a two-year leadership and theology certificate. I wanted to connect my faith with my profession a little more intentionally, and as an educator, the best way for me to explore opportunities is to learn, to sit at the feet of scholars and faculty members who might know more than I do, and to ask questions and to explore theologically.

I enrolled in that two-year certificate degree to learn about how people go about integrating their faith with their work. At the end of it, I felt like I should use it, so I started looking at opportunities that were available for me that I thought would be a good fit.

The (Whitworth School of Business) deanship position was open, and there was a recruiting firm that was working to find someone. I called the recruiter, and after a 30-minute conversation with her, we were both pretty excited about the opportunity.

I'm a product of Westmont College, where I got my undergrad degree, which is very similar to Whitworth; it was where I found a new level of my faith. It was where I was inspired. I felt called to come back to a similar school and wanted to have a front seat to student transformation.

I think right now too, at this time, I felt called also to be on the front lines of Christian higher ed, as well as what's happening in the workplace and bridging that and helping students.

What do you think the experience will be like transitioning from an online institution to a more traditional, in-person university?

One of the things that I have in my head is how exciting it is to be here on Parents Weekend or Move-in Weekend, and see the energy of the students come in, the freshmen in particular, of experiencing college and the frontier of so much unknown.

Also, in partnership with the faculty that are here, to create a container for growth and transformation for the students, helping them answer this really nagging question of, “What am I capable of?” They're going to learn that here, and to protect that as the dean and to encourage and nurture that with the faculty is going to be something I'm really excited about.

I've already started working with some of the faculty on some strategic ways to continue to build out our expertise.

They love their students, and so some of the things and programs that they have come up with are absolutely unique. I'm looking forward to promoting that and celebrating what they've already been doing and bringing that to light.

How do you view the Whitworth School of Business’ role in developing the next generation of business leaders?

The major narrative around higher ed and workforce has been: How do we train students for a workforce that is evolving all the time?

What's a challenge for Whitworth and all higher ed is that a freshman coming in is going to enter a workforce that's going to be different in four years when they graduate than it is when they started as a freshman, and that hasn't always been the case.

That takes some discipline for us as faculty and leaders to understand that dynamic so that we can encourage students in those durable skills.

What has started to come out now is this void in the workforce, and there are some real areas in the workforce that are seeing a shortage already.

We're going to fill in the gap here at Whitworth. We're going to help the students know what those occupations are, and we'll get them ready for that, and we can get them ready in the School of Business, regardless of discipline, because those durable skills will find their way into almost all professions.

With the rapid emergence of artificial intelligence, what approach does the Whitworth School of Business need to take to not only adapt to AI in higher education, but to also prepare students for careers that will likely be intertwined with AI in some way?

So, two things about what's right for AI in higher ed: One is, you don't get to avoid it. In other words, to put it positively, it must be addressed. The second, is that each institution has to really understand how to address it.

We do have to address it. So, what's right for Whitworth?

One of the things that I've seen as I've been studying workforce trends over the past year is people are looking to hire those that have competency in AI skills. In job postings, it went from a “nice-to-have” to a required skill midway through 2025. Now it's a must-have.

We don't have the option in the School of Business to not orient our conversations and our training of our students around AI. If students are using it to cheat, they're underutilizing it. If faculty are just looking to police it, then we're not using it well either in the classroom. 

That's my challenge to our School of Business this year: understanding how to upskill our orientation around AI.

This is the year we're going to see institutes of higher education — and Whitworth is no exception — tackle that second question: What's right for us to integrate AI carefully, intentionally, and to make sure that the students can say, "Yes" on job applications when asked if they know how to use AI ethically, morally, but also strategically for jobs in the future.

What do you like to do outside of work?

I've already found a beach volleyball crew that I play with here. Actually, day two that we were here, we drove by some people playing, and my husband turned the corner, literally screeched the tires, and I went and introduced myself like I was 10: “Can I be your friend?”

We've been on bike rides already. We've got our stand-up paddle boards. I love being outside more than I love being inside. Our neighbors are taking us canoeing this weekend. When the snow comes, our neighbors are going to take us snowshoeing. But not skiing, because neither my husband's nor my knees can handle it.

We love board games, and so we'll be having some board game nights at our house as well. We love exploring this area up here. When we lived on Whidbey Island years ago, camping was our big fun thing to do, so we'll be camping a lot.

We want to lead Bible studies at our home and bring the community in, as well as attend various community events.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.