When the new millennium dawned a decade ago, no one could have imagined the changes that would occur at Nashville’s Belmont University. No one could have predicted the phenomenal growth Belmont would experience or that a small, private university would land what The Tennessean called the “coup of the decade.”

In his inaugural address on Sept. 25, 2000, new President Bob Fisher praised Belmont’s rich history and commitment to excellence while also promising a dynamic vision for its future — a vision that quite frankly seemed out of reach.


Fisher’s initial dreams were formalized in Vision 2010, a document approved by Belmont’s Board of Trustees that called for a number of changes in the fabric of the university, including a rise to national prominence and a significant increase in enrollment as well as several new and upgraded facilities.


Change was on the horizon at the start of the decade. Ten years later, the word “change” seems a dramatic understatement when considering the remarkable transformations that have occurred at Belmont since 2000. Yet, despite the university’s evolution, Belmont’s commitment to its mission remains permanently ingrained.