James_Jan-Feb_2026_web - Flipbook - Page 64
Those basketball teams were
indeed powerhouses, winning NAIA
National Championships in 1997,
1999 and 2000. Lights of Life features
more than a million lights, whimsical
displays, illuminated tunnels and
festive attractions like carnival rides,
train rides, a petting zoo and treats
from local vendors. These events
have helped to spread awareness
for Life but the education is still the
main thing and that is where McAulay’s expertise comes in.
McAulay had his own private
chiropractic practice for 13 years.
But he also has a Doctor of Philosophy in Business and Management
(Ph.D.) from Temple University.
Palmer, McAulay’s previous posting,
is similar to Life in many ways. It is
a health sciences university with
a chiropractic program. He was
also Vice Chancellor of Academic
Affairs at South University. It’s a
larger system with 12,000 students,
45 programs, 10 campuses from
64
JAMES JANUA RY /F E B RUA RY 2 02 6
the mid-Atlantic through the Deep
South. They do not have a chiropractic program but do have a big
nursing program and several physician assistant programs. That kind
of experience gave McAulay further
insight into the patient healthcare
experience and clinical setting that
is valuable for Life University.
“There are all sorts of technical
things about chiropractic education that Life is very good at. Our
students are very well grounded in
what we call whole person health
philosophy. They are very good with
their hands. “There’s all kinds of
different techniques that you can do
with your hands and Life offers more
than anyone else, just because of our
size,” he says.
Another important facet of
the education at Life University is
cultivating an entrepreneurial spirit
and ability. As opposed to the now
ultra-corporatized world of regular
medicine, chiropractors are still very
entrepreneurial, establishing their
own practices as opposed to being
part of a large hospital or healthcare
system.
As McAulay puts it, his transition back to Life has been ideal.
“Normally you walk into a place as
a president, you know some things,
you’ve reviewed reports, and you
have walked through the campus.
But every campus is unique and has
its own culture. So it takes a while
to get on boarded,” said McAulay.
“But I was able to accelerate pretty
quickly because I knew a whole
bunch of people, and was familiar with the culture and cultures
endure. Life’s values are still very
much intact.”
McAulay had been working with
Life as a consultant last year and
took over when the previous president stepped down. There is name
recognition for Life here, which was
not the case for McAulay at Palmer
in Dallas. For example: A Chamber of
