Can a University be distinctively Baptist and academically excellent? No_prichard_92203

Posted: 9/19/03

Can a University be distinctively
Baptist and academically excellent?
—No

By Ella Prichard

The lists of “top universities in America” include the great public research universities; once-Christian universities, such as Yale, Harvard, Princeton; a few private institutions founded as secular universities after the German model, such as Stanford and Johns Hopkins; and a handful of elite Catholic universities.

As a student at Baylor University from 1959 to 1963, I dreamed of the day when Baylor would become a “Baptist Harvard.” Later, I came to realize the term was an oxymoron; a university can't be Baptist and Harvard at the same time. My attention turned to Notre Dame, a national Catholic university; and I began to ponder the concept of a “Baptist Notre Dame.” But Notre Dame and her sister institutions are marked by openness and freedom of inquiry, very different from top evangelical colleges, such as Wheaton and Calvin. And both those models, Catholic and Calvinist, are marked by an authoritarianism foreign to Baptist tradition.

Baylor's quest: Joel Gregory Ella Wall Prichard Chris Seay

Texas Baptists have believed in and supported higher education since pioneer days, and Baptist universities dot the Texas landscape. While mine is a Baylor experience, Baylor's issues apply to all our institutions. What is the role of the Baptist university in the 21st century?

It begins with mission. The Baylor mission statement is probably not too different from other Texas Baptist institutions: “To educate men and women for worldwide leadership and service by integrating academic excellence and Christian commitment within a caring community.” In one statement, we find the purpose, process and culture of a Christian institution. This intent has largely remained the same since 1845.

However, one question remains unanswered: On which side will the university fall when the choice must be made between what the academy defines as “academic excellence” and faith and doctrine? Historically, Baptist institutions have chosen the side of faith. For most of the 20th century, Baylor was successful in maintaining a delicate balance on the tip of the mountain, avoiding both the slippery slope to the left, which leads to abandonment of faith commitment, and to the right, which is the route chosen by fundamentalist Bible colleges. As a student newspaper editor at the beginning of the McCall administration and as a parent and then regent at the end of Herbert Reynolds' tenure, I can testify that the administration and board were very intentional about maintaining the proper balance between faith and learning in order to nurture the kind of community that produces servant-leaders. Today we hear talk of “restoring” and “returning” Baylor to its historic purpose. Baylor, like our other Texas Baptist schools, never left.

I would like to rephrase the question, “Can a university be distinctively Baptist and academically excellent?” to “Must our Baptist universities dilute our doctrinal distinctives in order to gain academic respectability?”

Excellence is implicit in the words, “to educate men and women for worldwide leadership and service.” Mediocrity does not produce leaders who can impact the world. “Service” is the added value Baptist schools offer. Historically, we have sent missionaries, preachers, teachers, business people, doctors, lawyers and nurses around the world to lead and to serve. We have produced more than our share of governors and judges. An impressive number have attended the most prestigious graduate and professional schools. Excellence is proved by the quality of our graduates and their contributions to the world.

The purpose is not to add to the body of knowledge, to serve faculty and administration or to bring honor to the institution, though that is good. Students are our purpose. At our Baptist institutions, all other goals and aspirations must be subservient.

That is not to say academics are unimportant. Our Baptist schools must provide academic excellence if they are going to equip graduates who can impact the world for good. Our classrooms, labs and libraries must be comparable to those at the best undergraduate institutions in the nation. We must recruit the best faculty possible.

Can Baptist schools do this? We find a handful of once-Baptist universities among the nation's elite institutions but not a single university still affiliated with a state Baptist convention. The primary reason is lack of resources. Top universities have the top endowments. They attract gifts in the tens and even hundreds of millions of dollars. They pull in many more millions in research dollars, much from government sources.

We Baptists have the admirable goal of keeping our schools affordable for the average Texas Baptist. But look at the facts: Most of our children are going to state schools. Why? Because they are more affordable. If we want Baptist schools that are both affordable and excellent, we must individually, through our churches and through the convention, provide sufficient revenues to increase quality while maintaining affordability.

Academic excellence is only half the equation, however. Christian commitment must be our hallmark. This is far from administering religious litmus tests or keeping track of how often faculty attend Sunday School. Until recently, prospective faculty at Baylor merely needed to affirm they were Christians, “friendly to the mission.” Not just, “I can live with paying lip service to faith,” but, “I want to be in a place where academic freedom includes the freedom to express and practice faith; where honesty, kindness and the other Christian virtues are valued; where people matter.” Faculty were encouraged to involve themselves in their students' lives; they were rewarded for excellent teaching and for service. The model was academic servant-leadership, performed with excellence and with Christian integrity.

The dynamic tension between a diverse faculty, who emphasize academic excellence and academic freedom, and a Baptist administration and board, who tend to focus on Christian commitment, results in a fine balance where both faith and learning are valued.

Furthermore, our Baptist campuses offer a unique community based on Christian principles. During Baylor's sesquicentennial, church historian Martin Marty was asked about the Baylor “bubble” and painted a word picture of the environment at a Christian university. He described an old greenhouse with a few broken panes and a door that didn't fit tightly. While some of the winds from outside might seep in, the tender young plants growing inside were protected from fierce storms until they matured and were ready to be planted outside. A nurturing gardener prepared the plants for life outside the greenhouse.

By definition, research universities focus on graduate work. Their faculties direct research of graduate students who, in turn, teach undergraduates. These institutions do not nurture undergraduates like our fine Baptist colleges, with their strong teaching faculties and emphasis on undergraduate education. Our Baptist schools tend to be much smaller than regional state universities, and community life on these campuses is another added value.

Here our Baptist distinctives can make a difference. Our legacy of soul competency, priesthood of the believer and freedom of conscience demands that members of the community respect one another's beliefs and convictions. We do not demand adherence to any narrow interpretation of faith and practice.

The Apostle Paul's admonishment to the Corinthians to be a body, valuing everyone's unique gifts, is appropriate for the Christian institution as well as for the church. As a preamble to the “love chapter,” Paul writes, “And now I will show you the most excellent way” (1 Corinthians 12:31).

The late Abner McCall, Baylor president from 1961 to 1981, said it best in a 1985 article, “Why Baylor,” published in the Baylor Line:

“Our Baptist universities and hospitals should in all respects be as good as educational and health-care institutions as the secular state or private universities or hospitals. The Christian characterization and emphasis should always be an added extra dimension.

“Further, when we designate our institutions as 'Christian,' we profess that their services are rendered in a Christian manner–with respect, concern, compassion and love for those serving and those served. The Scriptures clearly and repeatedly proclaim that the sine qua non of Christian living and service is love for each other. …

“Do our university trustees, administrators, teachers and other employees have such respect and compassion for each other and for every student?

“If this be true, we can rightfully claim that our hospitals and universities are 'Christian' institutions.

“If it is not true, no matter what rules, policies or declarations of orthodoxy are adopted, our institutions are not 'Christian.' There is no substitute for Christian love in our institutions. As Paul wrote in his letter to the Corinthians, without love, we are nothing.”

Ella Wall Prichard, a Baylor graduate, is a former member of the university's board of regents