Texas Tidbits_30705

Posted: 3/4/05

Texas Tidbits

Baylor receives Templeton grant. Baylor University's Center for Religious Inquiry Across the Disciplines has received a $716,000 research grant from the John Templeton Foundation to conduct research on different aspects of religion's impact on society. The award from the John M. Templeton Foundation will make it possible for Baylor scholars to conduct a longitudinal survey of Americans' religious beliefs, practices and values. Baylor will partner with the Gallup Organization to conduct a comprehensive survey of religious beliefs that examines in much more detail than previous research how faith impacts such factors as civic engagement, volunteerism and consumption patterns.

Endowed scholarship established at DBU. An endowed scholarship fund at Dallas Baptist University, named in honor of Alva and Doris Parks of Montgomery, Ala., has been established to benefit qualifying students in the School of Leadership and Christian Education. Parks was executive vice president at DBU from 1990 to 1996.

Higher education conference set at Baylor. "The Future of Baptist Higher Education" is the theme of a national conference scheduled April 18-19 at Baylor University's Truett Theological Seminary. Seminars will explore questions such as to whom are Baptist colleges and universities accountable; who will be the students and faculty at Baptist schools in a post-denominational, multicultural and materialistic age; and how can Baptist higher education carry out its purpose in a context of conflict. Featured speakers include Kirby Godsey, president of Mercer University; William Hull, provost emeritus of Samford University; Denton Lotz, general secretary of the Baptist World Alliance; Martin Marty of the University of Chicago; and Albert Reyes, president of Baptist University of the Americas.

Hardin-Simmons trustees approve budget. Hardin-Simmons University trustees in their annual spring meeting approved a $33,607,900 budget, representing a 6.4 percent increase over the current budget of $31,580,000. Of the $2 million increase in revenues, $1.9 million is projected to come from student tuition and fees. Unfunded scholarships will be increased to $762,000. Trustees also approved a $35 per semester hour increase in tuition for the coming fiscal year beginning in June for newly enrolled students. New undergraduate students will be charged $455 per semester hour, and new graduate students' tuition will be $465 per semester hour.

UMHB singers bound for Europe. Two choral groups from the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor have been invited by the Baptist General Convention of Texas to participate in a Texas Partnerships missions project this summer. The One Voice ensemble and members of the UMHB Concert Choir will travel to Austria and Germany May 27 to June 7. They will perform concerts at churches and schools and help missionaries in various activities. They also have been invited to sing at an annual meeting of evangelical Christians in Steyr, Austria. For more information, contact David Guess at (254) 295-4228.

Ziglar to speak at UMHB. Motivational speaker and author Zig Ziglar will be guest speaker for the Heavin Forum on Christian Principles in Business Leadership at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor, March 31 at the W.W. Walton Chapel on campus. The topic of the 9:30 a.m. session will be "Maximizing Your Potential," and at 11 a.m. he will speak on "Building Winning Relationships."

Story of Odessa pastor basis for new opera. "Larkspur," an opera based on the true story of H.E. Gregory, pastor of Eastside Baptist Church in Odessa, will premiere April 1-2 at the Paramount Theater in Abilene. This opera–written by Hardin-Simmons University alumni Daniel Sigmon and Edward Crowell–is a production of Abilene Collegiate Opera of Hardin-Simmons University and Lakehouse Opera of Houston. Singers from Hardin-Simmons University's opera program will fill the chorus and additional secondary roles. For ticket information, contact the Hardin-Simmons University School of Music at (325) 670-1426.