Around the State: New B.H. Carroll scholarship honors Gene Wilkes

David and Tracy Chisum have established the Dr. Gene Wilkes Endowed Scholarship at East Texas Baptist University in honor of Gene Wilkes, former president of B.H. Carroll Theological Seminary and the first dean of B.H. Carroll Theological Seminary at ETBU. The scholarship will provide financial assistance to ministry students enrolled at B.H. Carroll Theological Seminary. While serving as a pastor, Wilkes’ supported the young seminary by offering his church as a teaching location. Later, he served as a resident fellow in New Testament and as a member of the seminary’s Board of Governors. In 2013, Wilkes became the second president of B.H. Carroll Theological Seminary. With the approval of both entities’ governing boards, Wilkes guided B.H. Carroll’s transition to ETBU, culminating in the institution’s merger with the university in 2024. He served as the first dean of B.H. Carroll Theological Seminary at ETBU during the 2025-2026 academic year before retiring in 2026. David Chisum has long supported the mission of B.H. Carroll, previously serving on its Board of Governors and currently serving on ETBU’s Board of Trustees. David Ritsema, dean of B.H. Carroll Theological Seminary at ETBU, expressed gratitude for the Chisums’ generosity. “David and Tracy Chisum’s extraordinary generosity is a beautiful testament to their love for Dr. Gene Wilkes and the profound influence of his life and ministry. In honoring a man who has devoted his life to serving others, they are themselves embodying the servant leadership he so faithfully taught,” he said.

Wayland Baptist University received a $396,817 federal grant to continue Project PIONEER, a campus prevention and education program teaching students about healthy relationships, consent, and where to seek help. The three-year continuation award from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office on Violence Against Women will expand training across campus and fund better lighting and additional security cameras near residence halls and along walkways. Wayland launched Project PIONEER with its first grant from the federal office. “Over the past few years, we’ve been teaching students about healthy relationships, consent, and where to go for help, and this new funding allows us to keep that work going and reach more of our campus,” said Melisa Calderon, project director for Project PIONEER. In a 2025 campus survey, 96 percent of respondents said they understood a person impaired by alcohol, drugs, or who is unconscious cannot give consent. Calderon said more students have sought help and made reports, which she sees as a sign students know where to turn. The lighting and camera upgrades address one of the top safety concerns raised by Wayland’s Student Senate. Students, faculty, and staff will have access to online training, and athletic teams will have designated student leaders to communicate to teammates what they learn. Additionally, students will have opportunities to intern with Crisis Center of the Plains. Project PIONEER will continue to offer resources in English and Spanish.

Howard Payne University invites area residents and visitors to attend the annual Community Thanksgiving Feast on campus. The lunch will be held from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 26, at HPU’s Mabee University Center. The annual event, led and coordinated by North Lake Community Church in May, is free, but donations are accepted. North Lake’s Pastor Ron Keener noted, “Last year’s attendance was the largest ever—with more than 2,500 meals served—and we had 143 volunteers from the community help us with this event.” The traditional Thanksgiving meal will consist of turkey, dressing, and all the trimmings. Meal deliveries will be available for those in Brownwood and Early who are unable to join friends and neighbors at HPU. A maximum of 10 meals may be delivered per household. Reservations for deliveries can be made by texting Steve, the delivery coordinator, at 325-200-3445 beginning Nov. 9 and continuing through noon on Nov. 23. Text reservations should include the recipient’s full name, complete address, and number of meals requested. Dessert will not be included with delivery meals. Individuals interested in volunteering can assist with serving food and beverages, boxing meals to go, delivering meals to homes, and cleaning at the Mabee Center after the event. Volunteers should arrive at the Mabee Center at 9:30 a.m. For more information about volunteering, call or text Pastor Keener at 325-642-9748. To help support the Thanksgiving meal, please make checks payable to the “Community Thanksgiving Feast,” and send them to Katrina Lynn, Howard Payne University, 1000 Fisk Street, Suite 210, Brownwood, Texas, 76801. Donations also will be accepted at the Mabee Center on Thanksgiving Day.

Dallas Baptist University became the place where Ross O’Brien brought his passions for business and missions together as the Lord opened doors for him. For the past 25 years, he has demonstrated Christ-centered leadership and a commitment to service. O’Brien has made an impact on the Don and Linda Carter School of Business, entrepreneurship at DBU, Business as Mission, and in teaching generations of Patriots. O’Brien’s heart for missions began early in his life in Indonesia, where he was reared in a missionary family. He pursued a bachelor’s degree at Baylor University, where he met former DBU President and current Chancellor Gary Cook, who was serving at Baylor at the time. O’Brien completed his Master of Business Administration at DBU with the goal of gaining access to unreached countries as a missionary. He served a year and a half in Indonesia, then returned to the U.S., where he worked as an account executive for AT&T. Later, O’Brien founded his own internet services firm, hoping to place people overseas to do business as mission. He ran the firm for seven years before returning to DBU in 2002 as a professor in the Don and Linda Carter School of Business. O’Brien launched the Center for Business as Mission in 2013 and the Entrepreneurship Program in 2014 under Cook’s presidency. The DBU Center for Entrepreneurship and Business as Mission grew out of those initiatives with participation from other DBU business faculty. “God led him here 25 years ago, when nothing existed of an entrepreneurial nature, at least not academically, because God had plans for Ross and DBU,” Cook said. Reflecting on reaching 25 years at DBU, O’Brien noted how grateful he is for the unexpected ways God has worked to open doors throughout his career. Each opportunity and relationship built over the years has been shaped by God’s plan, he said. Since returning to DBU 25 years ago, O’Brien has continuously encouraged students in entrepreneurial pursuits. One of his students even created and launched DBU Coffeehouse under his mentorship. It has since become a well-loved place for students to fellowship and study together. O’Brien’s servant leadership and heart for business as mission are continually seen in his life outside his role at DBU through speaking engagements, study abroad trips to the Middle East, and involvement with Lion’s Den DFW, Prison Entrepreneurship Program, and global business opportunities. O’Brien and his wife, Lisa, also own O’Brien’s Bookshop in Midlothian.

Members of Howard Payne University’s Department of Social Work recently took part in Mission Waco’s poverty simulation, marking the university’s 15th year participating. During the experience, participants had the opportunity to see the world from a different perspective and gain insight into the daily challenges faced by people experiencing poverty. The group spent 43 hours facing the challenges and uncertainty of poverty, with nearly constant rain making the experience more difficult. According to its website, Mission Waco is a nonprofit organization built around three goals: “Empower the poor and marginalized through Christian-based, holistic, and relationship-centered programs. Equip and mobilize the middle-class to become more compassionately involved among the poor. Engage the systematic issues of social injustice which oppresses the poor and marginalized.” The HPU group was led by Shantel Oplotnik, assistant professor of social work and director of the Social Work Program. She was joined by students Ivan Flores, Faye Qaisar, and Yari Villagomez. Throughout the weekend, the students learned about widespread poverty, experienced a glimpse of what impoverished life looks like, and worshipped and prayed with the Mission Waco team. “Part of this simulation is the unknown,” Oplotnik said. “When someone is experiencing poverty or homelessness, they often don’t know where they will sleep, where their next meal will come from, or what the next day will look like. That uncertainty is exactly what we want students to experience.” Mission Waco offers students an opportunity to better understand poverty and connect what they learn in class to real-life experiences. “I teach about poverty in the classroom, but experiencing even a small part of it for 43 hours is something you never forget,” Oplotnik said. “I hope my students remember how they felt during those moments and carry that empathy and compassion with them as future social workers.”