Around the State: Shoes for Orphan Souls turns 25

Dallas-based nonprofit, Buckner International, celebrated the 25th anniversary of its largest humanitarian aid project, Buckner Shoes for Orphan Souls, Sept. 14. The celebration event featured speakers, live music, family activities, a reception, a presentation of a proclamation by Gov. Greg Abbott and an immersive shoeless experience. The event drew around 140 people including Buckner leadership, representatives from local churches, businesses, volunteers and members of the community at large. Speakers included Albert Reyes, president and CEO of Buckner International; Shawn Spurrier, director of Buckner Shoes for Orphan Souls; Ron Harris, former KCBI general manager; and Natasha Potts, who received a pair of boots from a volunteer on a Buckner mission trip when she was living in a Russian orphanage at age 12. Beginning in 1999, Buckner Shoes for Orphan Souls held its first community shoe drives in Dallas. Since then, Buckner has hosted more than 20,000 shoe drives across the country. Over the last 25 years, 5 million shoes have been collected by individuals, organizations and churches for Buckner Shoes for Orphan Souls. All shoes and socks are sorted at the Buckner Humanitarian Aid Center in Dallas and then shipped out to vulnerable children domestically and in 86 countries around the globe.

On Sept. 16, Dallas Baptist University hosted a special ceremony to celebrate Rolando Rodriguez for 35 years of faithful service to the kingdom of God. Organized by Gus Reyes and Julio Guarneri, the ceremony honored Rodriguez in the presence of his close friends and family. Rodriguez currently serves as senior director of Texas Baptists en Español. He completed two graduate degrees at DBU: a Master of Arts in Christian Education in 2005 and a Master of Arts in Global Leadership in 2017. He and his wife, Angie, have three children.

Baylor University’s Truett Theological Seminary, in its 30th anniversary year, has recorded a record-breaking enrollment for the fall semester. Truett Seminary enrolled 409 students this term, a 4 percent increase over last year’s fall enrollment of 392. This marks the third consecutive year of enrollment growth for Truett. The previous enrollment record for the seminary was 406 students during the fall of 2008. The incoming class is 41 percent female and 40 percent Asian, Black and Latino or Latina. Additionally, 22 percent of Truett’s student body is now enrolled at one of the seminary’s extension campuses located in Houston or San Antonio or in an online degree program. Non-Baptiststudents are enrolling at Truett Seminary in increasing numbers, with more than half the entering class of 100 from a denomination other than Baptist. Truett’s current student body is comprised of 54 percent Baptists, 15 percent Methodists and 13 percent nondenominational, with the other 18 percent of students coming from 23 other Christian communions.

Howard Payne University began implementation of its 2024-2029 Quality Enhancement Plan with the start of the fall 2024 semester. Titled “Game Plan for Academic Achievement – GPA+: Academic Coaching for Jacket Success,” the plan is designed to help students build the skills they need to succeed in the classroom through HPU’s newly certified academic coaches. It was developed as part of the institution’s reaccreditation process with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. The goal of the Quality Enhancement Plan is to help the most academically at-risk students be equipped to succeed by supporting GPA improvements, term-to-term student retention and persistence to graduation rates. HPU expects adopting an “academic coaching” model to increase the effectiveness of the university’s Center for Student Success. To offer academic coaching to students, three HPU staff members earned a certification as academic coaches from the Association of Coaching and Tutoring Professionals. The academic coaches are Wendy McNeeley, assistant vice president for student success; Jennifer McNiece, academic coach; and Mary Agboola, coordinator of graduate studies and special projects in academic affairs.

Students from East Texas Baptist University’s Teague School of Nursing recently were honored with a Polly Cargill Nursing Scholarship, provided by Jerry and Jack Cargill in partnership with ETBU. A total of 31 local nursing students were recognized during a Sept. 11 ceremony, with ETBU accounting for 22 of the recipients. The Cargill brothers created the Polly Cargill Nursing Scholarship in memory of their mother, Polly Cargill, to honor the exceptional nursing care she received at Good Shepherd Marshall Hospital. The scholarship aims to empower students in East Texas to become skilled, compassionate nurses while honoring Polly Cargill’s legacy. The ETBU nursing students honored were Emma Bevel, Hannah Blaha, Baylie Colston, Hayley Davis, Paige Grissom, Bryanne Izaguirre, Sarah Jones, Jessica Kuhlman, Julia Lamb, Abigail Lucas, Joseph Maique, Melissa Martinez-Chavez, Kaitlyn Moore, Abryana Odom, Avery Reid, Angela Sanchez, Kennedy Tucker, Christian Walbridge, Elizabeth Watkins, Hannah Wrinkle, Elizabeth Wynne and Ashlyn Wynne.

In celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor’s 9th annual Latino Fest is scheduled for Sept. 19. The Fiesta en la Calle event is hosted by UMHB’s Kingdom Diversity Office and Hispanic Student Association. This year’s event will celebrate the university’s recent designation as a Hispanic-Serving Institution—a milestone indicating the institution has reached 25 percent Hispanic enrollment. The designation provides programs and initiatives to students annually, bringing together more than 700 participants from across the United States and Puerto Rico for workshops, networking opportunities and professional development. The Fiesta en la Calle will include dancing, food vendors, games, face painting and photo opportunities. The event will also feature special performances by Guzman Ballet Folklorico and Mariachi Arriago de America. “This event celebrates the diversity of UMHB’s student body,’ said Karla Gonzalez, UMHB Spanish professor and HSA sponsor. “It honors the Hispanic culture and history so our students can proudly embrace their heritage.”

Houston Christian University has received approval from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges for a new online master’s degree program in Data Science. The new degree program, slated to launch in Spring 2025, is designed to provide students with a comprehensive understanding of data analysis, machine learning, statistical modeling and more. Through a combination of rigorous coursework and hands-on experience, students will develop the expertise to extract valuable insights from complex datasets and drive informed decision-making in various industries. The curriculum of the program covers a wide range of topics, including data visualization and storytelling, predictive analytics and modeling, big data technologies and platforms, ethical and legal considerations in data science and advanced programming languages. Students will have access to state-of-the-art facilities and resources, including dedicated laboratories equipped with cutting-edge software and tools. They can engage with industry professionals through internships, guest lectures and networking events.

Bobby McCloud has been named Wayland Baptist University’s executive director of international program operations.He will focus primarily on further developing a program to bring international graduate students to Wayland campuses. The program already has brought students to Wayland’s San Antonio campus, and there are plans to implement the program at the university’s Phoenix, Ariz., campus, as well as another extension campus. Wayland President Donna Hedgepath said the program has the potential to help Wayland tremendously increase the university’s student population across campuses. A 2019 Wayland graduate with a Master of Business Administration degree, McCloud earned a Doctor of Education degree from University of Wyoming in 2023. Bringing years of operational and management experience, along with a financial services background, McCloud joined Wayland in 2015. He has served as director of development at Wayland’s Lubbock campus.

One of the biggest issues churches across Texas face currently is finding affordable property and liability insurance. As major carriers are exiting the Texas market, churches either have experienced policy nonrenewal or steep premium and deductible increases. The Baptist General Convention of Texas is exploring ways to help address the insurance crisis churches are facing. One solution Texas Baptists are investigating is forming a captive insurance pool for BGCT partner churches. Because of the unique nature of churches and nonprofits, often commercial insurance policies are not able to provide the kinds of coverage churches need at an affordable rate. The practice of forming captive insurance pools has proven beneficial for schools and other nonprofits. Texas Baptists still are in the exploratory phase of considering this option, and program approval would be subject to both Executive Board recommendation and an annual meeting vote. But if a captive insurance pool is deemed viable and approved as noted, startup would not be before the second quarter of 2025, at the earliest. Any church interested in participating in a survey should contact the local associational director of missions. Texas Baptists would like at least 25 percent of partnering churches to provide data for consideration. Churches that already are insured with a carrier but might be interested in this potential option are encouraged to participate in the survey. The more churches who can provide survey answers, the better for data building and insight.

Retirement:

Janelle O’Connell, dean of the College of Health Professions and professor of physical therapy, will retire from Hardin-Simmons University in May 2025 after 30 years. O’Connell joined Hardin-Simmons University as a founding member of the physical therapy department and was named program director in 1999.

Anniversaries:

Wayland Baptist University in San Antonio will celebrate 40 years of providing Christian education in San Antonio on Sept. 18.

Pioneer Drive Baptist Church in Abilene celebrates its 70th anniversary Sept. 22. John Whitten is senior pastor.

CORRECTION: The date Buckner International celebrated the 25th anniversary of Buckner Shoes for Orphan Souls was corrected from Sept. 21 to Sept. 14.