Dallas Baptist University recognized Beautiful Feet Ministries in Dallas at its Community Partnership Luncheon. Beautiful Feet has served more than 135,000 meals to the homeless, and its facility is open 359 days a year. Within the past year, 3,800 volunteers have served with the ministry. Beautiful Feet holds daily worship services in the inner-city and serves two meals a day, seven days a week. Showers and laundry services are offered to the homeless, and clothing is given to the needy every Sunday. Beautiful Feet also offers no-cost dental and medical clinics each week. DBU students have served with Beautiful Feet since 2005. Mike Myers, a graduate of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, is pastor, director and co-founder of Beautiful Feet.

Baylor University President Linda Livingstone will chair the Big 12 board of directors for the next two years. She succeeds Texas Tech President Lawrence Schovanec, whose two-year term expired June 30.

Buckner International and Andrews University signed a memorandum of understanding to provide university students with experiential learning opportunities through Buckner volunteer and humanitarian aid projects. Beginning in September, Students will participate in community service and learn about ministry and service in the context of Buckner’s mission-driven outreach to vulnerable children, families and seniors. Opportunities may include advertising employment opportunities with Buckner, creating credit and non-credit opportunities for students, mission trips and involvement with Buckner Shoes for Orphan Souls. The collaboration also will offer professional development and graduate study and degree options for Buckner staff.  “This initiative allows both organizations to excel at what we do best,” said Albert Reyes, CEO and president of Buckner International, who earned his doctorate in leadership from Andrews University in 2009. “Buckner will support Andrews University with opportunities for its students to follow the example of Jesus through service to others, while Andrews will offer Buckner employees the chance to grow their leadership skills through an exceptional program. Our Buckner leaders are definitely ready for this. Andrews is uniquely poised to help Buckner develop its talent and build leadership capacity for the future.”

Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary President David Dockery named W. Madison Grace II as provost and vice president for academic administration and as dean of the School of Theology. Grace has served as interim dean since January. Dockery also named former missionary Dean Sieberhagen, associate professor of Islamic studies, as interim dean of the Roy J. Fish School of Evangelism and Missions, and he named Carl J. Bradford, associate professor of evangelism, as interim associate dean of the Fish School of Evangelism and Missions.

East Texas Baptist University was named to Phi Theta Kappa’s 2023 Transfer Honor Roll. Phi Theta Kappa, an honor society for two-year colleges, recognizes the importance of institutional commitment and investment of resources to support transfer students. The Transfer Honor Roll was based on analysis from the National Student Clearinghouse, and on data submitted through the institution’s profile on PTK Connect, Phi Theta Kappa’s online tool designed to help students find their best-fit colleges and career pathways. The profile includes information about the university’s admissions practices, cost of attendance, campus life, recruitment practices, bachelor’s degree completion and student reviews. This year, Phi Theta Kappa named only 208 colleges and universities to its 2023 Transfer Honor Roll from across the United States. ETBU was selected as being among the most transfer-friendly colleges in the nation. This year’s PTK Transfer Honor Roll awarding for ETBU is the institution’s 6th consecutive recognition since 2018.  “God has a unique path for each of our students, and our role is to help students follow that path,” said Jeremy Johnston, ETBU vice president for enrollment “The Transfer Honor Roll affirms the work the transfer admissions counselors are doing to help students enroll at ETBU. We have been intentional in reaching transfer students and it’s an honor to be recognized by Phi Theta Kappa.”

During a Foster Care Appreciation Month event for Dallas-area families at First Baptist Church in McKinney, Buckner Foster Care and Adoption recognized Troy and Bekah Webster as Foster Parents of the Year. Five other families were honored with awards inspired by Buckner organizational values: Faith, Megan and Jason Homan; Integrity, Matt and Kristen Allcorn; Respect, Stephanie and Buck Baskin; Service, Katie and Kyle Madison; and Teamwork, Brian and Julie Price.

Students gathered in Pilgrim Chapel at Dallas Baptist University recently to be commissioned for missions service. More than 260 students will serve with Go Now Missions this summer. During this year, 441 students will serve through Go Now Missions, including summer or semester missionaries, spring break or Christmas break teams, special impact missionaries and campus missionary interns.

Hardin-Simmons University will offer Civilian Response to Active Shooter Events training beginning at 9 a.m. on July 6 in the HSU Houston-Lantrip Center. The training is offered in cooperation with the HSU Police Department and Sgt. Marc A. Couch of the Texas Department of Public Safety. To register, click here

Dallas Baptist University students spent a month of travel and study in Germany and France, engaging in academic learning, ministry and cultural immersion. The course offered to students was “Living and Leading in a Secular World: Biblical Images and Modern Applications,” led by David Cook, dean of global studies, and Brent Thomason, dean of the Graduate School of Ministry. In Siegburg, Germany, classes were held at Evangelische Freikirche, an evangelical church with a personal connection to DBU through the Thomason family. The students served alongside church members by aiding in organizational tasks throughout the week and making breakfast on Sunday mornings. Students participated in guided walking tours around important cities, engaged with on-site lectures and spent intentional time exploring Cologne, Bonn, Nuremburg, Munich, Brussels and Paris. In Paris, students helped Southern Baptist International Mission Board missionaries by handing out water bottles to visitors at the Departmental Estate of Sceaux Park.

Stark College and Seminary named Ellis Orozco as the public theologian in residence, effective July 1. Orozco, a coach to pastors and struggling churches with Karooso Ministries, is the former pastor of First Baptist Church in Richardson. He is a graduate of Texas A&M University and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He earned a Doctor of Ministry degree in preaching and biblical exegesis from Baylor University’s Truett Theological Seminary. Orozco served as pastor about 30 years in three churches, including Iglesia Bautista Gollihar in Corpus Christi and Calvary Baptist Church in McAllen, before becoming senior pastor at First Baptist Church in Richardson.

Fellowship Southwest will host a Compassion and Justice Conference Sept. 8-9  at the Life in Deep Ellum faith community in Dallas. Keynote speakers are Eugene Cho, president and CEO of Bread for the World; Kaitlin Curtice, author and poet-storyteller from the Potawatomi nation; Alexia Salvatierra, academic dean of the Centro Latino at Fuller Theological Seminary; and Jemar Tisby, historian and author of The Color of Compromise: The Truth About the American Church’s Complicity in Racism. Zach Lambert, pastor of Restore Austin, is the worship preacher. Workshops will focus on hunger, indigenous topics, immigration and racial justice. Cost is $99. Discounted registration is available for college and seminary students. To register, click here.

U.S. News & World Report awarded four Buckner senior living communities with multiple recognitions on this year’s list of Best Senior Living Communities. Baptist Retirement Community in San Angelo, Buckner Villas in Austin, Buckner Parkway Place in Houston and Ventana by Buckner in Dallas received awards as part of the 2023-24 Best Senior Living Ratings. Baptist Retirement Community won awards for Best Continuing Care Retirement Community, Best Independent Living and Best Memory Care. Buckner Villas won two awards in Best Continuing Care Retirement Community and Best Independent Living as well. Ventana by Buckner and Parkway Place both won Best Independent Living. Nearly 4,000 senior living communities received an evaluation this year in the U.S. and the categories included independent living, assisted living, memory care and continuing care retirement. “We are honored to be some of Texas’ best senior living communities and among the best in the country,” said Charlie Wilson, president of Buckner Retirement Services. “Our quality of service is reflective of the passion each of us have for serving seniors and inspiring happiness in their lives.”

Royal Ambassadors Leadership Training Camp drew teenaged young men who will serve on staff at various camps around the state this summer and adult RA and Challengers leaders to Latham Springs Camp and Retreat Center in June. Participants gained experience in campcraft and skills for outdoor living in a structured wilderness camp setting. John LaNoue, a pioneer in Texas Baptist Men disaster relief and former state RA director, challenged participants: “Follow God. Pray every day for God’s will to be done that day.”

Wayland Baptist University’s Ben and Bertha Mieth School of Nursing has a 100 percent pass rate on the next generation of the National Council Licensure Examination. All seven students in the first cohort to take the updated exam passed the test. The newly structured exam requires nursing students to have a deeper understanding and application of the knowledge acquired throughout their nursing education than the old licensure exam, which has been phased out. All seven students—Julian Applewhite, Virginia Vela, Nikole Larsson, Adela Moyado, Kim Wassenich, Lauren Scrudato and Whitley Casas—are employed now as direct care nurses in the greater San Antonio area.

In August, the Baylor University Louise Herrington School of Nursing will start a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner track within its Doctor of Nursing Practice graduate degree program. The Louise Herrington School of Nursing currently has seven tracks in its Doctor of Nursing Practice degree program. Its advanced nurse practitioner tracks use the same core curriculum, but each track requires specialized courses. The new specialized track will prepare registered nurses to become psychiatric mental health nurse practitioners to address the mental and behavioral needs of individuals and help solve the critical shortage of mental health care providers.

The National Council on Teacher Quality recognized the undergraduate teacher preparation program at Dallas Baptist University. Its rigorous preparation of future teachers in how to teach reading earned an “A” grade in the council’s new report. The program is among just 23 percent of teacher preparation programs nationwide to earn an “A” for meeting standards set by literacy experts for coverage of the most effective methods of reading instruction—often called the “science of reading.” To earn an “A,” programs needed to meet targets for coverage of the five core components of scientifically based reading instruction—phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension—and not teach more than three instructional methods unsupported by the research on effective reading instruction. DeAnna Jenkins is dean of the College of Education at DBU.

For the second year in a row, Baylor University has been named among the nation’s Top 10 Most Trusted Universities, according to global research firm Morning Consult. The Most Trusted Universities report measures public trust in the top 135 doctoral research universities featured in U.S. News & World Report’s 2022 Best National University rankings and explores how trust varies among diverse groups and different types of institutions. Baylor ranked No. 9 and is the only Texas school among the Top 10 Most Trusted Universities. “Trust is hard to earn and perhaps even harder to keep. So, for Baylor University to be recognized again as one of the Top 10 Most Trusted Universities in the country is a continuing testament to our dedicated faculty and staff who live and support Baylor’s Christian mission every day, as well as the entire Baylor Family who serve as our brand ambassadors across the country,” President Linda A. Livingstone said. The survey was conducted April 3-9 among a representative sample of 11,010 U.S. adults, with an unweighted margin of error of plus or minus 1 percent.

Houston Christian University—formerly Houston Baptist University—named Lesli Fridge as dean of its College of Education and Behavioral Science. Fridge joined the HCU faculty in 2015 after a 30-year career as a schoolteacher, counselor, assistant principal, principal and a district human resources administrator in public school districts. The past two academic years, she was associate dean for academic operations in the College of Education and Behavioral Science, and she served as interim dean since January. President Robert Sloan described Fridge as “a consummate professional who is experienced in the world of public and private education.” She earned degrees in secondary education and counseling from Nicholls State University and received her Ed.D. degree in executive education leadership from the University of Houston.

A $1.5 million gift from the family of Louise Herrington Ornelas to Baylor University will establish the first endowed chair position in the history of the Louise Herrington School of Nursing. The Louise Herrington Endowed Chair in Mental Health will support research and teaching within the nursing school, with a special focus on the areas of mental and behavioral health research, including the need for more mental health professionals. “We are grateful to Ms. Lou’s family for this generous gift to support mental health research and instruction at Baylor’s Louise Herrington School of Nursing,” Baylor President Linda A. Livingstone said. “Their gift honors a wonderful family legacy of support and transformational investment in the mission of our School of Nursing, and it is humbling to see how they have honored that legacy through the naming of this chair.”

Anniversary

125th for First Baptist Church of Olney. Chad A. Edgington is pastor.

Hardin-Simmons University’s “World Famous” Cowboy Band marked its centennial with a weekend reunion in Abilene during the spring semester. Current band members connected with former band members and bonded over cherished traditions passed down from class to class. Past and present band members gave more than $100,000 for the band’s foundation to fund scholarships and travel. The HSU Cowboy Band has traveled the world, having entertained audiences in the Azores, Belgium, Bermuda, Canada, Germany, Holland, Iceland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Monaco, Newfoundland, Spain, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, along with countless domestic trips. The Cowboy Band has performed for six presidential inaugural parades and 11 Texas gubernatorial parades and events.

Baylor University announced a $5 million gift from John and Helen Carona of Dallas, providing support for the renovation and construction of the Honors Residential College, as well as other major capital priorities through the Give Light Capital Fund. The Coronas are members of First Baptist Church in Dallas. Baylor will name the Carona Family Commons at the Honors Residential College and the Carona Family Premium Entry in the Paul and Alejandra Foster Pavilion in recognition of their gifts. The Honors Residential College project involves the renovation and expansion of two of the university’s oldest residential facilities—Alexander Hall and Memorial Hall. Currently separate structures, the two buildings will be connected by the Carona Family Commons. Another project element includes refurbishing and consolidating offices for the Honors College’s faculty and professional staff in the adjacent Draper Academic Building. The Carona Family Premium Entry at Foster Pavilion will serve as one of four entry points for Baylor fans to the new home for Baylor basketball. The Pavilion, a 223,547-square-foot facility, will hold more than 7,000 fans, with improved sight lines and access to concessions via an integrated concourse.

The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor named Tucker Glaske as vice president for advancement and Rebecca O’Banion as vice president for university relations. Glaske will lead the university’s fundraising, records and gift management departments as the reorganized advancement division. He has served as a fundraiser for UMHB since June 2012. He was promoted to senior director of development in June 2020 and associate vice president for fundraising in April 2021. Glaske earned his bachelor’s degree in business management and his Master of Business Administration degree from UMHB. O’Banion will lead the alumni engagement, marketing and communications departments. She has served nearly 17 years in leadership at UMHB, most recently as vice president for advancement. Previously, she served six years as vice president for development, one year as associate vice president for development and eight years as director of alumni relations. O’Banion earned her doctoral degree in higher education administration from UMHB, having previously received a master’s degree in human services-executive leadership from Liberty University and a bachelor’s degree in behavioral science from UMHB.

Rebekah Crowe, professor of history in the Wayland Baptist University’s School of Behavioral and Social Sciences, was honored by Alpha Chi National College Honor Society during the society’s national convention. Crowe, who serves as adviser for Wayland’s Alpha Chi chapter, was one of six advisers recognized with Distinguished Service Awards during the convention in Albuquerque, N.M. She was selected for her service to Region 1. Also attending the national convention were Wayland students Sarah Manchee and Elizabeth Wirth. Manchee presented part of her honors thesis at the convention, while Wirth served as student delegate for Wayland’s chapter.

About 200 senior adults participated in Hilltop University at East Texas Baptist University, an annual conference featuring worship, Bible teaching, fellowship and entertainment. Mike Lawson, pastor of First Baptist Church in Sherman, was the keynote speaker. The Purple Hulls, a bluegrass gospel group from Kilgore featuring twins Katy Lou and Penny Lea Clark, and Grammy Award-winning artist Sandi Patty provided music. Breakout session leaders included John Hatch, pastor of Forest Hill Baptist Church in Longview; Laurie Smith, dean of the ETBU School of Natural and Social Sciences; and Bil Barkley, minister of education and senior adults at First Baptist Church in Mount Pleasant. Don Parks, associate pastor and minister of music at Ebenezer Baptist Church in El Dorado, Ark., directed the conference choir.

The Dallas Baptist University women’s golf team won their second NCAA Division II National Championship. The Patriots defeated No. 3 Nova Southeastern in the final round of Medal Match play at the Fox Run Golf Club in Eureka, Mo. The team held off the four-time national champions, 3-2, to finish the 2022-23 season as the top team in the nation. “I just love walking in this journey with these girls and am just so happy for everyone involved,” said Head Coach Kenny Trapp. “It truly takes a village and players that buy in, and this group exemplifies everything on and off the course that it takes to be a champion.”

Mike Davis of Pampa, who remembered the late JoAnn T. Jones as his teacher, school counselor and friend, established an endowed scholarship in her honor benefitting students attending the Alaska campuses of Wayland Baptist University in Anchorage and Fairbanks. Jones once lived in Fairbanks. The JoAnn T. Jones Alaska Endowed Scholarship is the 13th endowed scholarship Davis has established at Wayland.

LaDonna Gatlin is the featured musical artist when Hardin-Simmons University hosts its Hymn Sing at 2 p.m. on June 4 in Logsdon Chapel. Gatlin, a West Texas native, grew up onstage with her siblings, the Gatlin Brothers. In the 1970s, she performed with the Blackwood Singers and with Dallas Holm and Praise.

Houston Christian University—in partnership with Verizon and the National Association for Community College Entrepreneurship—will offer a free project-based immersive science, technology, engineering and math program, Verizon Innovative Learning STEM Achievers, for middle school students starting June 5. The program aims to empower middle school students in under-resourced communities to explore science, technology, engineering and math; learn problem-solving skills; and gain exposure to career opportunities in technology fields. Participating students will receive mentorship, access to next-generation technology and hands-on training connected to real-world challenges. The initiative provides engaging programming where students can learn design thinking, 3D printing, augmented reality and social entrepreneurship. No prior knowledge or experience is required. The program begins with a four-week in-person session this summer June 5-30, and an in-person full-day workshop at HCU in the fall and in the spring.

East Texas Baptist University will host the NCAA Division III Softball National Championship June 1-7 at Jason Bell Park at Taylor Field. The tournament will feature eight teams from across the country vying for the championship title. “ETBU is honored to be chosen to host the NCAA Division III Softball National Championship,” said Ryan Erwin, vice president for student engagement and athletics. “We are excited to showcase our beautiful campus, state-of-the-art facilities, and the historic city of Marshall to universities and fan bases from across the country. In addition, we are thankful for our community partners from the East Texas region who have helped us bring the event to life.”

Richard Fountain, professor of piano at Wayland Baptist University since 2008, was named dean of Wayland’s School of Creative Arts, and Yahui Zhang, professor of communication and media studies since 2008, was named associate dean. Fountain, who has served as associate dean, succeeds Ann Stutes as the top administrator for the School of Creative Arts.

Anniversary

10 years for Thomas Estes as pastor of Cottonwood Baptist Church in Cross Plains.

100 years for Wylie Baptist Church in Abilene. Mike Harkrider is pastor.

Baylor University’s board of regents approved a $902.4 million university operating budget for 2023-24, an increase of $39.2 million (4.5 percent) from last year. The board authorized $24.5 million in total funding for three renovation projects involving residence halls, the Honors College and Baylor Law School. Regents also approved a master’s degree in physician assistant studies and a Bachelor of Science/Master of Science degree program in biology of global health. The board elected William “Bill” E. Mearse of Houston as chair, effective June 1. He succeeds Mark V. Rountree of Dallas as chair. Melissa Purdy Mines of Austin was elected vice chair. The board elected three at-large regents—David R. Brooks of McKinney and Martha Delehanty of Jupiter, Fla., along with Carey P. Hendrickson of Arlington, a Baptist General Convention of Texas-appointed regent. Steve Wells, pastor of South Main Baptist Church in Houston, begins a three-year term on the board as an alumni-elected regent June 1.

Wayland Baptist University presented its Citizenship Awards to graduating seniors Araceli Torres of Odessa and Devin Davis from Opelousas, La., during a recent recognition chapel service. Torres was a molecular biology major with a minor in chemistry who volunteered at the local food bank. Davis was a history major who has been part of the track, cross country and eSports teams. He also was involved in Student Alumni Council and Student Union Board.

Dallas Baptist University awarded an honorary doctorate to Kristyn Getty, a Grammy-nominated Christian recording artist and songwriter from Northern Ireland. She received the honorary Doctor of Humanities degree at a May 12 commencement ceremony at DBU. Getty and her husband Keith are co-founders of the Sing Conference, held annually in Nashville, Tenn., and she is creator of the award-winning Getty Kids Hymnal.

The Baptist History & Heritage Society named Stephen M. Stookey, dean of Wayland Baptist University’s School of Christian Studies, as the 2023 recipient of the W.O. Carver Distinguished Service Award. The award pays tribute to individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the cause of Baptist history. Stookey came to Wayland in 2016 as a professor of religion and has taught graduate and undergraduate courses in classroom and online settings. He taught previously at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, B.H. Carroll Theological Institute and Dallas Baptist University. Stookey has been involved with the Baptist History & Heritage Society since the early 1990s. In 2017, he received the society’s Carolyn Blevins Meritorious Service Award.

John Davis, professor of management and coordinator for the program in management, was elected president of the faculty at Hardin-Simmons University.

Ordination

Chance McMillan, Garrett Mathis, Keith Mayberry, David Murphree, Danny Salazar, Chris Styne and Chris Williams as deacons at First Baptist Church in Plainview. Jacob West is pastor.

Dallas Baptist University presented the DBU-Oak Cliff Good Samaritan Award to Scott Coleman and Leigh Gettman-Allen for their Christian leadership and service to the Oak Cliff community in Dallas. Coleman is associate director of Dallas Baptist Association and has served churches in the association 25 years. He and his wife Krisi, who is director of the intercessory prayer ministry at DBU, are members of Cliff Temple Baptist Church. Gettman-Allen was named Miss Oak Cliff in 1996 and 1998, serving as an ambassador for racial reconciliation. Her program “Racial Unity: It’s Up to Us” was shared in nearly every school in the Dallas Independent School District. She is co-author of Modern Images of America: Oak Cliff and serves as an adjunct professor of communications at DBU. She and her husband Billy attend Tyler Street Church in Oak Cliff.

Ten students from the Fred Hale School of Business at East Texas Baptist University will receive Certified Management Accountant scholarships from the Institute of Management Accountants. ETBU students receiving the scholarship are Cayden Adamson, Kara Scott, Slade Austin, Lillie Ziegler, Scott Bright, Joshua Whitmore, Blake Mullen, Haley Brown, Jacey Hicks and Skylar Wilabay. “We are so excited and appreciative that the IMA offers this wonderful opportunity to our students,” said Anthony Sawyer, ETBU associate professor of economics. “The scholarship includes the program entrance fee, registration fees for both of the required exams, study materials and three years of IMA membership.”

The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor signed a letter of intent with the Johanniter Academy of Germany for a three-year international student exchange program. Members of UMHB traveled to Germany in March to begin this relationship with an official ceremony attended by the U.S. Consulate from Leipzig and administrators from the Academy. The student exchange program is made possible by a grant from the German Apprenticeship Training Exchange Foundation. About six UMHB students from nursing, teacher education, and social work will be included in the first-year cohort through this exchange program. They will join six German students to gain professional training for two weeks at the Johanniter Academy in Leipzig, Germany, at the end of the fall 2023 semester. While in Germany, the selected UMHB students will experience German campus life, attend courses and shadow their partners in field placements. In the spring of 2024, the German students will visit UMHB for two weeks, spending time on campus, in class and shadowing the UMHB students in the cohort.

Wayland Baptist University posthumously promoted Bill Hardage, who served the university in a variety of administrative roles during a 40-year career, to vice chancellor emeritus. Wayland’s board of trustees voted to grant the title to Hardage. President Bobby Hall, who served with Hardage many years, praised his “remarkable passion for and loyalty to Wayland.” Hardage, who competed in track and field during his student years, was one of the first inductees into Wayland’s Athletic Hall of Honor. After he earned his undergraduate degree from Wayland in 1965, Hardage coached high school football and track in Lubbock and served as an assistant track coach and physical education instructor at Texas Tech University while earning a Master of Education degree there. He went on to earn a Doctor of Education degree from East Texas State University, now Texas A&M-Commerce. Returning to Wayland, he was track coach, chairman of the physical education department and director of special services.

Buckner Rio Grande Children’s Home received a $20,000 grant from the Maximus Foundation, a nonprofit that focuses on supporting community development, health care and youth development programs. The grant will support Buckner’s programs to serve vulnerable children and families in the Rio Grande Valley through foster care and adoption services. Buckner Rio Grande Children’s Home enables foster families to live in Buckner-owned cottages, providing a consistent home environment for children who are in the state’s custody. Criselda Cuevas is the director of administration and operations for Buckner in the Rio Grande Valley.

Anniversary

100th for Highland Baptist Church in Waco. John Durham is lead pastor. About 4,000 people attended the centennial celebration, where the church raised $381,000 to help three church starts in Texas.

Retirement

David E. Garland from Baylor University’s Truett Theological Seminary after 26 years on the faculty as professor of Christian Scriptures. During his time at Baylor, he served two stints as interim president of the university—in 2008 to 2010 and 2016 to 2017—as well as two years as interim provost and nearly a decade as dean of Truett Seminary. Previously, he served 21 years on the faculty of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.

Ethiopian Evangelical Baptist Church in Garland hosted a Children’s Ministry Experience Conference that drew more than two dozen participants from Ethiopian churches in nine states and from Edmonton, Canada. Topics included the importance of networking with other churches, working with parents and volunteers, the organization and structure of children’s ministry, and the spiritual formation of children. Speakers from Ethiopian Evangelical Baptist Church were Pastor Bedilu Yirga, Assistant Pastor Dawit Adege and Sewasew Egigou, director of children’s ministry.

East Texas Baptist University awarded an honorary doctorate to Joy Fenner during spring commencement. Fenner, a 1956 graduate of East Texas Baptist College, served two decades as executive director-treasurer of Woman’s Missionary Union of Texas. In 2007-08, she served as president of the Baptist General Convention of Texas—the first woman elected to that office. In 2009, she was elected president of Texas WMU. She and her husband Charlie served as missionaries to Japan with the Southern Baptist Convention Foreign Mission Board from 1967 to 1980. ETBU also presented an honorary doctorate to Robert Morris, senior pastor of Gateway Church, a multi-campus church based in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Since it began in 2000, the church has grown to more than 100,000 active attendees. His television program airs in over 190 countries, and his radio program, “Worship and the Word with Pastor Robert,” airs in more than 2,800 radio markets across the United States. Annie Grace Walker, who graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in education, received the President’s Award for the Spring 2023 graduating class. She maintained a 4.0 GPA while serving in residence life, student foundation, as a Titus leader, a Tiger Camp leader, a member of Leadership Fellows, and for three years in the Baptist Student Ministries prayer ministry. Doug Lockard, professor of music and the chair of the department of music, was recognized with the 2023 Professor with Distinction Award for his excellence in service, scholarship, teaching and integration of faith and learning. Lockard joined ETBU in 2001, and will serve as the newly appointed dean of the School of Communication and Performing Arts in 2023-24.

When it comes to business strategy, four Wayland Baptist University School of Business students are the best in the world among college students. Diego Cortez, Luis Fernandes, Rene Arturo Nunez Feliz and Brody Williams earned a No. 1 ranking in The Business Strategy Game, competing against 3,840 teams from 245 colleges and universities in 44 countries. Jason Geesey, associate professor of marketing, served as faculty adviser for the competition. The Business Strategy Game is a simulation where the students work as an executive team that makes finance, accounting, operations and marketing decisions for their company. Teams compete as executives for a fictional global shoe company that requires them to manufacture and market the company’s brand in Asian, Latin American, European and North American markets. “The Wayland team combined for an impressive nine Top 100 rankings and a total of six No. 1 rankings in a simulated 10 years of decision making for their fictional business, BRZ Shoes, Inc.,” said Charles Starnes, professor of economics. “They attained the highest possible score for the game.”

The U.S. Department of Education awarded Houston Christian University a five-year, $2.8 million grant under the Title V Developing Hispanic-Serving Institutions funding program. The grant will fund Project LEAP, which stands for learn, engage, achieve and persist. The program’s goals are: implement best practices in remediation for freshmen-level English and mathematics courses; improve academic outcomes through expanded academic support programs; create a writing center utilized by HCU students to enhance their grammar and composition skills; strengthen access to educational opportunities, particularly in English and mathematics, by upgrading wireless infrastructure in academic buildings; and improve fiscal stability through heightened retention and persistence rates while investing in faculty development. “We are proud of our designation as an Hispanic-Serving Institution and are confident that these significant Title V funds will accelerate and enhance the learning experience of our students,” President Robert Sloansaid.

At spring commencement, the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor presented Jordan Thomas of Belton the President’s Award for meritorious service to the university. She was involved in Welcome Week, Stunt Night, Psalm 139, Easter pageant, Wellness Cru, chapel worship and was a chapel speaker. Anthony Avila of Troy received the Loyalty Cup, awarded to the student most representative of the university’s ideals, traditions and spirit. He was actively involved in campus life, intramurals, Fellowship of Christian Athletes and student teaching, and he played on the Crusader football team.

Baylor University received a $1.5 million gift from Charlie and Cindy Fuller of Woodway and their family to establish an endowed chair for social justice in the Diana R. Garland School of Social Work. The chair will focus on social justice for marginalized populations. “The Fuller Chair provides the Garland School with an opportunity to illuminate biblical justice through social work research, seeking to understand and support the needs of the most vulnerable in our society,” said Jon Singletary, dean and holder of the Diana R. Garland Endowed Chair of Child and Family Studies.

Dallas Baptist University will offer five bachelor’s degrees and up to six master’s degrees entirely online at a reduced price in the fall 2023 semester. Online Bachelor of Applied Science degrees in communication, history, sociology, management and marketing will be offered at $495 per credit hour. Online Master of Arts degrees in family ministry, management and professional development, along with a Master of Education degree in higher education and a Master of Science degree in learning technologies will be offered at $550 per credit hour. An online Master of Music Education degree also will be available, pending final approval by the regional accrediting agency. “At DBU, we are passionate about quality online learning, and we are passionate about equipping and raising up Christ-centered servant leaders,” said Judy Yi, dean of online education. “We are so excited that more people can experience what DBU uniquely has to offer at this affordable price.”

Retirement

Ed Seay after 33 years as senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Magnolia and more than five decades in vocational Christian ministry.

East Texas Baptist University celebrated the opening of its newly constructed Great Commission Center on April 28. The Great Commission Center is designed to equip students to live out their vocational calling as Christians and to serve as a gathering place for the campus community. In addition to housing the university’s Great Commission Center program of missions and discipleship, the new building is home to the Fred Hale School of Business and the career development office. The 23,000-square-feet facility features large and medium-sized classrooms, conference meeting rooms and dedicated student study spaces. The Great Hall—a multipurpose event space located on the third floor of the building—provides business and leadership programming, fellowship, performing arts, worship activities and community life enrichment. “We rejoice in the culmination of God’s plans for this facility,” ETBU President Blair Blackburn said. “He engraved on our hearts this vision some five years ago. After much prayer and planning with the board of trustees, we pursued this strategic vision to construct a new center for academic learning, spiritual discipleship, ministry and missions service, business leadership and career development. The Great Commission Center is the fulfillment of that vision.”

Texas Baptist Men is seeking to help benevolence ministries and crisis pregnancy centers around the state provide diapers. Across Texas, 1 mother in 3 is struggling to purchase diapers for her children. TBM wants to provide 50,000 diapers sizes 0 to 4 to help children and their mothers as a Mother’s Day gift to families in need. Drop off diapers between 9 a.m. and noon on May 6 at the TBM headquarters, 5351 Catron Dr., Dallas 75227. Donate financially online to the Mother’s Day Diaper Drive here, or buy diapers through TBM’s Amazon wish list here and have them shipped directly to the TBM building.

The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor presented the Gary and Diane Heavin Servant Leadership Award to students Joshua Bailey, son of Reginald and Versika Bailey of Mansfield; Catherine Burke, daughter of William and Keri Burke of Sunnyvale; and Bailey Plummer, daughter of Greg and Tracy Plummer of League City. The award recognizes students’ time and energy devoted to ministry and community service. It includes a $1,000 cash award for each student, a portion of which can be donated to an organization of their choice. Bailey is a junior majoring in small business and entrepreneurship who attends Vintage Church in Temple. He has been involved with the First Year Collective, the Baptist Student Ministry leadership team, the Student Government Association executive cabinet and the McLane College of Business advisory board. He is giving a portion of his cash award to the Chiketa Cares Foundation, a nonprofit organization in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Burke is a senior business management major and Christian studies minor who attends Temple Bible Church, where she has served as a college small-group leader and college ministry intern. At UMHB, Burke has been involved in First Year Collective, Tri-Dub, the Easter pageant, Welcome Week, Young Life and served as the director for missions emphasis week. Burke plans to donate a portion of her cash award to Feed My Sheep, a nonprofit organization serving the homeless and needy people of Bell County. Plummer is a senior health science major who attends Vista Community Church, where she volunteers in the children’s ministry, the college ministry, a small group, service projects and as a Discipleship Now leader. At UMHB, she has been involved in Welcome Week, the Easter pageant, campus revival, First Year Collective, intramural soccer and sand volleyball. Plummer also volunteers at the McLane Children’s Hospital occupational therapy/physical therapy outpatient gym. She is a member of the Gamma Beta Phi Honor Society and the Alpha Chi Honor Society. Plummer will donate a portion of her cash award to Vista Community Church.

Wayland Baptist University recognized Ben and Bertha Mieth for their $2.5 million gift and longtime support by naming the university’s nursing school in San Antonio in their honor. The gift, announced during an April 27 board of trustees meeting in Plainview, includes $25,000 set aside to establish the Irene Wilson George Endowed Scholarship in Nursing. The scholarship honors Bertha Mieth’s mother, who was a nurse. It will be awarded annually to a student selected by the faculty of the Ben and Bertha Mieth School of Nursing. “In every aspect of their lives, Ben and Bertha Mieth are servants of the Lord Jesus Christ, and we are humbled by their love for Wayland Baptist University,” President Bobby Hall said. “Even before Ben became a Wayland trustee, he and Bertha supported our mission center, provided scholarships and a professorship, and quietly met the needs of many individual students and many other WBU initiatives.”

The Houston Business Journal named the Morris Family Center for Law & Liberty on the Houston Christian University campus as the winner of its 2023 Landmark Award. The annual awards program recognizes the top commercial real estate projects in the Houston area completed in the previous year that help sculpt the look, feel and image of the city. Projects also were evaluated on excellence in land planning, design, construction, economics, marketing and management. The Morris Family Center for Law & Liberty, comprised of a main building modeled after Independence Hall, was chosen over five other finalists in the education category.

More than 3,600 students from schools throughout the Big Country region participated in activities at the 41st annual Western Heritage Day on the Hardin-Simmons University campus, April 27. Schoolchildren took turns scrubbing clothes on a washboard, learning trick roping, tasting food from a chuckwagon, watching a farrier shoe a horse and seeing sheep sheared. They also enjoyed performances by the HSU Cowboy Band, the Six White Horses and Ballet Folklorico. “It’s special because the teachers who bring their classes and our student volunteers can say, ‘I was here when I was your age,’” said Cassie Mattern, director of university events.

Dallas Baptist University and Houston Christian University—formerly Houston Baptist University—each earned gold status as a Military Friendly School in the category of private schools offering a doctorate. The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor earned silver status in the same category. Howard Payne University earned silver status in the category of private schools not offering a doctorate. Institutions that appear on the list of Military Friendly Schools are evaluated in areas such as student retention, graduation, job placement and loan repayment for all students and student veterans, using public data sources and surveys.

Retirement

Frank Teat as senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Holland after 35 years in vocational ministry and another 10 years as a coach and teacher. He plans to continue to serve on the board of Highland Lakes Camp, lead camps, write Bible study curriculum, preach and volunteer.

Hardin-Simmons University expects about 3,000 students from schools throughout the Big Country region for its annual Western Heritage Day from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. April 27. The educational event includes booths, exhibits and life demonstrations depicting life on the Texas frontier in the 1880s.

Woman’s Missionary Union of Texas elected Jackie Evans Faughn of First Baptist Church in McKinney to a one-year term as president during the annual meeting and missions celebration, April 21-22, at Hunters Glen Baptist Church in Plano. Other officers elected were Brenda Bourgeois of Southcrest Baptist Church in Lubbock as vice president and Lynn Montgomery of Mount Olivet Baptist Fellowship in Tyler as recording secretary. The weekend event included special-interest workshops, missions discipleship training and visits with missionaries. Project: Start, a ministry of the intercultural ministry of Texas Baptists, collected donations to support refugee families in the Dallas area, a Mary Hill Davis Offering-supported ministry. The Project: Start Refugee Resource Center focuses on helping refugees and seeks to connect them with life, career, personal and spiritual assistance.

Mollie Dittmar of Buffalo was honored April 21 during East Texas Baptist University’s 76th annual Senior Girl Call-Out. Selected by a faculty and staff vote, one senior female student is “called out” each year for her exemplary Christian character, social consciousness, personal poise, academic achievement and spiritual vision. Dittmar is a secondary math education major and a member of the ETBU women’s basketball team who recently was named the 2022-23 ASC Sportsmanship Athlete of the Year. She has served on ETBU’s Fellowship of Christian Athletes leadership team, as well as a Tiger Camp leader each fall. At the Marshall campus of Mobberly Baptist Church, she teaches a preschool Connect Group and serves on the college ministry leadership team. She also will serve as the church’s children’s ministry apprentice this summer.

The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor will offer a Bachelor of Arts degree in religion and public life, beginning in the fall 2023 semester. The religion and public life major is designed for students who are passionate about justice and wish to serve beyond the local-church setting. This degree explores the complicated intersection between religion and American culture from historical, theological and sociological perspectives. The Bachelor of Arts degree in religion and public life is one of several new undergraduate degrees UMHB will offer in the fall. A Bachelor of Science degree in social data analytics piloted last fall officially will be added to the new programs offerings in the fall semester. The other new programs are Bachelor of Science degrees in bioinformatics, cybersecurity, neuroscience, educational advocacy and information systems.

Baylor University named Mikeal Parsons, who has taught in the religion department since 1986, as university distinguished professor. The title is bestowed on faculty for outstanding achievement in scholarship and creative activity, national and international recognition in their discipline and mentorship of colleagues and students. In nearly four decades on the Baylor faculty, Parsons has written or edited more than 30 books and 60 peer-reviewed articles and essays, and he has supervised about 30 doctoral dissertations.

Houston Christian University—formerly Houston Baptist University—named Lynn H. Cohick as distinguished professor of New Testament and director of Houston Theological Seminary. Cohick, who begins work June 1, will direct the new Doctor of Ministry degree program. “We are thrilled to have Lynn Cohick join the theology faculty of Houston Christian University. Her presence as a scholar, leader, teacher and mentor in the School of Christian Thought will not only add to the visibility of the university and the seminary, but have a significant impact on churches near and far, beginning in Houston,“ President Robert Sloan said. Cohick previously was provost and dean of academic affairs at Northern Seminary, where she developed the school’s Doctor of Ministry program and led the Center for Women in Leadership. She also has served at Wheaton College and Denver Seminary. She earned her undergraduate degree from Messiah College and her Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.