Houston Christian University announced the sudden passing of University President Robert B. Sloan Jr. July 3, 2026. Sloan died of a massive stroke. He was 77. Sloan served as president of HCU for two decades, beginning his tenure on Sept. 1, 2006.
From 1995 to 2005, Sloan served as the 12th president of Baylor University, leaving his position as founding dean of Baylor’s George W. Truett Theological Seminary. Sloan also previously served as chancellor of Baylor University in 2005 and 2006.
Sloan was born in Coleman in 1949 and graduated from Cooper High School in Abilene in 1967. He attended Baylor University from 1967 to 1970, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree cum laude in 1970.
After serving on the faculty of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth from 1980 to 1983, he joined Baylor’s Department of Religion in 1983. He became the inaugural George W. Truett Chair in Evangelism in 1990 and was appointed dean of Truett Seminary in 1993.
In February 1995, Baylor’s Board of Regents selected Sloan to succeed Herbert H. Reynolds as president of the university. In August 2006, he was named the third president of Houston Baptist University and was inaugurated on the HBU campus that November.
Houston Christian University Board Chairman Ramiro Peña commented on Sloan’s sudden passing in a statement issued by HCU:
“With the heaviest heart, I am saddened to announce the sudden death of HCU President Robert B. Sloan, Jr. … For two decades, Dr. Sloan led HCU through her most monumental and glorious years, impacting countless lives of students, faculty, alumni, staff, trustees, and friends.
“Under the leadership of God’s hand during his presidency, the university experienced unprecedented growth in student population and degree programs, campus construction and expansion, national visibility, and incomparable spiritual awakening. The fingerprints of Dr. Sloan’s leadership will continue to be upon the success of HCU for generations to come, and the impact of his presidency will yield outcomes both measurable and eternal.”
Truett Dean Todd Still commented on Facebook: “This morning, I was deeply saddened to learn of the sudden passing of Dr. Robert Bryan Sloan. Like many others, I was enriched by his life and feel diminished by death. Unlike many of my contemporaries, I did not have Dr. Sloan as a professor at Southwestern or at Baylor/Truett.
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“He graciously took an interest in me and my work, however, as a budding NT/Pauline scholar. I fondly recall any number of conversations we had over the 40 or so years I knew him. As it happens, it was he who first introduced me to the scholarship of Richard Hays and N.T. Wright. … Although I was unable to stay in consistent contact with him during his years as president of HBU/HCU, I continued to enjoy our interactions, irregular though they were.”
Sloan is survived by his wife, Sue Collier of Cisco, seven children, three daughters-in-law, and four sons-in-law: Charissa and Derrick; Bryan and Amy; Eraina and Bryan; Michael and Ali; Alathea and Justin; Sophie and Mac; and Paul and Meghan. They also have twenty-six grandchildren.
NOTE: This post will be updated as more information becomes available.
Editor’s Note: The post was updated to include more information on Sloan’s passing, change the date of death, and include comments from Todd Still.
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