Called to Teach: Excellence, Commitment, and Community in Christian Higher Education. By Christopher J. Richmann and J. Lenore Wright, eds. Eugene, OR: Pickwick, 2020. 236 pp. ISBN 978-1-5326-8318-3 (softcover) $29. (original) (raw)
Christian Faith and University Life: Stewards of the Academy
International Journal of Christianity & Education, 2018
In this collection of essays, editors Laine Scales and Jennifer Howell explore ''the question of how we might envision and inhabit a Christian understanding of the concept of stewardship within the academy'' (pp. 5, 11). In their introduction, Scales and Howell describe their experiences as graduate mentor and doctoral student at Baylor University, their participation in the Conyers Scholars Program (a group of graduate students and faculty committed to the exploration of stewardship), and the insights that have resulted from those dialogues. The editors specifically emphasize the difficult experience of doctoral students as they adjust to the competitive, isolating culture of university life. However, the essays in this collection will prove relevant to all faculty, graduate students, and undergraduates seeking to be Christians of incarnational faith in the academy. The editors identify concerns facing many universities and colleges today, namely, national and international rankings, the swiftly changing nature of online education, and the tendency toward competitive ownership of intellectual property. In response to these trends, and in the quest to preserve the integrity of the academy for future generations, Scales and Howell have gathered responses from fellow Conyers Scholars and other trusted voices. The editors have organized the sixteen essays around three key themes: Part I, the nature of vocation in the life of the scholar-teacher; Part II, specific practices of faithful pedagogy; and Part III, the ideal relationship between Christian institutions of higher education and the Church. In Part I, the contributors offer a renewed understanding of vocation as a key aspect of stewardship in the academy. Darin Davis argues that, ''Beyond integration, faith actually animates the sacred task of learning'' (p. 24). Davis illustrates the powerful parallel between vocation and the story of Lazarus. He explains that, ''From the isolation of death [Lazarus] is called by Christ's powerful voice to the community of the living. .. Each of us is so called. Vocation, vocatio, is about being raised from the dead, made alive to the reality that we do not merely exist, but we are 'called forth' to a divine purpose'' (p. 23). Stewards of the academy do not
Building Bridges Across Faith Lines: Responsible Christian Education in a Post-Christian Society
Christian Higher Education, 2019
The demographic composition of students and employees at many Christian colleges and universities in the United States does not reflect the growing religious diversity of the twenty-first century. While Christian higher education provides a valuable space for students to grow in faith and prepare for lives of service to others, many students leave college with little exposure to, or knowledge of, religious differences. Of particular concern is the infrequency of students developing relationships with religious "others," leaving them underprepared for constructively navigating a post-Christian society. This reality places a special responsibility on Christian educators to provide sound education and opportunities for healthy encounters with different religious voices, allowing persons from these traditions to speak in their own voices and be hospitably welcomed into Christian communities. Relying on research from the emerging field of Interfaith Studies and the co-authors' experiences of implementing interfaith initiatives at Bethel University, located in St. Paul, Minnesota, this article presents a rationale for creating interfaith engagement opportunities at Christian institutions. Specific attention is given to identifying core virtues and competencies that educators should seek to cultivate in their students and providing pedagogical strategies for helping students develop interfaith competency. Given that campus-wide support is needed if interfaith work is to be successful, we also provide strategies for working with administration, faculty, and staff across the breadth of campus life. Christian colleges and universities have long sought to prepare students to serve and minister effectively in the world beyond their campus borders. Educators at these institutions seek to simultaneously help students grow in spiritual maturity and cultivate the ability to understand and critically engage cultural differences. Many institutionsoften described as "bubbles" that limit student exposure to diverse persons and ideaslack the diversity needed to accomplish these goals. For decades, Christian colleges and universities have struggled to expand internal diversity on campus and provide students with opportunities, both on and off campus, to expand their horizons by interacting with people from different intellectual, cultural, and economic backgrounds. Bubbles are not entirely bad. At their best, Christian institutions function as safe and supportive environments in which students can explore the intersections between faith
Toward a Vision for Distinctively Christian Educational Leadership
2009
Educational leaders set the tone for their institutions. Their leadership embodies their vision for and valuing of the people they work with, as well as their actual understanding of the mission and vision of their organization. Research into the nature of leadership and followership demonstrates the importance of both leading from a vision and leading people, building a culture of respect and trust in order to establish a community committed to a shared task. Leaders in Christian schools are called by God to the office of leadership in order to be used by Him to continue His self-revelation and to equip His children to serve Him through their gifts. Often the “good theory” of leadership and followership is not embodied in “lived practice” in Christian schools, preventing the appropriate development of an authentic, vibrant community and a shared educational and discipling task. Leaders who are committed to serving God and serving the people they work with can have a transformative ...
Looking for god in the university: examining trends in Christian higher education
Higher Education, 2011
Amid the many recent treatments of the global growth of both Christianity and higher education, little to no attention has been given to distinctly Christian higher education. The survey reported in this essay uses an understanding of Christian education developed from analytical work by Robert Benne to examine the number and nature of colleges and universities that retain and nurture a distinct Christian identity. The results indicate that Christian higher education continues to expand throughout the world, challenging the assumed linear trend toward secularization. This paper focuses upon the results of our survey in countries beyond Canada and the United States where most of the recent growth is occurring. We found a total 579 institutions outside of these areas. When we analyzed the origins, denomination, size, funding, and areas of study of these institutions we found some unique patterns that shed light upon the group as a whole and how they relate to larger trends within higher education.
Four Diverse Educators Chronicle Challenges in a Christian- Centered Society
The Qualitative Report, 2015
Culturally responsive teaching requires that students be perceived holistically and part of student culture is religious beliefs. The purpose of this research is to offer insight into experiences and understandings of four preservice and inservice teachers', from diverse religious backgrounds, Muslim, Judaism, Sikhism, and Mormonism, experiences and understandings as they studied and worked in colleges of education and elementary classrooms that are rooted in Anglo Christian traditions. We relied on aspects of critical multiculturalism and social identity theory to guide the qualitative case study. In this case study, we analyzed reflexive journals and interviews of four participants using within-case and cross-case analysis. Within-case and cross-case analyses included four themes: separation of church and state, teaching for equity and awareness, respect for religious diversity, and personal beliefs. These findings suggest teacher educators incorporate religious and spiritual ...
2021
As community engagement approaches continue to expand in urban-identified public colleges and universities, so have innovative community-university partnerships that now span a wide range of public and private sector organizations. Partnerships between public universities and faith-based institutions, however, have sometimes lagged because public universities have yet to appreciate ways in which their public missions align with those of local faith-based organizations. This paper examines the partnership established between a large, urban-identified, public research university and one of its campus ministries to implement a servant leadership model and asset-based community development methodology designed to enable the university community to work collaboratively, recognize their own and others' gifts and talents, and improve their own broadly-defined diverse communities. This research shows that through a servant leadership framework, faith can inform and enact this public mission to create active and engaged citizens. The asset-based partnership model shows promise for realizing the intersecting missions of faith partners and public higher education institutions, which can be replicated in with other institutions.