WACO, Texas (ABP) — Christian higher education remains a justifiable mission for Baptists if it is transformational in character, distinctively Baptist in the way it operates, and genuinely accessible to the largely non-Anglo next generation of students, said Albert Reyes, president of the Baptist University of the Americas in San Antonio.
Reyes, who also is president of the Baptist General Convention of Texas, spoke to Baptist educators and administrators at a national conference on the future of Baptist higher education, held April 18-19 at Baylor University's Truett Theological Seminary.
Reyes repeatedly raised the question, “Is Christian higher education a justifiable mission of Baptist churches and Baptist bodies?” It depends, he replied.
“The answer is a resounding ‘yes' if by ‘Christian' we mean that the education we provide is Christ-characterized, Christ-centered and transformational,” he said.
“Transformation of the student, beyond spiritual transformation, would include independence as a learner, a commitment to lifelong learning, the integration of their values into their chosen profession, a wide array of frames of reference, and the ability to think critically.”
Christian higher education continues to be a proper mission for Baptists, Reyes continued, if higher education means undergraduate and graduate learning of the highest caliber is consistent with valued Baptist ideals, particularly the doctrine of soul competency. Academic freedom and must also be encouraged, he said. “This type of learning environment would empower our students to become mature and productive citizens.”
Another factor in deciding if Christian higher education remains a worthwhile mission for Baptists is the question of the intended audience-the next generation of Baptists, Reyes said. Demographic forecasts reveal both the Christian population worldwide and the general United States population continue to grow less Anglo, he noted.
He pointed to demographic indicators that by 2050 Christianity's center of gravity will have shifted south of the equator, and only one Christian in five worldwide will be Anglo. Global migration trends suggest the United States will claim one of the world's largest Latino populations by 2050, Reyes said.
“The current system of college entrance exams and requirements for entry into higher education makes college admission inaccessible to many non-Anglo citizens and most Hispanic students,” he noted. Nationally, the Hispanic high school drop-out rate was 34 percent in the 1990s, he added.
Quoting historian Bill Leonard of Wake Forest University, he said history and tradition show Baptists in the United States started small colleges to improve the social and economic status of their poor, rural constituency. “Will this kind of education be available and accessible to our sons and daughters 35 years from now?” Reyes asked.
“In the same way that missionaries must contextualize their approaches to incarnate the gospel message, educational institutions that contextualize their institutions will have greater opportunities to provide Christian higher education to the emerging generation of Baptists,” Reyes said. “This effort will require nothing less than the organizational and cultural transformation of the institution itself.”
Governing boards, staff and faculty will need to adapt to the changing demographic reality, he said. Baptist schools' adaptability in that regard will impact the nation's social fabric and economic development, as well as put Baptist churches in a position to respond to the missionary needs of a changing world, he added.