An occasional compilation of events from around the religious world. To suggest items for inclusion, email assistant editor Jeff Brumley at [email protected].
FBCH leader named to board of orphan alliance
Jerry Haag, president and CEO of Florida Baptist Children’s Homes and One More Child, has been named to the board of the Christian Alliance for Orphans, or CAFO.
Haag served as vice president for university development at Baylor University before joining FBCH and One More Child.

Jerry Haag
In its news release, the alliance praised Haag for demonstrating the value of servant leadership on behalf of children in need.
CAFO works with hundreds of organization, including more than 650 churches, on initiatives to equip Christians to answer the biblical calling to care for vulnerable children, according to its website.
In announcing Haag’s appointment to its board, the alliance said more than 400,000 children live in the U.S. foster care system, a statistic driven upward in part by the ongoing opioid epidemic.
“The need is vast and heartbreaking,” Tami Heim, CAFO board chair, said in the announcement. “But with leaders like Dr. Haag serving alongside self-giving people around the globe, there’s every reason for hope we can make a profound difference together for hurting children across American and all over the world.”
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Accolades for research into news in Appalachia
A book by Samford University journalism professor Clay Carey has received a top honor from the Association of Education and Mass Communication.

Clay Carey
The university announced Aug. 13 that Carey’s The News Untold has received the AEJMC’s Tankard Book Award, which recognizes the best research-based book on journalism each year. Carey’s 2017 work examines how reporters and editors in some of the poorest communities in Appalachia cover issues of poverty and how their audiences interpret that coverage. The impact of those news choices has on the understanding of economic needs and social responsibility also is addressed.
In a Samford press release, Carey said it was amazing to be included with other great authors for the award – and that it was exciting to be the winner.
“I’m very grateful to AEJMC for the recognition, and to the many people who supported me and provided guidance and advice as I wrote the book, including my colleagues in the Journalism and Mass Communication Department at Samford,” he said.
The association represents college journalism and mass communication educators and administrators.
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Gardner-Webb program one of best in U.S.
A Gardner-Webb University online master’s degree program has been named among the top in the nation.
The university’s online offering in curriculum and instruction, with a concentration leading to academically gifted licensure, was ranked 18th nationally by TheBestSchools.org.

The organization reviewed all accredited online master’s in gifted and talented education programs in the United States, and selected the top 30, according to a university news release. Categories included curriculum, faculty scholarship, academic, peer and employer reputation, financial aid and strength of online instruction methodology.
Garner-Webb’s cohort-based program was recognized for enabling students to practice the skills they learn “to motivate gifted learners,” according to the statement.
“We are especially proud of the concentration in Academically and Intellectually Gifted Education that is addressing a critical need in North Carolina and has the potential to bring real value to our region,” Gardner-Webb Provost and Executive Vice President Benjamin Leslie said through the release.
TheBestSchools.org provides resources to guide learners from education into careers.