Focusing on Students Keeps the Christian University Future Oriented

The conclusion of Chapter Seven

I just completed drafting chapter seven (of eight!) of the book project. After reviewing why Christian University administrators and trustees need to truly know about current students in all their complexity (see this post), I close by reviewing the institutional benefits of doing so.

If Christian University mission statements focus on issues of holistic growth, leadership development, Christian community, and academic rigor then it follows that robust discussions about what those various components imply for students, trustees, and other stakeholders are essential. Navigating the diverse perceptions of those mission components provides the Fearless Christian University with a set of tools to meet the needs of current and future students while anchoring discussions in the ethos of the institution.

Additionally, an institution that can clearly center its Christian community ethos as key to managing diverse views can go a long way to rebut claims that the Christian University is out of touch, or denies academic freedom, or (in the case above) is homophobic. Relying on core institutional values can provide a helpful model for public institutions wrestling with freedom of expression across diverse views.

The Fearless Christian University that keeps the current and future students in mind is always re-imagining what it means to be a faithful institution for years into the future. Listening to current students keeps the institution freshly interpreting its mission and ethos in ways that maintain continuity with the past without being stuck there.

A Christian University that maintains these ongoing commitments does not need to worry about accusations from gatekeepers that somehow, they are “becoming liberal”. If changes in perspectives are pursued out of service to the students being served, that is not a loss of direction. It is a reaffirmation of what the institution has always been in the context of the struggles of current students.

To take such a position changes the definition of what Christian Higher Education is all about. Rather than worrying about Culture Wars and placating those stakeholders opposed to change, the Fearless Christian University can lean into its mission-central commitment to providing students with the building blocks necessary for them to thrive intellectually, spiritually, and socially as mature adults.

Pursuing these commitments will require a shift in understanding between the university and its sponsoring denomination (if it has one) and dominant feeder churches and schools. That new understanding will recognize the unique difference between a local church and a university. It changes not only how the church writ large sees the institution but establishes a new and productive relationship between the church and the Fearless Christian University.