Christian education must be accessible to next generation, Reyes insists_50205

Posted: 4/29/05

Christian education must be accessible
to next generation, Reyes insists

By Ken Camp

Managing Editor

WACO–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 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, offering a conditional affirmation at key points.

“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 consistent with valued Baptist ideals, particularly the doctrine of soul competency.

“Higher education in the Baptist tradition would imply a Baptist identity closely tied to Baptist distinctives and where academic freedom, discovery, exploration and inquiry are encouraged, affirmed and commended,” 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.

Citing demographic trends and analysis by Phillip Jenkins, religion and history professor at Penn State University, Reyes pointed to indicators that by 2050, Christianity's center of gravity will have shifted to south of the equator and only one Christian in five worldwide will be Anglo. Jenkins and other analysts also point to global migration trends that show the United States will claim one of the world's largest Latino populations by 2050.

“Since Baptist University of the Americas, its eight sister Baptist universities and the Baptist General Convention of Texas are located deep in the southwestern part of the United States and are neighbors with Mexico, reflection on Texas is appropriate in this part of the discussion,” Reyes added.

State Demographer Steve Murdock predicts by 2050, Texas' population will increase from 20 million to 50 million, and 29 million new Texans will be non-Anglo, with Hispanics in the clear majority.

Murdock also forecasts non-Anglo enrollment in Texas public universities will grow from 38 percent in 2000 to 68 percent in 2040.

“I seriously doubt private Christian universities across Texas will be able to insulate themselves from an academic context where more than two of every three students are not Anglo,” Reyes commented, asking how Baptists propose to make Christian higher education available to the next generation of students.

“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, while the Hispanic drop-out rate in Texas at that same time passed the 50 percent mark, 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.

“Access to higher education has been a foundational aspect of forming and shaping generations of Baptists through Christian higher education,” Reyes said. “Will this kind of education be available and accessible to our sons and daughters 35 years from now?”

Baptist and secular educational institutions alike must develop intervention strategies for high school drop-outs, and they must adapt curriculum to the different worldviews of incoming students, he said.

“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.

“Christian higher education that is characterized by the Christian worldview; operational in the Baptist tradition where academic freedom, discovery, inquiry and learning are encouraged and affirmed in a context of Christian faith; and available to the next generation of Baptists over the next 35 years deserves the attention and the best stewardship of our Baptist bodies,” Reyes concluded.