Pastor Michael Evans of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Mansfield, immediate past president of the Baptist General Convention of Texas, was sworn in as his city’s mayor on Jan. 11. He is the first African American to serve Mansfield in that leadership role. Judge Clifford Davis, who litigated school desegregation in Mansfield in 1956, administered the oath of office.
As SAT/ACT testing availability remains challenging for high school students due to COVID-19, Baylor University has announced the extension of its test-optional admissions policy for the fall 2022 and 2023 application cycles for incoming freshman students. Last spring, Baylor announced its fall 2021 admissions cycle would be test-optional to serve the complex and unique needs of high school seniors and their families during the pandemic. About half of the university’s fall 2021 incoming freshman class has applied without standardized test scores but with a continued strong academic profile. The final admissions deadline for the fall 2021 class at Baylor is Feb. 1. “To assist prospective students and their families, Baylor will confidently continue the test-optional policy for both incoming fall 2022 and fall 2023 students and reevaluate for future years,” said Mary Herridge, senior director of undergraduate admissions at Baylor. “This decision puts Baylor in the best position to provide an equitable application process and enroll academically successful students who also can contribute to our campus community in significant ways.”
The Marsh Center for Chaplain Studies at B.H. Carroll Theological Institute will offer a free webinar from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Jan. 28 covering lessons learned through the use of innovative methods and technologies to deliver spiritual care during the COVID-19 pandemic. Presenters in the webinar include career chaplains in business, hospitals, the military, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, correctional systems and parachurch ministries. To register for the webinar, click here.
The Howard Payne University Women’s Club will host its annual Yellow Rose Scholarship Luncheon on April 15 at 11:30 a.m. in HPU’s Mabee University Center. The luncheon will host a panel featuring three generations of HPU alumni in the same family. Sarah Ramos, executive assistant to the associate vice president of enrollment management, will be joined by her great aunt, Minerva Delgado Lopez of Houston, and mother, Anna Delgado Ramos of Pflugerville. Teri Davis Andrews of Houston will receive the Yellow Rose Award at the luncheon. The Yellow Rose Scholarship recipient will be named later. The deadline for table sponsorship is Feb. 12. For more information, call (325) 649-8006 or click here.
Retirement
Butch Foster as minister of education and activities at First Baptist Church in Goldthwaite, effective Dec. 31, after more than 39 years on staff there. Through the years, he served in multiple roles, including youth minister, children’s minister, senior adult minister and associate pastor. For 23 years, he was on the administrative team for the Youth Congress at Heart of Texas Camp in Brownwood. He also launched the Mills County Ministerial Association’s “Christmas Wish” ministry more than 30 years ago, a program that provides food and gifts to families in need.
____________________________________________________________________________________
Around the State
Update us with your ordinations, ministry anniversaries and retirements
We seek to connect God’s story and God’s people around the world. To learn more about God’s story, click here.
Send comments and feedback to Eric Black, our editor. For comments to be published, please specify “letter to the editor.” Maximum length for publication is 300 words.