Focusing on Strategic Alignment and Professional Development for Mission-driven Institutions
Thanks Matt. Sobering. In this First Things article, Benne admits that his 2001 optimism about CHE was wrong. But that does not invalidate some important points he made in his book Quality with Soul. He notes there that even for "orthodox" schools, "Integrating faith and learning poorly may be worse than not trying it at all. Doing it well requires both talent and thorough preparation" (p. 192). 1) Talent implies prudent hiring. I have found that even if the faculty hire does not arrive fully formed as an experienced and capable faith-learning integrator, their potential and (sincere) willingness to learn, and their readiness to undergo professional evaluation, are front-end nonnegotiables. 2) But the administration is then obligated, as Benne suggests, to provide robust and relevant faculty development, focused on the integrative task. To fail in this is an unfair bait-and-switch to faculty who've agreed to teach Christianly, something which many (or most) have not been equipped to do, even if they genuinely intend to. This has become central to my 1 Thessalonians 5:17 prayers and my own vocation as a Christian academic and training professional.
If you care about Christian colleges and universities (and you should!), this article by Robert Benne is worth your time. Benne is a leading historian of higher education and has written much on its nature and mission. I'm also grateful for his notice of Biola University's continued commitment to a comprehensively Christian mission and identity. https://lnkd.in/gD9usJT3
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9moPaul Kaak, thank you for your reflection. I agree, Christian Higher Ed needs to be solid in it’s biblical foundation and Orthodoxy while maintaining high standards in academics. They should go hand in hand. If anything, Christian Higher Ed should be leading the way in excellence in learning as a witness and testimony to our faith and belief in Jesus Christ.