Baylor in the News – Aug. 20-26, 2023

by Media & Public Relations

August 27, 2023

Contact: Baylor University Media & Public Relations, 254-710-1961
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WACO, Texas (Aug. 27, 2023) – Baylor University researchers and faculty experts were featured in national and local media stories about the ways in which Christians can think critically about their relationship with technology, the "failure to launch" among many college-aged adults and the need for real-world experiences and community support and a gaming study finding that online gaming groups provide young men with social support.

Aug. 21, 2023

Tradeline: Baylor University Opens Mark and Paula Hurd Welcome Center

Baylor University opened the Mark and Paula Hurd Welcome Center in August 2023 in Waco, Texas. Designed by Populous, the 120,000-sf complex is a vibrant campus hub for academic, cultural and social activities. Acting as the front door to the university, the iconic facility features a grand hall with four soaring columns and an array of interactive displays to engage prospective students and their families.

Aug. 22, 2023

Fortune Education: Looking to break into the realm of business and cybersecurity? These 5 MBA programs offer concentrations in cybersecurity

Fortune curated a selection of programs that offer combined training needed in the worlds of business leadership and technology. The list cites Baylor’s executive/full-time/online MBA with a cybersecurity concentration, which offers courses in Cyber Security Policy and Planning; Cyber Warfare, Threats, Vulnerabilities and Countermeasures; and Cyber Security Human Factors.

KWKT-TV (FOX/Waco): Baylor University holds prayer service to support Hawaii students impacted by Maui wildfire

VIDEO: Baylor University held a prayer service Tuesday evening to support Baylor students from Hawaii after the devastating wildfires on Maui. Nearly 80 Baylor students from Hawaii had to leave the islands two weeks ago to start school.

Aug. 23, 2023

PsyPost: Extraverts have lower cardiovascular reactivity to acute stress, according to new research

A Baylor University study of university students found that extraverted individuals tend to have lower cardiovascular reactivity to stress than introverts when they are exposed to a new stressor. However, this effect wasn’t seen when they faced the same stressor a second time. The study was authored by Adam O’Riordan, Danielle A. Young, Alexandra T. Tyra and Annie T. Ginty.

KWKT-TV (FOX/Waco): Republican Debate Expectations

VIDEO: One of the biggest questions during the first Republican debate stage will be candidates’ stance on the Trump indictments as well as immigration and the economy. While the former president skips the GOP debate, he is still the front runner, and it is likely candidates will face pressure to articulate how they would differ from him, says Baylor political science professor Pat Flavin, Ph.D.

Baptist Standard: Commentary: 3 suggestions for faithful use of digital technology

Josepha Mbouma, a Master of Divinity student with a concentration in sports ministry and chaplaincy at Baylor’s Truett Seminary, writes about ways in which Christians can think critically about their relationship with technology and its impact on their discipleship with Jesus.

Religion News Service: Calvinist activist warns that white nationalism is invading Reformed churches

George Yancey, Ph.D., professor of sociology at Baylor, is quoted in this article about Christian nationalism taking root in the Reformed wing of the evangelical church.

Aug. 24, 2023

Baptist News Global: BJC announces 2023 class of BJC Fellows

Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty has named a diverse group of 10 young professionals to its 2023 class of BJC Fellows, including Truett Seminary student Abigail Villagrana, who currently serves as a resident chaplain in one of Baylor’s residence halls and a volunteer chaplain for asylum seekers at the Naomi House operated by DaySpring Baptist Church in Waco.

Aug. 25, 2023

Baylor Connections: Mark and Paula Hurd Welcome Center

AUDIO: The Mark and Paula Hurd Welcome Center has arrived, a spectacular new front door to Baylor University. The beautiful, technology-rich facility houses a variety of features and amenities—among them, four columns which offer unique interactive experiences to visitors, an alumni center, ballroom, auditorium, spirit shop, coffee shop, meeting spaces and more. Learn more about the Hurd Welcome Center from Jason Cook, Vice President for Marketing and Communications; Toby Barnett, Interim Vice President for Advancement; and Ross VanDyke, Assistant Vice President for Enrollment Management, Marketing and Recruiting, in this Baylor Connections.

Aug. 26, 2023

KWTX-TV (CBS/Waco): ‘That’s a great thing we get to be a part of’: Baylor welcomes new bear cubs to campus

Baylor University is officially back in session, and this semester you’ll likely find two new faces on campus. Black bear cubs Judge Indy and Judge Belle just made their first public debut on Baylor’s campus on Saturday. KXXV-TV (ABC/Waco) also covered Indy and Belle’s welcome event.

The Dallas Morning News: Helping college students launch

Thomas S. Hibbs, Ph.D., The J. Newton Rayzor Sr. Professor of Philosophy at Baylor, and Mollie Moore, director of programming at Baylor in Washington, write that the "failure to launch" among many college-aged adults has to do with the need for real-world experiences and community support.

We’re in a loneliness epidemic, and it’s become a public health concern. However, for some men, though close friendships can be hard, online communities such as those formed through gaming offer an avenue of hope. In a recent study, researchers from Texas A&M, The University of North Carolina, and Baylor University found that online gaming groups provided the same social support for life events as well as a sense of community compared to in-real-life connections.

Touchstone Magazine: Instruments of Grace: Flannery O’Connor & the Pantocrator

Ralph C. Wood, Emeritus University Professor of Theology and Literature at Baylor, writes about Flannery O’Connor’s more than passing interest in the icon of Christ Pantocrator that looks down from the central dome of Orthodox churches, signifying that he and no other is the Ruler of all things. She made it the basis of her celebrated self-portrait, albeit in complex fashion. And in “Parker’s Back,” she put it to powerful fictional use. This is not only her last finished story before her death in 1964 but one of her funniest as well.

ABOUT BAYLOR MEDIA & PUBLIC RELATIONS

Baylor's Office of Media and Public Relations (M&PR) supports the University's Illuminate strategic plan as a top Christian research university by focusing on faculty research and expert opinions, innovative teaching, major awards and recognition, and community involvement. Through its media training workshops, the Baylor M&PR team develops faculty experts to effectively communicate the impact of their research or speak as subject-matter experts into national trends and conversations with media outlets, through Hot Topics and on the Baylor Connections podcast. Our faculty expert directory is available on the M&PR website.

ABOUT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY

Baylor University is a private Christian University and a nationally ranked Research 1 institution. The University provides a vibrant campus community for more than 20,000 students by blending interdisciplinary research with an international reputation for educational excellence and a faculty commitment to teaching and scholarship. Chartered in 1845 by the Republic of Texas through the efforts of Baptist pioneers, Baylor is the oldest continually operating University in Texas. Located in Waco, Baylor welcomes students from all 50 states and more than 100 countries to study a broad range of degrees among its 12 nationally recognized academic divisions.