Truett Student, Alumna Awarded Fellowships at Auschwitz for the Study of Professional Ethics   

Contact: Shelby Cefaratti-Bertin, Baylor University Media & Public Relations, 254-327-8012
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WACO, Texas (April 25, 2023) – Josepha Mbouma, a first-year student at Baylor University’s  George W. Truett Theological Seminary and Baylor and Truett alumna Kingsley East Gibbs has been awarded Fellowships at Auschwitz for the Study of Professional Ethics (FASPE).  

The FASPE is awarded to students pursuing professional degrees in business, journalism, law, medicine, theology and technology and to early-career professionals. Through the program, fellows spend two weeks in Germany and Poland, visiting Auschwitz and other key historical sites and participating in seminars led by experts in their respective fields of study. Award recipients are able to examine the roles their counterparts played in Germany and elsewhere from 1933-1945. They then draw on historical, cultural, philosophical, literary and discipline-specific sources to explore the ethical issues faced in their respective fields today.  

As a lifelong learner and dedicated athlete from Douala, Cameroon, Mbouma earned a B.A. in cinema and television production and played basketball at Elon University. She then moved to Bournemouth, England, where she continued her athletic career and earned an M.A. in media communications from Bournemouth University. Finding the Faith and Sports Institute at Truett Seminary, Mbouma moved to Waco, Texas, to pursue an M.Div. with a concentration in sports ministry and chaplaincy so that she might connect ministry and sports more skillfully. 

“FASPE uniquely unites people of various backgrounds, who likely would not otherwise be connected,” Mbouma said. “This aspect of the program is powerful because, in an age where conversations and connections can be relegated to 170 Twitter characters or sound bites, FASPE creates a space where individuals have the opportunity to explore the embodied experience of others. This approach, when combined with the opportunity to learn from history and experts, is a unique experience that will equip me for future endeavors.” 

Gibbs earned a B.A. in writing and rhetoric from Baylor in 2017 and an M.Div. from Truett Seminary in 2021. Coupling her passion for youth and education with the knowledge gained from her training at Truett, Gibbs became the youth minister at DaySpring Baptist Church in Waco, Texas, in 2021. She also serves as an associate in Truett’s Theology, Ecology and Food Justice program.  

“I look forward to collaborating with the FASPE fellows and growing as a minister committed to the church and Jesus’ ministry of reconciliation,” Gibbs said. “As I minister to youth in Texas, I hope to learn better ways to practice communal lament and repentance, especially when it comes to racial sin. I look forward to this immersive experience, knowing that it will be intense and transformative.” 

Mbouma and Gibbs are among seven Truett students who have received this fellowship since 2015, including Kathryn Freeman (2020), Julia Wallace Butler (2018), Sam Davidson (2016), Daniel Headrick (2016) and Elizabeth Andrasi Deere (2015).   

“It has been rightly said that ‘Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it,’” said Todd D. Still, The Charles J. and Eleanor McLerran DeLancey Dean and The William M. Henson Professor of Christian Scriptures at Truett. “I am grateful that Josepha and Kingsley are able to join peers (and previous Truett fellowship recipients) in traveling to Germany and Poland to consider in situ some of the hideous horrors of the Holocaust. This sobering, educative experience will shape their theological and ethical sensibilities and will enable them to minister with increased insight and greater empathy. Congratulations are due to Josepha and Kingsley and FASPE, who continues to recognize and include our thoughtful and capable students in their prestigious program.”      

 ABOUT GEORGE W. TRUETT THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY AT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY 
 
Baylor University’s George W. Truett Theological Seminary is an orthodox, evangelical school in the historic Baptist tradition that equips God-called people for gospel ministry in and alongside Christ’s Church by the power of the Holy Spirit. Accredited by the Association of Theological Schools, Truett Seminary provides theological education leading to the Master of Divinity, Master of Arts in Christian Ministry, Master of Arts in Contextual Witness and Innovation, Master of Arts in Theology, Ecology and Food Justice, Master of Arts in Theology and Sports Studies (online), Master of Theological Studies, Doctor of Ministry, and Ph.D. in Preaching. Truett Seminary also offers joint degrees through Baylor University school/college partnerships in social work, business, law, music, and education. In addition to the flagship Baugh-Reynolds Campus in Waco, the Seminary also has locations in Houston and San Antonio. Visit the Truett Seminary website to learn more.

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.