Baylor in the News – June 30-July 6, 2024
Baylor experts featured in national media, including Associated Press, Christianity Today and Voice of America
The Associated Press featured research led by Baylor sociologist Laura Upenieks, Ph.D., in an article about devout athletes and the impact of faith on their mental health and performance. (Robert Rogers/Baylor University)
Note: The opinions expressed in these articles do not necessarily reflect those of the University.
Featured News
Associated Press: Devout athletes find strength in their faith. But practicing it and elite sports can pose hurdles
Laura Upenieks, Ph.D., assistant professor of sociology at Baylor who has studied the role of religion/spirituality on elite athletes at U.S. colleges, is quoted in this article about devout athletes and the impact of faith on their mental health and performance. Upenieks said athletes with a secure attachment to God tend to be less depressed, anxious and lonely than those with a negative perception of a punishing God or those who are not religious.
National/International
Christianity Today: Eric Liddell’s Legacy Still Tracks, 100 Years Later
Paul Putz, Ph.D., director for the Faith & Sports Institute at Baylor and an expert on sports, history and Christianity, writes about Scottish sprinter Eric Liddell’s race at the 1924 Paris Olympics, a canon event in the history of Christian athletes that was immortalized in the movie, "Chariots of Fire." Liddell entered the 400-meter race only after learning that the heats for his best Olympic event, the 100 meters, would fall on a Sunday. He withdrew from that event, holding fast to his Christian convictions about observing the Sabbath.
Voice of America: The Inside Story - USA Votes 2024
VIDEO: It's being called one of the most critical elections in American history between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump. Sergiy Kudelia, Ph.D., associate professor of political science who focuses his scholarship on Ukraine, Russia and the former Soviet Union, is among the experts discussing the issues driving this year’s presidential election from foreign policy to reproductive rights, energy, and even social media.
Career Can Do: The Power of Workplace Culture Over Compensation with Amine Qourzal
AUDIO: Amine Qourzal, associate director of the Graduate Career Management Curriculum at Baylor’s Career Center, is a guest on the Career Can Do podcast to discuss helping students develop the skills and mindset needed to thrive in their future careers through coaching, goal setting, and professional development.
Open Access Government: The role of trauma healing in offender rehabilitation
Sung Joon Jang, Ph.D., research professor of criminology, and Byron R. Johnson, Ph.D., Distinguished Professor of the Social Sciences in Baylor’s Institute for Studies of Religion, offer an empirical assessment of a volunteer-led, small-group program of trauma healing for inmates housed at a regional jail in the United States. The program was administered by two faith-based, non-profit organizations that partnered to equip chaplains and volunteers to facilitate the program.
Salt Lake Tribune: ‘Mormon Land’: Did Joseph Smith practice polygamy? What the evidence shows and why it matters.
AUDIO: Brooke LeFevre, a history doctoral candidate at Baylor who has written about the experiences of 19th-century Latter-day Saint women in plural marriages, and Matthew Bowman, chair of Mormon studies at Claremont Graduate University, join the Mormon Land podcast to examine the documents, the motives, the words of Emma Smith, the testimony of the church founder’s purported plural wives, and how to ascertain the “truth.”
State/Local
Baylor Connections: Gabe Madison. BBA '00, President of Bonton Farms
AUDIO: After 22 years in corporate America, Gabe Madison wasn’t expecting the call to lead an urban farm addressing food insecurity and community wellbeing in South Dallas. In this Baylor Connections, Madison, the 2024 recipient of Baylor’s Pro Texana Medal of Service, shares her journey to Bonton Farms and examines needs in the community that this farm continually grows to meet.
ABOUT BAYLOR MEDIA & PUBLIC RELATIONS
Baylor's Office of Media and Public Relations (M&PR) supports the University's Illuminate strategic plan as a premier Christian Research 1 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.