The Baylor Line

Dr. Paul Froese, director of the Baylor Religion Survey, and his team dedicated a section of their Wave 7 Survey to investigating Americans' current positioning on the separation of church and state. While never asking about Christian nationalism directly, the survey posed questions that got to the heart of the phenomenon. Their work grows out of a tradition Baylor has cultivated for decades of studying the tension between faith and politics. Read more now at https://baylorline.com/christian-nationalism/.

Not to be outdone by its predecessors, the class of 1916 had big plans for its senior gift. Referred to as the Sixteen Seat, the bench was set to be constructed by Homecoming in November 1915. Despite delays through Thanksgiving, Christmas, and early 1916, the bench was finally installed in April 1916 within the Quadrangle. Only three decades later, however, the memorial would very nearly meet an untimely end at the hands of its own creators.

By the Sixteeners’ 30th reunion, class member Irene Marschall King had become discouraged about the seat’s appearance. A classmate recalled later that Mrs. King felt the four small urns and 30-inch flower vase on the center column were tacky and ought to be torn down — and torn down they were.

In 2023, Texas was one of the first states to set an ambitious goal to have 60 percent of Texans ages 65 and under receive a degree, certificate, or other credential of value by 2030. As Texas sees a 300 percent surge of first-generation college students, Baylor's First in Line Student Society is stepping up to create community and opportunities for these students. Read more now, at https://baylorline.com/first-generation-texas-students/

In this 1969 Classic article, David McHam tells the story of Capt. Eli Takesian, a Baylor graduate and chaplain during the Vietnam War who brought God to others in the most unlikely of places.

Read more at https://baylorline.com/battlefield-chaplain-eli-takesian/