By Frances George
The nature of a person is found at their core — their character, their beliefs, their philosophy and worldview. The same is true of institutions.
I’ve been a Baylor parent, watching life unfold over nine years for our two daughters, and as of May 16, our daughters will have three Baylor degrees between them, with perhaps one more on the way! I’ve seen a lot of life unfold for my daughters at Baylor. They have gone from young girls who came to Baylor knowing no one to growing into wise young adults who are excellently equipped for life.
As we look back over the college years, if the girls had it to do all over, they would choose Baylor again and again. And it’s not because every moment, every situation was a flowery bed of roses. There are always moments in a college career that are difficult, that leave you wondering, “How did that happen?” or “That certainly didn’t seem like what I expected.”
Institutions, like people, are flawed. It is sometimes hard to imagine at a place like Baylor, hard to believe that could possibly be the case when so much is overwhelmingly and wonderfully seamless and done with excellence. But nothing — not people, not institutions — is perfect. However, at the core, at the center of who Baylor is, it is there you will find that Baylor possesses real depth of character, even in imperfection.
Depth of character? How can an institution possess character? Isn’t that reserved for humans, for the living? That is the point.
Baylor is not just a static name of an institution. Baylor means something more. Baylor IS. Baylor DOES.
What Baylor is and what Baylor does is like a mirror, and its reflection is not just a static logo but living character. Character you can see. Character that speaks to its students and to the community and to the generations. Yes, an institution reflects character. And Baylor reflects it well.
Just this morning I was studying Psalm 88. It is a psalm of lament. If it could go wrong, it did go wrong for the writer of this particular psalm. Sometimes, to our students, life is hard. College is hard. Relationships can be hard, and yes, courses can be hard. And it seems there is nothing but disappointment and discouragement on the horizon.
But then, because it is Baylor, there, on that same bleak horizon, is a glimmer of hope found in one person, one faculty member, one administrator, one staff member, one pastor of a Waco church who is also a Baylor graduate, one student. One who reaches out with light and is relentless in helping bring you out of the pit of despair, who is willing to tirelessly help find a solution to the conundrum, though it’s not part of their job description.
THIS is the Baylor difference. It permeates not only the faculty and administration, but it is now a part of the Waco community with pastors of churches who are Baylor graduates and who reflect that same Baylor character. Students who walk alongside your student and offer suggestions, and because of the amazing Baylor network beyond the university, a solution is found. A network of people who don’t know each other’s names but know the Name above all names. And together, Psalm 88 turns into Psalm 89…
“I will sing of the lovingkindness of the Lord forever. To all generations I will make known Thy lovingkindness with my mouth.” (And for me, with my pen).
How can I say this? Because I have seen this exact scenario unfold before my eyes at Baylor. And it is not because every step of the way was without struggle. But at the core of who Baylor is, there is depth of character found even within the struggle.
Baylor is a university made up of people who want to make a difference in the lives of the students first and foremost and will go to incredible lengths to help their students succeed.
It is found in all of the aforementioned players, whose job on paper might be oversight of a department, working on the east coast in advancement, a student who has no personal gain in helping another student think through possible options, a church staff member who already has a full plate but says, “Yes, we can do this. We can make this work!” They all have one thing in common: Each is a Baylor “family” member as a current student or alumnus/alumna. Yes, family.
And for four years, these Baylor family members were exposed to a culture of character that reflects all that is good. They were trained in the classroom by the character found in their professors. They walked across campus and “did life” with multitudes of students who possess a depth of character not seen on other college campuses. They witnessed, daily, a university president who interacts with students as if they were the most important part of her job description, and to Dr. Livingstone, they are. This is what is at the core of Baylor. And this is what makes the great times at Baylor the greatest.
But perhaps more importantly, it is what makes the challenging times deeply meaningful and worthwhile. Strength of character is what we want to see in our students. Most anyone can secure a degree. But when Baylor students walk across the platform on graduation day, they walk across with so much more. And in this life, it is “the so much more” that makes the difference.
It is, as I always say, The Baylor Difference. Choose well. Choose Baylor. Because at its core, the Baylor Difference IS the difference for life.