A Note from the Director

Since my first encounter with the Institute for Faith and Learning when I attended the 2013 Faith and Culture Symposium, Baylor’s IFL has remained an academic model for me of a place that integrated rigorous academic inquiry with a commitment to a robust Christian witness and vibrant community connection. Given its history, the opportunity to lead IFL is both exciting and humbling. I’m honored to follow in the footsteps of IFL’s previous directors. As Baylor prepares to unveil a new strategic plan, the IFL team is excited to expand and build upon IFL’s historic programming offerings (such as Crane Scholars, Missio, Communio, and the Baylor Symposium on Faith and Culture) alongside both Baylor’s growth as an R1 university and the university’s timeless commitment to its Christian identity and mission. As we move to a monthly newsletter format, we are looking forward to sharing some additional IFL offerings, as well as providing more information about faith and learning related offerings from our many partners and colleagues across the Baylor campus. We are especially excited to share more information about this year’s Symposium on Faith and Culture, which will bring a number of prominent speakers to campus to reflect on our theme of “Renewing and Reimagining Institutions for the Common Good.” Personally, I also look forward to connecting and getting to know even more of the Baylor faculty and staff.

Blessings,

Elisabeth Rain Kincaid

Director, Institute for Faith and Learning

 You're invited to our open house!

IFL moved offices in June to beautiful Brooks Residential College. As we move into the fall semester, we would love for you to come visit us for our Open House! 

When: 11:30 am - 2 pm (come and go) on Monday, September 9th

Where: Brooks Senior Commons Room, Brooks Residential College

We'll have coffee, drinks, and hors d'oeuvres.

Baylor Symposium on Faith and Culture: Renewing & Reimagining Institutions for the Common Good

The Baylor Symposium on Faith and Culture is coming up soon! The conference will be Wednesday, October 17, through Saturday, October 19, on Baylor's campus. 

The event is free for Baylor faculty, staff, and students.

We have a great lineup of speakers.

October is a busy time in Waco, so we encourage you to book your hotel now. We have a few rooms blocked out on a first come basis, but the discounted rate will not be offered after September 17th. 

Cambria 

Element 

Indigo 

For full travel information, please see this page. 

View the detailed schedule.

Register

Crane Scholars Program

We are celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Crane Scholars Program!

Interviews for the new sophomore cohort are coming up soon. We are eager to see what this year holds for the program. In our next newsletter, we will introduce the new sophomores and share more details about our Crane's Initiation Dinner.

We dearly miss the Senior Crane Scholars who graduated in May (see photo). They are flying high and doing great things.

The majority of our seniors are attending various graduate programs across the country. Two seniors are starting their medical school journey, while others are pursuing graduate programs in various fields, including Statistics (Rice), Law (Georgetown), Theology (Duke), Accounting (Baylor), Chemistry (University of Texas), and Occupational Therapy (Belmont). 

We are thrilled to continue our third cohort of the Missio faculty formation program. The purpose of Missio is to bring people together from across the University to reflect upon Baylor’s special mission and identity and the relationship between faith and learning. 

We will gather for lunch on one Wednesday each month at the Brooks Senior Commons Room.

These are the Missio dates for this semester: 

• September 11th
• October 9th
• November 6th
• December 4th

We will have a brief reading or a guest to help us reflect and generate good discussion.  

Events Related to Faith and Learning around Baylor Campus

• September 1-30: Helen Barrett Montgomery Celebration Month
• September 4 (starting 3:30 pm): J.M. Dawson Institute of Church-State Studies Fall 2024 Lecture: "The Crisis of American Christianity" (lecture by Tim Alberta)
• September 9 (1:00-6:00 pm): Culture of Joy
• September 11 (12:15-1:30 pm): Baylor Webinar Series: Introducing W.E.B. DuBois and "The Gift of Black Folk"
• September 13 (10 am - 4 pm): Leadership for the Long Haul: Forging Practices and Resilience in a Crisis Weary World
• September 16 (2:30-4:30 pm): Holiness as Deification in Orthodox Christianity (lecture by Dr. Paul Gavrilyuk)
• September 21 (starting 4 pm): Screening of Ralph Bakshi's 1978 Film "The Lord of the Rings" and Experts Panel Discussion
• September 24 (starting 3 pm; Zoom): Remembering Antônia Teixeira: A Story of Missions, Violence, and Institutional Hypocrisy
• September 30: Last day to complete the Program for the Future Church's Collaborative Leadership Survey
• October 2-4 (Virtual): Evangelicalism and Missions: Studies in the History of the Spread of the Gospel
• October 3 (12:30 to 2 pm): Gil Taylor Behavioral Health Series: Exploring the Intersection of Faith and Psychology (lecture by Dr. Broderick Leaks)

Are you hosting an event or working on a project related to faith and learning? We'd love to hear about it! Send us an email at ifl@baylor.edu.

Connect with us!