Christian Higher Education: An Empirical Guide

Utilizing a common set of objective institutional markers as a compass, this book guides readers through the terrain of various Christian institutions.

The Christian higher education landscape confuses many people. Future students, parents, staff, and even faculty often do not under- stand the important subtleties and nuances. They need a guide that empirically explores the ways Christian universities operationalize their Christian identity. This book will guide them through the field of Christian higher education and introduce our Operationalizing Christian Identity Guide (OCIG), which identifies the major ways Christian colleges and universities use their Christian identity to make mission, marketing, membership, curriculum, cocurricular, and other decisions (an online spreadsheet of OCIG scores for all the Christian colleges and universities in North America updated in real-time will be available to readers). These markers are identifiable by anyone, no matter their religious or nonreligious background.

The OCIG is then employed to provide readers a tour of Protestant, historically Black, Catholic, evangelical/multidenominational, and Eastern Orthodox institutions in the United States and Canada. Parents, students, staff, and faculty will be equipped to engage Christian higher education with a clearer understanding of these key elements and their importance to the mission and purposes of individual institutions and Christian higher education at large.

Perry L. Glanzer is a Professor at Baylor University, a Resident Scholar with the Baylor Institute for Studies of Religion, and Editor-in- Chief of Christian Scholar’s Review. He is the author or editor of over a dozen books, including Identity in Action. Theodore F. Cockle is a Postdoctoral Research Associate at Baylor University and a Resident Scholar with Baylor’s Center for School Leadership. He is coauthor of Christ-Enlivened Student Affairs (ACU Press, 2020) and serves as the editor of Ideas, an online publication of the Association of Christians in Student Development (ACSD). Jessica Martin is currently earning her PhD in Higher Education Studies & Leadership at Baylor University. She holds an MA in Higher Education & Student Affairs and has over eight years of experience in various Christian higher education settings.