Baylor Connections

Soon, hundreds of students will embark on Baylor summer missions trips, spanning the globe to serve others and share the love of Christ. Becky Kennedy, Assistant Dean for Spiritual Life and Missions and Associate Chaplain in Baylor Spiritual Life, shares the impact of discipline-specific mission trips that form students as they serve.  

Many will recognize Sam Henderson's voice from his role as the announcer of Baylor Commencement exercises, but his impact at Baylor extends far beyond that stage. A professional actor, screenwriter and professor, Henderson shares his path to stage and screen and unpacks the ways those experiences shape his classroom teaching in Baylor's Film and Digital Media Department.

The landmark Global Flourishing Study, one of the most comprehensive studies of human existence ever undertaken and a first-of-its-kind multi-year investigation into human flourishing, recently released key insights from its first wave of data, highlighted by a gathering at Gallup Headquarters in Washington, D.C. Byron S. Johnson, GFS principal investigator and Director of the Institute for Studie...

The Robbins Healthcare MBA program in Baylor’s Hankamer School of Business is recognized as a top 20 healthcare management program nationally by U.S. News and World Report, with alumni who lead healthcare organizations from coast to coast. Forest Kim, who serves as program co-director, shares program distinctives and highlights the role alumni play in healthcare innovation and service.

How does technology impact our brains as we age? Many worry that reliance on digital devices may lead to a form of “digital dementia,” but a recent study found otherwise. Michael Scullin, associate professor of psychology and neuroscience, examines how the challenges of technology can be beneficial to cognitive function as we age, and shares insights for healthy tech use.

Baylor’s Black Gospel Archive collects, preserves and promotes Black Gospel music. Many pieces, once in danger of being lost forever, have been saved through that work. This year, the Black Gospel Archive will be expanding thanks to a meaningful grant that will showcase the music in new ways. Stephen Newby, The Lev H. Prichard III Endowed Chair in the Study of Black Worship, and Darryl Stuhr, Dire...

Graduate Student Appreciation Week is an annual celebration of the contributions of graduate students across the nation. At Baylor, nearly 6,000 graduate students elevate the University through research, teaching and more. Graduate School Dean Larry Lyon and Graduate Student Association President James Howard share perspectives on graduate education at Baylor and highlight what makes graduate stud...

For many Baylor students, Monday nights at 9pm represent an opportunity to join in worship at a weekly service held by Vertical Ministries. This year, Vertical Ministries celebrates its 15th anniversary. Executive Director Myles Olenski and Associate Director Anna Webb share Vertical’s story, explain why Vertical stays focused on Monday services and discuss the organization’s purpose in serving Ba...

When the U.S. Senate needed an expert to testify about the future of America’s spectrum communications, they called on Baylor professor Charlie Baylis. Baylis leads SMART Hub, a Baylor-led Department of Defense innovation center providing groundbreaking wireless communications research for the benefit of men and women in uniform and civilians alike. He takes listeners inside a new paradigm to addr...

When Ade Oyedijo studies the supply chain, his approach is to focus on people. Oyedijo joined Baylor in 2024 after teaching and researching in the United Kingdom for over a decade.  Through his work in World Economic Forum, Oyedijo applies research to important global discussions on the supply chain and its impact. He shares insights on supply chain ethics and the path that led him to Baylor.

What is it like to live with your family in community with hundreds of college students? How do living-learning communities (LLC) at Baylor support students as they strive for excellence in pursuit of their calling? Karenna Malavanti, senior lecturer in psychology and neuroscience at Baylor, is also faculty-in-residence at Earle Hall, where she leads the Science & Health LLC. She takes listene...

Renée Umstattd Meyer, a public health professor at Baylor, has built a nationally recognized reputation through helping communities better support the health of their residents. With a focus on active living, she walks alongside communities as they strive to encourage walking, exercise, play and more. Learn how her research connects with practical pathways for children and adults to engage in acti...

From a distinct Christian mission to a history of innovation, Baylor has long served as a light in higher education—as its motto says, Pro Ecclesia, Pro Texana, Pro Mundo. February 2025 marks the University’s 180th birthday. Stephen Sloan, Professor of History and Director of Baylor’s Institute for Oral History, takes listeners inside a few of the threads that connect Baylor through the decades.

Many in the Baylor Family know Blair Browning as the longtime host of All University Sing! and Pigskin Revue, but not everyone knows how deep his Baylor roots run. A 2012 Collins Outstanding Professor honoree, he serves as professor and chair of the Department of Communication. Browning takes listeners inside the Sing experience and shares why he loves teaching Baylor students.

Master Teacher is the highest designation awarded to Baylor faculty for sustained excellence in teaching. Wiff Rudd, Professor of Trumpet in the Baylor School of Music, was recently named Master Teacher along with three other colleagues across campus. A longtime educator and performer, Rudd shares how the two threads of his career intertwine and why the role of teacher has represented a high calli...

Preparing students for leadership is a key part of the Baylor mission, and programs across campus embody that calling. One is the Billington Peer Leader program in Baylor’s Hankamer School of Business, a student-led and student-focused initiative to support Pre-Business students as they navigate the transition to college. Laura Lalani, Associate Director for Student Success Initiatives, and Madeli...

Expansive leaps in technologies like AI prompt important questions about their impact on people. Pablo Rivas, assistant professor of computer science, is a leader at the intersection of technology and ethics. Rivas, Baylor’s site-director for the Center on Responsible Artificial Intelligence and Governance, unpacks questions around responsible AI and examines the role Baylor can play as an ethical...

Baylor’s Institute for Faith and Learning (IFL) offers numerous resources to faculty, staff and students to assist in integrating academic excellence and Christian commitment. Elisabeth Kincaid, a theologian, lawyer and business ethics scholar, was named last Spring as the new IFL director. Here, she shares her path to Baylor and examines why IFL is such a meaningful piece of the University.

All lawyers must understand elements of psychology to successfully navigate the human elements of the legal system. Few people are as qualified in this area as Chris Jaeger, associate professor of law at Baylor. With both a law degree and a Ph. D. in psychology, Jaeger combines both streams to better understand the ways individuals process significant concepts like reasonableness in his award-winn...

A new strategic plan, an addition to the University’s longstanding motto, and a second-half football surge: these are just a few of the highlights of an eventful 2024 that saw continued growth as a preeminent Christian research university. President Linda A. Livingstone, PhD., takes listeners inside some of the highlights, honors and opportunities that defined the past 12 months and set the stage...

What does it mean to readers that the Psalms are a book of poetry? What can the topics embedded within the 150 chapters of the Psalms tell us about God’s relationship to man? Truett Seminary’s Dennis Tucker, PhD., is a researcher and expert on the Psalms. He shares how we can better consider the Psalms through approaches both practical and scholarly, and shares readings to consider for the New Yea...

Students who participate in Study Abroad opportunities find that the experiences shape them long after the trip is through. In this Baylor Connections, a student and professor immerse listeners in their trip to Costa Rica. Kim Smith, clinical assistant professor in Health, Human Performance and Recreation, led the Health Sciences Abroad  trip; Will Bergin, a senior Health & Sciences Studies ma...

The Baylor University Board of Regents features two Student Regents, Xavier Dawes and Meghan Fletcher. Student Regents, like their fellow board members, work on behalf of the best interest of Baylor University while facilitating and communicating the views and experiences of students. In this Baylor Connections, Dawes and Fletcher share more about the unique role they hold and examine the ways it...

Baylor’s Academy for Teaching and Learning (ATL) helps faculty become better teachers through enrichment and development opportunities. Toby Brooks joined the Baylor faculty this year as ATL director and clinical professor in HHPR. In this Baylor Connections, he unpacks insights on serving teachers and the teaching profession, and shares his path from athletic training to higher education leadersh...

Gratitude—it’s a positive human emotion shown to provide health benefits. Jo-Ann Tsang, associate professor of psychology, is a social psychologist and leading researcher into gratitude. In this Baylor Connections, she shares how listen can take healthy steps to focus on gratitude in their own lives and unpacks the ways scientists study and measure gratitude across groups of people.