Save OBU Spring 2013 Agenda

Whether you are excitedly beginning a new semester on Bison Hill or just wish you were, I hope this message finds you well.  Save OBU took an extended break during December and January, with only intermittent blog posting.  With a new semester upon us, here are some of the things we'll be watching and reporting on.

• Thus far, the most egregious problems have been in the religion/ministry/philosophy area. However, we continue to hear rumblings from fine arts students as well as other sources about concerns in the fine arts department.  Many of these concerns stem from the fact that the administration ignored a search committee recommendation to hire an experienced administrator from another Baptist college and instead installed a more fundamentalist-friendly dean.  I don't mean to dismiss the very valid concerns many students and alumni have, but I am still researching and fact-checking.  Expect a "Fine Arts Fiasco" series in the coming months.
• Will the provost assert himself again?  Sources indicate that Provost Stan Norman has toned down the pace and intensity of his desire to remake the faculty in the image of a fundamentalist Bible academy.  We don't want to harp on this guy incessantly, but some people who know him and have worked with him believe it is only a matter of time before he gets bored of administrative duties like being editor-in-chief of the alumni magazine (huh?) and starts purging moderates again.
• Spotlight on past protest/reform efforts.  Though most people experience OBU as a very conformist culture, there have been protest movements over the years.  I want to invite alumni to tell those stories.  I have some documents related to the "Heresy Papers" controversy in the early 1980s, when a few professors were harassed for not being fundamentalists.  One alumna is going to tell a story about a short-lived feminist group that arose in the early 2000s in response to a chapel preacher's intemperate remarks about rape.
• Connections with other schools.  Different versions of the struggle to protect academic freedom and to ensure ethical administration are happening at many other evangelical colleges.  It's a real problem.  In addition to being a watchdog for OBU, the Save OBU community has become a leader in building bridges to constituents of other Baptist and evangelical institutions.  We want to continue to build and nurture those connections.  Usually fundamentalists have the power to remake colleges in their own image.  And usually they can't help themselves.  But we are here to tell these powerful men, "When you run roughshod over traditions, values, and norms that we cherish, we will call you out. Publicly. Every time."

What else do you think we should be working on as a community? How do you want to contribute and become more involved? Feel free to respond here or on Facebook or Twitter.

Our very best wishes to the students, faculty, staff, and administration of OBU.  We hope and pray this spring semester is a thrilling journey of intellectual and spiritual growth.

Why the Long Silence? A Brief Explanation

Many of you have reached out to me and asked why the Save OBU movement has been so quietly lately.  The "Welcome to 2013" post a few weeks ago was vague about when we would start blogging regularly again.  I thought I'd offer a few reasons why we've been so quiet, both strategically and of necessity.

• After being on Bison Hill for Homecoming in November, I saw firsthand that >95% of what is happening at OBU is absolutely fantastic.  Enrollment is up, new programs are launching, and faculty, staff, and students' commitment to excellence is everywhere apparent.  We hit pretty hard at times over the past year.  No one likes an incessant critic.  We've made our points -- and will continue to do so.  But we are not naysayers.
• Web traffic is down when classes are not in session.  Last January, fewer people were paying attention to Save OBU during J-Term.  So it seemed like a natural time to take a break.
• I was traveling for 3 weeks around the holidays, and have also moved to a new (rented) basement apartment in Silver Spring, MD.  I had a series of pressing professional responsibilities.  I'm the father of a 9-month old.  And frankly, I needed a break.
• But the most important reason we took a breather is that we could.  Whether or not we had a hand in it, the pace of OBU's fundamentalist encroachment slowed considerably in 2012, except for one instance where the new administration hand-picked a literalist, Calvinist, young earth creationist from Southwestern Seminary to teach in OBU's religion department without even bothering with the usual faculty search process (faculty input, etc).  That was unfortunate, and indicates that we will continue to see OBU's religion, philosophy, and ministry departments abandon their historic rigor and excellence and devolve into a fundamentalist preacher boy camp.  But overall, we saw more signs of progress than signs for concern.  Provost Stan Norman seems almost completely neutralized.  President Whitlock is learning that in order to rebuild trust with the faculty, he cannot sit idly by while over-zealous administrators remake OBU.  Perhaps most importantly, there is now broad awareness among faculty, students, and alumni across the generations that all who care about academic freedom and ethical administration must be on high alert, given the troubling changes at OBU since Whitlock's inauguration.

In recent days, I've begun summoning the energy to re-engage the Save OBU project.  I had a great discussion with a Carson-Newman University (TN) alum who reports that C-N is resisting pressure from the Tennessee Baptist Convention to become more fundamentalist.  On a sadder note, I'm learning that the almost unanimous consensus of moderate evangelicals in Baptist higher education is that Tennessee's other Baptist school, Union University in Jackson, is much worse off than I feared.  Behind the facade of impressive fundraising and enrollment numbers, Union and its president, David Dockery, has pretty much allowed the new guard of SBC and TBC fundamentalists dictate what goes on there.

But the real impetus to get back to work is the ongoing fundamentalist encroachment at Cedarville University, an institution of the State Convention of Baptists in Ohio.  Christianity Today has a summary of the issue here.  In the days to come, I'll be reporting on Cedarville's problems to the OBU community.  In addition, I'll be inviting the Cedarville community to learn about what has happened at OBU and at other schools like Shorter University.

I still hope to do a 2012 year-in-review post, hopefully before the end of January.

I hope all is well with each of you.

Welcome to 2013!

Dear Supporters of Academic Freedom and Ethical Administration,

Sorry for the monthlong silence.  As you might imagine, I've been pretty busy.  We continue to feel that the problems at OBU are at a low ebb at the moment.  Though behind the scenes, we continue to make and nurture contacts with more and more people in Christian higher education and elsewhere who share the same values and harbor some of the same concerns we do.  I'll continue to report on these as time permits.

During the next week, I'll be moving into a new apartment and beginning a new semester as a graduate student, teaching assistant, and adjunct instructor.  So it may be another week or 10 days before I get back to regular posting.  But last year, we saw a drop in Web traffic during OBU's J-Term.

By the start of OBU's spring semester, we'll be back online with a number of new posts that I and others have been working on.  With any luck, OBU's academic program will continue moving forward without undue influence from fundamentalist elements within the administration and the BGCO.

But the point is this: We're still here.  We always will be.  We will celebrate when things go well at OBU.  I was there for Homecoming in November.  There is much to celebrate!  But when problems arise, we will fight back with unending determination.  And problems will arise.  That much I can guarantee.  Some people won't accept anything they can't totally control.  They think they're doing God's work.  One day, God will tell them it's time to fire another moderate.  Or block a department from setting its own curriculum and direction.  Or launch another unprecedented and unethical intervention in an administrative or governance decision.

We are not out of the woods yet.  For the moment, the worst of the violations seem to be behind us.  And we feel it's counter-productive to agitate when things are going well.  But we all know things stil have to get worse before they will get better at Baptist universities.  Some people just can't help themselves.

Best wishes in the new year,
-Jacob Lupfer

Save OBU One Year Later

Last December 6, I took to the Web to raise awareness about fundamentalist encroachment at OBU.

Funny how much can happen in a year.

Thankfully, things seem mostly stable at OBU right now.  No more firings seem imminent, though you can't blame professors who still fear for their jobs.  2009-2011 saw significant deterioration in trust between administrators and other OBU constituencies.  2012 has been calmer.  If the Lord tarries, we'll make it through this calendar year without any unethical dismissals or overruled faculty committees.

As I look back on that inaugural blog post, I have to confess that some of my perceptions have changed, too.  I was so angry about how absolutely shamefully two well-loved professors were treated that I went looking for any and every reason to be upset, saying "There may be dozens of reasons to be upset about OBU's direction."  That was hyperbolic.  Really, it all boils down to two key issues:

• Academic freedom -- Are professors free to teach and students free to learn?  Do ideology and dogma threaten the pursuit of truth in the classroom?
• Ethical administration -- Are decisions about hiring, curriculum, and program direction collaborative or unilateral?  Is faculty experience, expertise, and judgment sought or ignored?

I'll add a third, only because some at OBU seem to have followed the post-Takeover SBC in gleefully holding reactionary attitudes:

• Gender -- Are women fully free to hold all administrative, religious, and faculty positions for which they are qualified?  Are female students actively encouraged to listen for and heed God's call on their lives?  Or does the institution implicitly hold out an image from a sexist era and say, "This is what a Christian woman looks like. Be like her."

There have been serious violations in all three of these areas.  Let's not kid ourselves.  When professors are installed and removed over adherence to fundamentalist dogma, academic freedom is grossly infringed upon.  Administrators are behaving unethically when they violate the Faculty Handbook and unilaterally redirect vital academic programs and regularly overrule faculty committees that unanimously recommend highly qualified, devoutly faithful candidates in order to hire less qualified yes-men.  Gender discrimination occurs when a college president refuses to even consider hiring a woman to teach certain subjects.  And suspicions arise when a well-loved and long-serving female administrator is essentially demoted to make way for the new guard.

Our message is simple:  When these things happen, administrators will be called out.  Publicly.  Every single time.  This isn't the OBU we know and love.

During the past year, we've reached thousands and thousands of people.  New friendships have formed, even across generations.  Old friendships have been rekindled.  We've connected with hundreds of moderate Baptists all over the U.S. and the world.  Friends at other post-Takeover Baptist institutions have sought our counsel and friends at schools that rejected the Takeover have offered their support.  Significantly, our sister blog at Shorter University in Rome, GA became a national news story after administrators there launched an unprecedented attack against faculty.

We'll do a more in-depth year-in-review piece closer to Dec. 31.  And we'll continue to provide innovative (though probably not daily) content, including an upcoming guest post about a student protest in the early 2000s and a Fine Arts Fiasco series on bizarre happenings in the College of Fine Arts.  We continue to see growing student awareness about the 2009-2011 issues.  Students and alumni alike are delighted to learn that OBU has a long and distinguished history of academic excellence and collaborative governance that has only recently begun to suffer.

In the year to come, we look to formalize a leadership structure, continue raising awareness, and be vigilant in our watchdog function.  If things get worse, we'll move from awareness to actual activism.

On a personal note, thank you for your kind words and encouragement.  I am certainly an unlikely leader for this effort.  But in addition to leading an effort I believe we can all be proud of, I have rediscovered my own wellspring of affection for OBU.  For me this has been an enriching personal, professional, and spiritual experience.  Though I wish things could have been otherwise at OBU in key ways during the Whitlock era, I am most grateful for the opportunity to engage with you in this effort.

As always, our prayers are with all with all who work and study on Bison Hill.

Student Protest Culture - A Heartwarming Story

As everyone knows, OBU is about the most conformist, authoritarian college out there.  Protesting is definitely NOT part of the student culture.  That's why even very minor things like op-eds and satirical ads in the student newspaper, an underground newsletter, and persistent questioning of the administration seem like heroic acts.

This will come as news to many alumni/ae in their 50s-70s, who attended OBU at a time when students actually protested and this was seen as normal behavior from awakening moral consciences, not as offensive deviations from some Bible-academy norm of conformist behavior.  For instance, OBU men once joined women on the steps of WMU Dorm to protest the women's curfew.  (At one time, women had a curfew and men did not -- ain't the double standard grand?)  Another time, students protested a policy whereby men were allowed to smoke and women were not.  Many alumni/ae of this era remember The Pluralist, the "Heresy Papers," and a never-ending pushback against fundamentalist pastors around the state who chimed in incessantly with their bizarre concerns about godless, liberal OBU.

Today, I want to share a story about another Christian college in another time.  We are not trying to incite a protest (yet), but rather to show that it's okay and even good to stand up for what is right even when it seems to go against the wishes of your parents, your pastor, or you college administrators.  OBU students -- especially those who attend now or attended since the Fundamentalist Takeover -- probably still need to know that this is okay.

The context is a sermon I heard online recently by a pastor in Oklahoma City.  The pastor, Robin, tells a story he heard about his father, Robert, shortly after Robert died last winter (obituary here).  When Robin was a boy, Robert was teaching at Harding College (now Harding University), a Church of Christ college in Searcy, Arkansas.  In the late 1950s, the college president had secured donations from many wealthy donors who happened to be racist, as the president himself was.  Yet students' consciences were awakening to the injustice of this policy on their campus.  One student, who traveled by bus to Little Rock to witness the integration of Central High School, returned to Harding with a passion to integrate the campus.  Students turned to the Rev. Dr. Robert Meyers, an English professor and Church of Christ minister, who drafted a petition that eventually garnered a large majority of Harding students' signatures.  The president told the students that they just didn't get it -- that they should trust their elders, who know how the world works and why things must be the way they are.  Eventually the integration movement died down.  Ironically enough, Harding became the first private college in Arkansas to integrate -- in 1963 and in response to economic pressures, not moral righteousness.  But it truly is a heartwarming story, and the preacher, Robin, tells it beautifully as he recalls his father's moral clarity and heroic activism on race -- a "distinction which God has not made" (the title of the sermon, which you should watch below).

Distinctions Which God Has Not Made from Mayflower UCC on Vimeo.

(Side note: The preaching from the pulpit of this particular church is almost always expository in nature. This just happens to be a sermon which uses a lengthy illustration.)

The parallels to OBU's present troubles should be obvious, though they are imperfect.  I certainly don't want to suggest that a few unethical administrative blunders are as morally reprehensible as a policy of systematically excluding qualified students of color from attending a university.  But I do think that, in years to come, students and alumni will look back on this time in history and ask, "How did they think it was right or Christian to deny faculty contract rights, to hire on the basis of ideology above all else, and to unilaterally change the direction of entire departments without collective buy-in?" We certainly look back at those old-school donors and racist college presidents as morally blinded by their own bizarre, unchristian ideology.  But remember, those were the people who were widely honored in their day.  They went to church every Sunday, and yet they were so wrong.

Being in a place of wealth, power, or authority does not make you right.  And being a young person, a student, or someone with a growing moral awareness even without extensive worldly knowledge does not automatically make you wrong or unable to raise your voice.

I am becoming convinced that if history will record OBU's recent problems as a minor blip rather than a dramatic turning point, it will be because students raised their voices in protest.  External forces such as alumni, no matter how ancient and profound our love for OBU is, cannot effect much change on the course of an institution -- especially one where authoritarianism and unilateralism are accepted without much challenge.  Eventually students are going to have to learn exactly what happened, why it was wrong, and what they expect from their beloved OBU in the future.

A Kinder, Gentler Save OBU?

This has been a big week for us! In terms of site traffic, it's been our biggest week ever -- even bigger than when Veronica took up the issue of gender and when I wrote about the process (or lack thereof) by which OBU's newest religion professor came to Bison Hill.  In addition to high alumni and faculty interest, more and more students are reading the blog and educating themselves at what has happened over the past few years at OBU.

This week, both Veronica and I reported on homecoming.  We also discussed last Sunday's Save OBU strategy meeting.  As the BGCO convened in Moore Monday and Tuesday, we wondered whether some within the convention could help OBU stand strong academically.  We also reported on the wreckage at Shorter University in GA, a year after its president declared war on academic freedom and abandoned any pretense of ethical administration.

Many perceptive readers have asked about the subtle change in tone.  This comment was typical of the emails I received:

The sudden change to a more positive tone fascinates me as a (very) casual member of SaveOBU. I am not sure I understand why it is warranted. What has changed? A brief pause in an agenda pursued by a president and provost does not indicate a turnaround, nor does it cancel out the latest professorial appointments. It might be a useful tactic on the part of an advocate or activist to give their quarry a moment of relief before sharpening their attack, or it might be that some direct communication from credible sources confirms that some redress of grievances is forthcoming. Absent of either, I am not sure why SaveOBU has become a cooperative venture.

So I'd like to reiterate my response to that comment and speak a bit more about how to most effectively move forward.

These are all good points. 

What has changed is that the administration has come to an awareness that it severely alienated the faculty with the botched dismissals and bizarre actions of the past few years, especially its attempts to unilaterally re-orient the aims of entire academic divisions. Whatever Whitlock's, Norman's, and McClellan's long-term intentions, people on the ground are satisfied that the triumverate now knows it can't just come in and wreck shop without a lot of blowback. Norman seems to be almost completely neutralized for the time being. Current faculty do not believe the same hostility exists today that was everywhere apparent just a year or two ago. Faculty leaders are open to repairing relations with Whitlock and Norman. They now have a chapter of the American Association of University Professors, which will hopefully provide some legal and other support if another unethical dismissal is attempted, or if the tenure process is used as a weapon. Our feeling (reflected in the comments of current and retired faculty, as well as students and alumni/ae last weekend in Shawnee) is that we could undermine efforts at peace if we are throwing bombs all the time. So there is some consensus that we need to be more of a watchdog and less of an attack dog, at least for now. 

Are we still angry about what happened to John and Jerry? Of course. Are we disappointed that faculty are being shut out of hiring decisions for decanal and certain faculty positions? Yes. The model of trust, academic freedom, and faculty-administrative collaboration that existed at OBU for decades has suffered a severe breach. But many on campus are hopeful that the breach can be repaired. Some people on campus are satisfied that there are pastors in the BGCO (mostly OBU grads) who can be counted on to make sure the board of trustees is not dominated by fundamentalists. And we know that there are a number of people who share our concerns but who reject that BGCO separation is even possible. But both active and retired faculty have said that the existence and persistence of Save OBU has helped make the administration think twice before they pull any of this crap again (although it did not stop them from going full steam ahead with shutting the faculty out of the most recent religion hire, and that is still extremely troubling).

Personally, I am less hopeful. I agree that we're in a lull right now, but at some point, the provost will assert himself again and/or the fundamentalists will ratchet up the pressure on the president. It's in their nature. They can't help themselves. As for the ones who talk out of both sides of their mouths -- saying they champion academic freedom and want OBU to be a legitimate academic institution but still love to play nice with the fundamentalists -- I wouldn't trust them any farther than I could throw them. But that's just my personal view. As someone coordinating a movement, I have to defer to the people on the ground and try to build consensus around how we can help protect OBU most effectively. 

To date, we haven't asked people to write a letter, withhold a donation, dissuade a prospective student, or do anything other than raise awareness about what has happened. For now, there is a consensus that we should continue as a watchdog, build ties with constituents of other institutions who are fighting different versions of this same battle, be a resource for students and alumni who want non-fundamentalist avenues for graduate study and ministry service, and let faculty pursue redress of grievances through their own channels.

In the long term, we'll need get the trustees off the fence and find out whether they are going to be cheerleaders for or defenders against a fundamentalist takeover.  The fact that Stan Norman still has a job makes me think they don't realize how serious the breach of trust between the faculty and the administration has been.  The easiest way forward would have been for the trustees to nudge President Whitlock to tell Stan it's time to move on.  Then Whitlock could have hit the reset button with faculty and maybe we could all be confident that things would be different moving forward.  Instead, the inaction (and even refusal to acknowledge harm/mistakes) sends the signal that the trustees and administration either don't get it or don't care.  Neither attitude inspires much confidence.

Even so, a consensus is emerging around a wait-see attitude.  Faculty seem confident that their junior colleagues will be tenured based on ability and achievement.  We can't imagine that the administration would attempt another unethical dismissal, given the outrage such an action would cause.  The core of OBU is still intact.  And the faculty in fine arts and theology/ministry will just have to endure the current regime, however joyless it may be at times.

Has Save OBU become kinder and gentler?  I don't know.  I hope so.  I always hope we embody the Fruits of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23).  For me, the fact of meeting Provost Norman (very briefly) and having a (very brief) exchange with Dean McClellan may give me pause about speaking in such strong terms about people I don't even know.  But it's nothing personal, and I truly wish them well on their journeys.  I may not know them, but I do know OBU.  And some of their actions have been very out of place at the OBU so many of us have known and loved through all these years.

As a young Methodist boy who saw pastors come and go, I was taught never to say "I was here long before you came here and I'll be here long after you're gone."  That wasn't the right attitude.  But the truth is, there is a tradition of excellence, rigor, academic respectability, and collaborative decision-making that is woven into the fabric of OBU culture.  Two or three administrators can poke holes in that fabric, but they can never tear it asunder.  Time will tell if OBU will be restored to its former greatness in the vital areas where it's been attacked.

The attack days are never fully over.   There are more sad stories to tell and violations to report.  But I think the reorientation from attack dog mode to watchdog mode is wise at the moment.  I am satisfied that it represents a broad consensus of thinking from many quarters.  And I hope we can all move forward together as we stand strong for academic freedom and ethical administration at OBU.

National Higher Ed Press Covers Shorter Degradation

I've been in touch with Shorter University (GA) alumni for almost a year.  Their situation, as we've repeated, is significantly worse than ours.  They had a hostile state convention pack the trustee board with fundamentalists, and then a new president disregarded academic freedom and institutional norms to purge the college of dozens of faculty and staff.  We've always considered Shorter to be a worst-case scenario for OBU.  But there are a lot of reasons to be hopeful.  While OBU has a president who has to play nice with the fundamentalists and at least two (maybe more) administrators who clearly have no qualms about dramatic policy shifts, we still have some great trustees, as well as higher-ups in the state convention who do not want to see OBU turned into a national joke.

Shorter has not been so lucky.  Their disaffected constituents began mobilizing as soon as the dramatic changes were announced last fall.  They took quite an interest in what we has done, and I believe our blog pre-dates theirs by about three months.  They have also, understandably, pursued a more aggressive media strategy, which we will likewise do if things get worse.

You should definitely follow Shorter constituents' attempts to recover from the wreckage on Facebook and Twitter.  If you follow these issues closely, chances are you've already read some of the news reports.  This week, Inside Higher Education has a lengthy piece on the Shorter situation by noted religious college reporter Libby Nelson.  Last October, after faculty met with trustees for what was billed as a routine meeting,

The trustees told everyone that there would be some additions to contracts for the next academic year -- changes intended to amplify the liberal arts college's Christian mission.  Then the faculty and staff filed out, past the large painting of the Prodigal Son in the hallway.  Within the hour, they received two documents by e-mail.  One was a statement of faith; the other, a list of "lifestyle" expectations. 

Those who wanted to keep their jobs would have to sign both.

One young alum said of Shorter the same thing I have thought of saying about OBU when asked by my friends and colleagues about my alma mater:

He went to a small liberal arts college in the South, the former student now says.  But that college doesn't exist anymore.

You truly should read and consider the entire piece.  And say a prayer of thanksgiving that we have the ability to protect academic freedom and insist on ethical administration at OBU -- before it's too late.