Presidential Perspective - March 14, 2019

Baylor Students, Faculty and Staff:

I hope everyone is enjoying Spring Break! For the First Gent and me – two former college basketball student-athletes – this may be the “most wonderful time of the year” as the college basketball postseason is fully underway. Coach Kim Mulkey and our No. 1-ranked women’s basketball team have continued their dominance of the Big 12 Conference, sweeping both the regular season and conference tournament titles for the eighth time in the past nine years. With their latest tournament title, the Lady Bears have already earned a berth in the NCAA Tournament, and we look forward to the Bears earning a trip to next week’s NCAA Tournament as well. Sic ’em, Coach Mulkey and Coach Scott Drew!

• Baylor’s Mayborn Museum Complex, after a rigorous review process, has achieved accreditation by the American Alliance of Museums – the highest national recognition afforded the nation’s museums. The Mayborn joins a list of only 3 percent of the nation’s estimated 33,000 museums to earn the accreditation. The museum recently hosted a blockbuster attraction, Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition, which drew more than 50,000 visitors during its seven-month run. More than 120,000 visitors overall came to the museum and exhibit over that same period.
• Congratulations and our sincerest appreciation are in order for Honors College Dean Thomas S. Hibbs, who was named president of the University of Dallas yesterday after 16 years at Baylor. This private Catholic university is getting an outstanding leader, and he will be deeply missed by students, faculty and staff across our campus. Dean Hibbs joins a long list of individuals with Baylor ties who serve as top leaders at colleges and universities worldwide. We will announce an interim dean for the Honors College in the very near future.
• Several of Baylor’s graduate programs were among those nationally ranked in the 2020 U.S. News & World Report Best Graduate Schools rankings, which were released earlier this week. Headlining the University’s rankings is Baylor Law in the 48th spot in the U.S. News Best Law Schools listing for 2020, including the trial advocacy program at No. 2 in the nation. The latest rankings in law, business, nursing and health disciplines, education, engineering, the sciences and social sciences and humanities are published online at www.usnews.com/grad.
• The upcoming Festival Latino will give the Baylor community a chance to embrace diversity and explore other cultures. An array of Latino customs and lifestyles from across the Americas will be represented, with highlights to include cultural crafts, international dance groups, Latin American cuisine and a Pan-American world music group. The free event, presented by The Hispanic Student Association in conjunction with the Baylor Activities Council, will be Friday, March 22, from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., in Burleson Quadrangle. It is open to Baylor and the Greater Waco community.
• Ten teams of 175 Baylor students, faculty, staff and friends of the University have spent their Spring Break integrating their faith with their academic disciplines and hands-on service at locations in Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, England, Japan, Peru and across Texas. Each Baylor Missions experience fosters informed global engagement and contributes solutions to real-world challenges at home and abroad. Thank you for your service, Baylor Missions!
• Members of Baylor’s nationally ranked debate program, the Glenn R. Capp Debate Forum, have spent their Spring “Break” researching and fine-tuning their arguments for the 73rd National Debate Tournament, which begins March 20 at the University of Minnesota. Baylor Debate turned in a dominant performance with a 21-3 record at the recent Mid America Championship and the 2019 NDT District 3 qualifying tournament. Baylor Debate is the oldest co-curricular activity at Baylor, dating back to 1845 – the year Baylor was chartered by the Republic of Texas.

There’s much going on at Baylor, even on Spring Break! Please have a safe return to Waco (and Baylor sites in Dallas and Houston), and I look forward to seeing everyone back on campus next week.

Sincerely,

Linda A. Livingstone, Ph.D.
President