Presidential Perspective - September 7, 2017

Baylor Students, Faculty and Staff:

Tomorrow marks day No. 100 as Baylor's President! Each day continues to be a blessing as we work to develop the next generation of faith-based leaders and create a strategic pathway for Baylor to achieve our ambitions as a tier one Christian research university. As I visit with our campus community and alumni across the state and nation, I am thankful for the support of the Baylor Family and the passion that everyone has for our great University as we move forward.

Here are a few noteworthy items for this week:

• Thank you for the outpouring of prayer and support for those who have experienced great loss as a result of Hurricane Harvey. We continue to collect various items for those affected by the storm and will soon initiate discussions as to how Baylor can provide much-needed assistance in the weeks and months ahead as families and communities begin the rebuilding process. Also, please lift up those in Florida in prayer as Hurricane Irma bears down on the state.

• Today, Baylor sociology professors Paul Frose, Jerry Park and Lindsay Wilkinson unveiled Wave 5 of the Baylor Religion Survey, one of the most extensive surveys ever conducted on religious attitudes in the United States, at the Religion Newswriters Association in Nashville. The latest analysis – "American Values, Mental Health and Using Technology in the Age of Trump" – provides some interesting insights.

• Our faculty are part of an international community of scholars, conducting transformational research on a global scale while establishing vital partnerships in our local community. Chemistry professor and cancer researcher Dr. Kevin Pinney, who includes graduate and undergraduate students in his research group, recently received one of 60 new research grants from the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT) to continue his work advancing the fight against cancer.

• I enjoyed spending lunch on Wednesday with our more than 700 staff members as part of the annual Fall Staff Forum. Positive interactions are so important in our daily work – always remember to practice what we learned and respond with a "Yes, and…".

• If you were at the football game last Saturday like me and didn't see the new Baylor commercial as part of the national television broadcast on FS2, check out the latest BaylorProud post that features "What Does Baylor Mean to You?".

• Finally, we continue to focus on seeking the appropriate restorative remedies for survivors who have experienced past events of sexual violence within our campus community, as evidenced by several recent headlines. Over the past 15 months, Baylor has undertaken significant measures to prevent, manage and respond to the issue of sexual violence. I want to reiterate that our aim is for today's Baylor to be a model institution for the prevention of and response to sexual violence.

Thank you for your commitment to Baylor, and I will be wearing Green and Gold tomorrow!

Linda A. Livingstone, Ph.D.
President