IACE Faculty Development Conference focuses on Christian Worldview formation
FORT WORTH - The International Alliance for Christian Education focused its inaugural Faculty Development Conference on Christian worldview formation, impacting more than 35 institutions of higher learning and five organizations with representatives in attendance.
The conference, conducted June 27-30 at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary’s Riley Center, featured 12 session presentations such as what it means to serve at a distinctive Christian institution, teaching effectiveness; spiritual formation; scholarship, research and writing; and concluding panel discussion.
Total attendance was estimated at 100 for the three-day event, with several others joining via Internet streaming.
“What a blessing to see faculty members and administrators gather from every region of the country to invest three days together,” IACE president David S. Dockery said. “I am grateful for every presenter and everyone who participated with us in this significant gathering.”
Twenty-four presenters addressed various topics to help strengthen the work of faculty in both lectures and panel discussions. A planning team met several times during the winter and spring to design the conference program.
Nathan Finn, provost at North Greenville University, examined scholarship in light of the classic book Scholarship Reconsidered by Ernest L. Boyer (Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, 1990).
Boyer proposed that scholarship could be expressed in terms of discovery (traditional academic research), integration (synthesizing two or more areas into one conversation), application and engagement, and teaching and learning.
“Boyer challenges us to think beyond the traditional scholarship,” Finn said. “We’re deeply committed to a Christ-centered activism, and that fits very well with the scholarship of application or engagement.”
After Finn’s address, the conference concluded with individual speakers examining each of Boyer’s scholarship expressions in greater detail, and then a panel discussion.
Other key speakers and presenters included Paul Thompson (North Greenville University), Melinda Stephens (Geneva College), John Netland (Union University), Janet Black (Colorado Christian University), Andy Chambers (Missouri Baptist University), John Basie (Impact 360 Institute), Matt Pinson (Welch College), Amy Crider (Southwestern Seminary), Jennifer Marshall Patterson (Reformed Seminary), Eric Bolger (College of the Ozarks), and Calvin Troup (Geneva), among others.
IACE board chair Ralph Enlow led a session on effective teaching. A team of presenters led the conference’s initial worldview formation discussions, including John Stonestreet, president, Colson Center for Christian Worldview; Scott Rae, professor of philosophy and Christian ethics at Biola University; and Tommy Kidd, distinguished professor of history, Baylor University.
Tom Cornman, provost at Corban University in Salem, Ore., noted that “sometimes you go to a conference and there are two or three sessions that are excellent and the rest are just OK. Every session at this conference was valuable.”
The long-term goal of the conference is to enhance teaching faithfulness at IACE institutions while also encouraging academic leaders to present fall faculty workshops on their individual campuses that focus on Christian worldview teaching and scholarship.
“On the drive home, we talked a lot about what elements we’d like to translate into our institution's faculty development initiatives,” said Hunter Baker, dean of arts and sciences and professor of political science at Union University in Jackson, Tenn.
Baker and several Union colleagues who attended said the material will benefit discussions in the fall and throughout the coming year.
“When you think about where society is, we really need something like this,” Cornman said. “Focus on worldview, especially for new faculty at a Christian college, is critical.”
“I am confident that the time together this week will indeed enable IACE institutions to work together to unify, strengthen, and synergize the work of Christian higher education,” Dockery said.
Dockery expressed deep appreciation for the generous support of those who provided sponsorship for the conference, including NXTPG, Crossway Books, Lexham Press, B&H Publishing, Southwestern Seminary, and especially for Impact 360, which served as the lead sponsor for the event.
The IACE is a global education network encompassing 67 educational institutions and 19 organizations in the evangelical tradition.
Access a photo gallery from the 2021 Faculty Development Conference
###