Imperative III
Develop a world-class faculty
Baylor will continue to recruit faculty from a variety of backgrounds capable of achieving the best of scholarship, both in teaching and research. We will recruit high-potential junior faculty as well as highly esteemed senior faculty who embrace the Christian faith and are knowledgeable of the Christian intellectual tradition. Many of these faculty will especially exemplify the integration of faith and learning in their disciplines and in interdisciplinary or collaborative activities. A significant number of Baylor faculty will continue to be recognized as leaders in their respective disciplines and in productive, cutting-edge research.
Progress Summary
- The majority of new Baylor faculty graduated from universities with very high research production.
Of the tenured/tenure track faculty hired fall 2002 through fall 2009, more than three-fourths received their degrees from universities characterized by “very high research activity.”
- We are making remarkable progress in faculty publications.
The number of publications in major journals by Baylor faculty has more than doubled, from 202 in 2002 to 496 in 2008.
- We are making progress for fiscal support of research.
Research expenditures have grown significantly in the past seven years. External expenditures from grants have increased by approximately $5 million, while total research and sponsored activity expenditures have grown by $7 million. This growth in external support for research has combined with our increases in graduates with research doctorates to produce the new Carnegie classification of “research university” for Baylor.
- We are on track in being intentional about the integration of faith and learning.
Baylor hires committed Christians and evaluates each individual job candidate’s willingness to be committed to the University’s mission and vision. Each department has submitted to the Provost a statement describing how its faculty integrate faith and learning in their work. All units advocate reflecting Christian values in the ways faculty relate to one another, students and staff. The relation of faith to the content of teaching and research varies widely from discipline to discipline. For example, these issues are intrinsic to the subject matter of some units (e.g., the Department of Religion or George W. Truett Theological Seminary), while other units explore them as they bear on moral and ethical professional conduct, motivation for professional service or the exploration of particular cultural issues.