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Campus

How Do You Measure A Year (In Student Housing)? | The Cost of College: Rent Edition

For almost 30 percent of the student population of Baylor University, the campus is not only where they learn but also where they live. First-year students are required to live on-campus for their first two semesters. “It’s a big part of our campus culture and student life experience,” said Jeremy Vickers, Associate Vice President, Innovation and Economic Development at Baylor. “Living on campus helps them to get grounded in the academic environment, to build relationships with peers, and we can provide a significant amount of support systems for students.” Baylor has 16 residence halls on campus. The rates are per semester and range from $3,850 for a shared double room to $6,100 for the best single rooms. The buildings on campus are built in a Georgian style, and almost a decade ago a renovation plan began. South Russell Hall was completed in 2014, North Russell Hall in 2015, Penland Hall in 2016, and Martin Hall in 2017.

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The Purpose Driven Life

Why am I here? What was I made to do? Existential questions to be sure and ones that many students grapple with during their college years. In his experience as Assistant Director for Pastoral Care, Tyler Conway has found that students at Baylor have “a desire to connect with God or a community of people to find a sense of meaning and belonging,” and as an unapologetically Christian university, Baylor strives to help them make those connections. “There is a beautiful tapestry of ministers, staff and students whose dedication enhances the spiritual environment at Baylor and that ultimately has resulted in increasing numbers of church attendance,” said Charles Ramsey, Ph.D., Associate Chaplain, Director of Campus Ministries & Church Connections. “Can we track the numbers of students in church? Not yet. But from what we see and hear, there is a vibrancy of faith in our Baylor community, and this is translating into increased Christian commitment and church participation.”

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On Death and Dying

Candi K. Cann calls herself a death scholar. Technically, the associate professor in the Baylor Interdisciplinary Core of the Honors College is a thanatologist, though she allows that most people don’t know what that is. For the record, a thanatologist is a specialist who studies death, dying, grief, and loss. It’s no secret that Americans have been remarkably averse to talking about death, but a 2018 survey released by The Conversation Project suggests that a huge cultural shift may be under way. “We have begun to break the taboo around talking about death,” Ellen Goodman, founder of The Conversation Project, reported at the time.

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Losing Faith in College | The Cost of College: Tuition

Going to college in the United States is a fraught topic for pundits and politicians, who continually raise doubts about the value and purpose of a higher education. It’s too expensive, it’s for elites, it doesn’t deliver needed job skills, and students and families can end up saddled with crushing debt—whether or not the student actually graduates. But recent polls reveal that graduates still value a diploma. A Harris Poll survey conducted among 2023 college grads revealed that nine out of ten were glad they went to college. They also agreed that a degree is the best way to secure their futures.

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Bears on Skis

Joe Gage III grew up on the water, his summer days occupied by buoys and the never-ending pursuit of the perfect gliding technique. His father was part of Baylor’s fledgling club water skiing team in the late 1980s and early ‘90s, and the younger Gage — an avid athlete — quickly adapted the elder’s love of the sport. “I’ve played a lot of other sports, but there’s nothing else like this,” Gage III said. “There’s a unique rush with waterskiing, and I’ve always been chasing that rush. I guess you could say it’s in my blood.” His father added: “I can remember going to my tax class with dripping wet clothes because I just came from practice and didn’t want to leave that time with my friends. So, to see Joe fall in love with the sport that gave me so much, that’s really special.”

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A Class Apart

Of its many achievements, Baylor particularly enjoys two distinctions: that of being the oldest university in Texas (established by the Republic of Texas in 1845, before statehood) and the first university west of the Mississippi to go coed, 75 years before American women were guaranteed the right to vote. Though BU’s gender history may be complicated—the university segregated for about 35 years in 1851—there is no surer sign of its inclusivity than the legions of female Baylor graduates who continue to honor the university through their accomplishments.

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Amazing Baylor Internships: Building a bridge beyond the classroom

From working alongside healthcare and community development specialists combating poverty throughout the United States and heading to Washington for a congressional internship or spending nine weeks in the lab alongside leaders in tropical disease research, Baylor University’s plentiful internship opportunities are thrilling and diverse. Internships are a sure-fire way for undergraduate students to not only put their academic studies to real-life practice — they are also a launching point for future employment and a valuable way to maximize collegiate experiences. They also help students decide if their career aspirations are on the right track. Across disciplines and interests these are six internship opportunities Baylor students should consider.

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Is Comfort the New Couture? Current Baylor Campus Fashion Trends

From miniskirts to platform shoes, leg warmers to parachute pants, ripped jeans to cargo pants, fashion trends come and go. Classic looks like a plain white tee seem never to go out of style, but even some fads, like athleisure, that seem like passing trends end up having real staying power. Others — acid-wash denim, stirrup pants, and jelly shoes — have become downright cringe-worthy in retrospect. So, what influences our fashion choices in the first place?

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Rooted in Green and Gold

In 1903, a ritual known as “tree-planting” was born. Each year, students would gather on the Quadrangle and scoop dirt around the roots of a new tree. The annual ceremony was discontinued after 1919, but as the campus expanded over the century, the old traditions so well-established in the roots of the university meant that tree-planting became a part of the construction of every new building.

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The Making of Beth Allison Barr

Dr. Beth Allison Barr is the James Vardaman Endowed Professor of History at Baylor and author of “The Making of Biblical Womanhood.” In this episode, she discusses what got her interested in writing a book on the topic of Biblical Womanhood, the changes she’s seen since the book’s publication in 2021, why she thinks the topic is so culturally relevant and captivating, and how we’ve misunderstood the history of patriarchy within Christianity with Christianity itself.

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