News

As a child growing up in Nebraska, Richa Sirohi (BS ’18) never imagined she would pursue a career in space exploration — but a few signs were already there.

Today, Sirohi serves as an end-to-end information systems engineer at the Jet Propulsion Lab, working on a project called NISAR — a spacecraft that utilizes radar imaging to understand how the Earth is changing. The work has implications for climate science, resource management, and more back on Earth.

WACO, Texas (July 12, 2023) – One of the most striking features of Baylor University’s new Mark & Paula Hurd Welcome Center is the four massive columns that start on the interior floor of Carlton Hall and extend 96 feet high, stretching through the building’s roof and into the sky. The columns are more than a striking architectural feature, though; they represent a deep symbolic connection to Baylor’s history while providing a unique technology-rich and interactive experience for the entire Baylor Family.

It is July and it is hot in Texas! With temperatures regularly above 100 degrees Brad and I are looking for ways to beat the heat. 

This week’s Major League Baseball All-Star game marks the unofficial midpoint of the baseball season, and for Baylor fans, there was plenty to cheer in the season’s first half. Major league debuts, starting spots, and elite power numbers were just a few of the highlights.

Four Bears have seen time in the big leagues already this year, and even more are waiting in the wings in Triple A, the highest level of minor league baseball.

Now that the calendar has flipped over to July, planning and preparations for the upcoming fall semester have ramped up considerably. 

WACO, Texas (July 6, 2023) – Numerous details throughout the Mark & Paula Hurd Welcome Center honor Baylor's history while simultaneously pointing toward its bright future. Some details are subtle nods to the campus, while others shine the Baylor light for all to see.

Global flavors, traditional favorites, new arrivals add sizzle to Waco’s growing dining scene.

I am back on campus following double-knee replacement surgery earlier this month - without a scooter, walker, crutches or a cane, thanks to an incredible medical team and your ongoing prayers. 

If you have questions about financial aid, you’re not alone. One Stop is where students and families can turn for all financial aid questions at Baylor.

When Keyonte George heard his name called last night in the 2023 NBA Draft, it fulfilled a lifelong dream for the former Baylor guard — and continued a recent trend for BU that no one else in college basketball can match.

“That Good Old Baylor Line” — Baylor University’s school song, or alma mater, since 1931 — has been proudly sung by generations of Baylor students and alumni.

Thank you for all of the prayers and notes of support as I recover from last week's double-knee replacement surgery.

WACO, Texas (June 15, 2023) – Baylor University is well-represented on a prestigious list compiling the top most-cited researchers in the world. In a database compiled by Stanford University, 36 current or retired Baylor faculty members appear among the top 2% of the most-cited researchers across 22 disciplines.

Stanford University recently compiled a database of the most cited researchers in higher ed history — specifically, those who ranked among the top 2% all-time. It’s an incredible undertaking — and one that found 34 Baylor professors among the honorees.

Baylor has accomplished a lot in President Linda Livingstone‘s six years at the helm: R1 recognition, a successful $1.1 billion fundraising campaign, faculty growth, campus updates, athletic success, and more.

Her leadership here at Baylor has attracted attention across higher education, leading to national leadership opportunities for President Livingstone — and incredible opportunities for Baylor University to have a seat at the table in helping shape the future of higher ed.

WACO, Texas (June 6, 2023) – Caleb Martin, Ph.D., associate professor of chemistry and biochemistry at Baylor, and a team of international researchers set out in 2022 to determine first-ever challenge of elemental analysis validity, which has sparked conversations among journal editors and chemists about reevaluating this current threshold.

WACO, Texas (June 2, 2023) -- Heidi Pullmann-Lindsley, a doctoral candidate in biology, has been selected to make a presentation about her mosquito research at the Rising Stars in Entomology Symposium at the Entomological Society of America annual meeting.

I have enjoyed reading about the summer plans of many of you, whether it’s studying abroad, serving on a mission trip, getting ahead academically through our Summer of Discovery program or an internship or simply catching up with friends and family. 

How did a Baylor professor play a role in adjusting what scientists thought they knew about Africa’s historic timeline — by 10 million years?!?

It all comes down to a lot of digging, a decade’s worth of research, and the definitive presence of warm-weather grasses.

WACO, Texas (May 31, 2023) – For the second year in a row, Baylor University has been named among the nation’s top 10 Most Trusted Universities, according to global research firm Morning Consult as part of its Most Trusted Brands project, the definitive measure of consumer brand trust across industries, including higher education.

Every year, U.S. News unveils its annual ranking of American colleges and universities to the world. Last fall, Baylor came in at No. 77 in the nation — again among the top 20% of national universities — and was one of just eight schools to make the outlet’s top 25  for both undergraduate teaching and undergraduate research opportunities. (Baylor was also named among the nation’s top 10 for first-year student experiences and top 20 most innovative schools.)

Based on the volume of responses and comments I have heard over the past few days, I know many of you have already seen and shared in my excitement over two of the newest additions to the Baylor Family: Judge Belle and Judge Indy!

The big news of the summer: Baylor has new bear cubs coming to campus!

Judge Indy and Judge Belle will make the transition to the AZA-accredited Bill & Eva Williams Bear Habitat on campus this summer. The rescue cubs are cousins, born just five days apart earlier this year, and come to Waco from a wildlife park in Idaho.

WACO, Texas (May 19, 2023) – During its regular May meeting, the Baylor University Board of Regents elected new leadership and approved the 2023-2024 operating budget, three renovation projects and two new degree programs – a Master’s degree in Physician Assistant Studies and a Bachelor of Science/Master of Science degree in Biology of Global Health.

Campus sure is a little quieter this week! We’re in the midst of Baylor’s quarterly Board of Regents meeting, so I will get right to a few updates:

Growing up in the Metroplex, Dalton Capps’ circumstances didn’t exactly suggest college was in his future. No one in his family had gone to college, his family faced significant financial hardships, and not many friends and classmates were considering a four-year university, if they were considering college at all.

But Capps had one advantage: His parents.

It seems like just yesterday we began the spring semester, yet here we are – at Commencement! Tomorrow and Saturday, we will celebrate more than 4,000 graduates, which is the largest graduating class in Baylor history.

WACO, Texas (May 9, 2023) – Twelve Baylor University professors have been honored with Outstanding Faculty Awards for teaching, scholarship and contributions to the academic community for the 2022-2023 academic year.

Every spring, the Baylor Family bids happy retirement to professors and staff who have dedicated their professional lives to the university and its students. It’s always a bittersweet mix — sadness in seeing them go, happiness for a well-deserved next step — but we wish them all well in the next phase of their lives.

Here, we honor some of the longest-serving and most recognizable professors who are retiring this year — men and women whose faces will be missed, but whose impact will not be forgotten:

I hope you will join me tomorrow at 11 a.m. in the Paul Powell Chapel at Truett Seminary for “Lift Up Your Hearts,” a semester-ending service of prayer and worship not only for faculty and staff, but also for students and friends of the University.

Last year, Baylor set a school record when 13 Bears earned prestigious Fulbright scholarships — almost twice the previous BU record! — as part of the nation’s flagship program for international graduate student and education. The year also included a Truman Scholar (BU’s first in 15 years), a Goldwater Scholar, a Churchill Scholar, and two Critical Language Scholars.

And yet — 2023’s student honors may be even more impressive.

WACO, Texas (May 3, 2023) – Noted Baylor University smartphone researchers Meredith E. David, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Marketing, and James A. Roberts, Ph.D., The Ben H. Williams Professor of Marketing in the Hankamer School of Business, have investigated the correlation between the “flow states” – or happiness experienced by individuals – while using Instagram and TikTok and psychological well-being.

On Saturday, Baylor Acrobatics & Tumbling won its eighth — EIGHTH!!!!!!!! — straight national title. At some point, a run of success like this becomes hard to even comprehend.

As you are making plans for the summer, I encourage you to consider Baylor’s Summer of Discovery. This program offers tuition-discounted courses for students across multiple summer sessions. 

WACO, Texas (April 25, 2023) – Highlighted by the graduate entrepreneurship program breaking into the Top 10 nationally, several Baylor University graduate and professional programs were among those ranked in the 2024 Best Graduate Schools rankings, released today by U.S. News & World Report.

I hope you had a chance to see the news about an exciting addition to our Spring Commencement roster – our very own Lady is graduating! 

WACO, Texas (April 19, 2023) – Baylor University is inviting students, alumni and all associated with the Baylor Family to join in celebrating the graduation of the University’s beloved American black bear, Lady, as she moves from the campus habitat to a private, auxiliary facility fully maintained by her Baylor Bear Habitat caregivers, staff and veterinary team.

Greetings from a warm Washington, D.C., as I am beginning my first meetings today as the new chair of the American Council on Education.

As we approach the promise of Easter Sunday, our hearts anticipate its glory with great eagerness. 

WACO, Texas (April 4, 2023) – Before a celebratory crowd in front of the iconic Tidwell Bible Building, Baylor University today unveiled and dedicated statues honoring the University’s first Black graduates, the late Rev. Robert L. Gilbert, B.A. ’67, and Barbara A. Walker, B.A. ’67.

This Tuesday at 1:30 p.m. will be a historic moment in the life of Baylor as we unveil and dedicate the statues honoring the first Black students to earn their undergraduate degrees from the University – the late Rev. Robert L. Gilbert, B.A. ’67, and Mrs. Barbara A. Walker, B.A. ’67. 

WACO, Texas (March 29, 2023) – Baylor University is again joining universities and communities around the country to increase public awareness and prevention education about sexual assault and interpersonal violence during Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM) in April.

WACO, Texas (March 30, 2023) – Baylor University announced today that its Dunn Center for Christian Music Studies (CCMS) in the School of Music has been awarded a four-year, $1.25 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. as part of its Nurturing Children Through Worship and Prayer Initiative.

In the spring of 1945, a group of Baylor students prayed for spiritual renewal for 90 straight days. Their prayers led to a movement that helped inspire ministries on campus and around the world, from the Journeyman mission program to the Passion Conferences.

There are a lot of ways to know how students are feeling on campus – from formal means (like our campus climate surveys) to more informal methods.

From music to literature to television and more, Baylor women have elevated the game for more than a century.

It’s March Madness time at Baylor University! Did you know that Baylor is among only 26 universities that have BOTH their men’s and women’s basketball teams competing in the 2023 NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships? That is some pretty select company.

WACO, Texas – Baylor men's tennis added Devin Badenhorst to the 2023 signing class, head coach Michael Woodson announced on Tuesday. Badenhorst comes to American from Pretoria, South Africa.

It's hard to believe it’s already March and Spring Break is next week. I know many of you are looking forward to time away with family and friends and for rest and renewal during this busy time of year.

The Baylor University Board of Regents is on campus today and tomorrow for its quarterly meeting. As the official governing body of the University, our Regents have in common a genuine love for Baylor and a commitment to our Christian mission and their fiduciary responsibility. As is our custom, we will provide a summary of the Board meeting late Friday to the Baylor Family.

Even though Baylor has been classified as a “Research 1,” or R1, university only since December 2021, our recognition as a top research institution continues to grow.

In December during two Commencement ceremonies, we conferred nearly 1,300 degrees on newly minted Baylor graduates who now are flinging their green and gold afar as Baylor Alumni.

WACO, Texas (Feb. 3, 2023) – Waco and the surrounding area are full of rich history, telling the stories of the people, places and moments that have shaped Central Texas. This history and the associated stories and images can be easily explored through the Waco History app and Waco History website, developed Stephen Sloan, Ph.D., and Adrienne Cain, M.L.S., of Baylor University’s Institute for Oral History.

Texas weather is often described as, “Wait five minutes, and it’ll change!” Just a few weeks ago, our temperatures were in the 80s, but we know how quickly the weather can remind us that it is indeed winter.

In light of some recent crimes that have occurred off campus, I want to reassure you that Baylor takes the safety and security of our students, faculty, staff and visitors very seriously.

We've been welcomed back to Waco for the spring semester by spring-like weather, free-flowing I-35 traffic and food-delivery robots traversing campus. I hope all are signs for a fun, transformational semester!

Greetings from the River Walk in San Antonio, where I am participating in the annual NCAA Convention this week.

It’s been nearly a month since my last weekly Presidential Perspective, and I hope you had a wonderful (and restful!) Christmas break and are ready for all 2023 has in store for Baylor University.

This is our last Presidential Perspective of the semester as we begin final exams. This fall has just flown by, but what an exciting semester we’ve had together as we fully emerged from the long effects of the pandemic.

As we wind down the fall semester, we also begin the Christmas season at Baylor. This is truly a special time on our campus that prepares our hearts in celebration of the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ.

As we approach the Thanksgiving holiday and look toward the light of Christ to be celebrated at Christmas, I wish to express my personal gratitude – as well as to extend the gratitude of everyone on the faculty and staff of Baylor University – to the Baylor Family for your support of our outstanding students and your contributions to fulfilling the mission of Baylor.

You don’t want to miss Saturday’s football game at McLane Stadium! We’ll have great football weather for an increasingly rare night game, and our Bears will be playing with a berth in the Big 12 Championship Game on the line against No. 23 Kansas State.

The Baylor University Board of Regents will be on campus today and tomorrow for its quarterly meeting. This is an important group of Baylor volunteers, as they serve as the official governing body of the University and ensure alignment with our Christian mission and financial integrity.

We are heading into the final five weeks of the Fall semester, which is generally the toughest part of the academic year. Don’t let the weight of the semester bog you down.

We ushered in cooler temperatures earlier this week, just in time for our 113th anniversary of Homecoming on the Baylor campus. But you know how Texas weather is – high temperatures will be back in the upper 80s over the weekend, so plan accordingly!

This is one of those weeks in which I’ve had an opportunity to fling Baylor’s green and gold afar.

Election Day is one month away on Tuesday, Nov. 8, providing an opportunity for us to exercise one of our most important privileges and rights as Americans.

Did you know that Baylor’s iconic green and gold can be traced as far back as 1897? As legend has it, a member of the student committee selected to choose the official colors for the University was traveling to a debate tournament by train.

National Research Administrator Day is celebrated annually on Sept. 25 across the country, but we’ve adopted it as our own at Baylor over the past few years.

This has been a week of big news for the University, so let’s get right to the headlines!

I must admit that the First Gent and I are big fans of Baylor Athletics, especially during the week-long build up for a big football game like BYU this Saturday.

To conclude each week we celebrate Spirit Fridays on all Baylor campuses when we encourage the entire Baylor Family to fling their green and gold afar.

We're nearly through the first week of the fall semester!

The beginning of the fall semester is finally here! I cannot wait for the first day of class on Monday.

Yes, it's August, but this is certainly the most wonderful time of the year! We can feel the excitement and enthusiasm building for two seminal events next week in the lives of Baylor students: Move-in and Welcome Week.

You may have seen the exciting news from earlier this week that Baylor University has been recognized as one of the nation’s top-10 Most Trusted Universities, according to global research firm Morning Consult.

Greetings from San Antonio, where we are celebrating Baylor Board of Regents Days as declared by an official city proclamation. This week is the quarterly meeting of the Board, as we welcome several new Regents for their first official meeting and look toward the start of the fall semester.

With the record-breaking temperatures and drought conditions in the Waco area, many of you have asked how the Baylor campus is being impacted.

It's great to be back in Waco after some family vacation travel and spending yesterday at the Big 12 Football Media Days to officially introduce new Commissioner Brett Yormark on behalf of the conference's Board of Directors

As we look toward the July 4th holiday and a much-needed break for all of us, I am thankful for the sacrifices made by our veterans and current military to ensure the United States remains great and prosperous.

Summers are always a time of transition – from high school to college … residence halls to back home … college to work-life … and here in Texas, 85-degree temperatures to the 100s.

Serving as President of Baylor University and calling Waco my home brings me such great joy.

Earlier today I made the mistake of glancing at the long-range weather forecast for Waco. All I can say is that summer has definitely arrived.

Grief continues to fill my heart today. Like everyone in the Baylor Family, my heart broke on Tuesday as we learned about the tragic mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde — the deadliest school shooting in Texas history.

This is my first official Presidential Perspective of the summer. While the foot traffic on campus is a little lighter this week, the University is still quite active with the minimester underway and students in the Law School and graduate and professional programs continuing their academic work.

Commencement is always a special time on the Baylor campus, and this year has added significance for the First Gent and me. Our daughter, Shelby, will graduate Friday night from Baylor's Truett Seminary with a master's of divinity degree.

It's hard to believe that today is the last class day of the spring semester! To celebrate the occasion and to provide students a little energy heading into final exams, I will be handing out FREE Gelato Mio from 1-2 p.m. today in the SUB. I would love to see you and wish you well as we conclude the spring semester and enter the summer season.

We enjoyed a wonderful night with Baylor faculty and staff Monday to say “thank you” to everyone who helped Baylor achieve R1 recognition as a research university. As we celebrate R1, we are really celebrating the entire Baylor Family, because this truly was a team effort.

Monday is going to be an exciting time to come together to celebrate the incredible accomplishment of Baylor becoming an R1 university.

I don’t think we could have asked for a better combination of warm sunshine and a full slate of activities for this week’s return of Diadeloso, or “Day of the Bear,” as we celebrated this great tradition’s 90th anniversary.

Dia is back! After two years without this annual spring celebration, I can't wait to enjoy a day of fun on campus with you this Tuesday, April 5.

The Baylor campus is a busy place during the spring semester, buzzing with students and visitors who come together for a variety of reasons. Sometimes the occasion is a lecture, a social gathering or a musical or theatrical performance. Sometimes the reason people gather here is an athletics event.

Welcome back from Spring Break – March Madness is finally here! I am sending this week’s email a little early, as I am en route to Dickies Arena in Fort Worth to watch Coach Scott Drew and our defending national champion men’s basketball team take on Norfolk State at 1 p.m. in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament. Then I will be back in Waco tomorrow for Coach Nicki Collen’s NCAA Tournament debut as our Bears face Hawaii at 3 p.m. in the Ferrell Center. Best wishes to our student-athletes, coaches and staffs as they shine in the spotlight, and let’s Sic ’em, Bears!

It was such a joy last week to experience the musical and dance talents of the more than 1,500 students who participated in Sing this spring.

One outcome of the COVID-19 pandemic is that we have the ability to temporarily pivot to remote instruction and operations when winter weather conditions threaten. Gone are the days of waking up at 5 a.m. to see if it will be an ice or snow day. Of course, I fondly remember those snow days from when I was in college!

Today we are announcing the rescission of the University's facemask policy for classrooms and labs when used in academic settings. In other words, facemasks will be optional at Baylor – other than when requested in private offices – effective this Monday, Feb. 21.

What an exciting time for Baylor as we’ve surpassed the $1.1 billion fundraising goal of the Give Light campaign!

My prayers have been with everyone as the winter weather has impacted our local community as well as Texans statewide.

The "Spring Sprint" is definitely underway, and it's hard to believe Feb. 1 is this Tuesday.

What a great start to the 2022 spring semester! I enjoyed greeting so many of you on the first day of class before heading to Indianapolis for the NCAA Convention this week.