GCU TODAY • 7
CindySeminoff, Collegeof Science, Engineeringand
Technology:
“I try toget students to thinkabout howthis
relates to their lives. It’s soexciting to see their passion
forChrist. I see it in theway they interact inclass.”
Michael Kary, Collegeof FineArts andProduction:
Said
thereare twokinds of opportunities in integrating faith
intoacting: providential (daily focus onwhoput youhere)
and intentional (knowyour courseandyour students).
BenVanDerLinden, CollegeofHumanities andSocial
Sciences:
“Mywork is teaching, and in teaching I find
ways to support andways tochallenge,which forme is an
integral part of livingout faith.”
Dr.MoronkeOke, ColangeloCollegeof Business:
“The
key is sincerity. Your lifewill speak to the students. They
see youas human, someonewhohas been in their shoes,
someonewhocares about them.”
BenVilkas andLisaBernier, College
of Education:
Recommendedgetting
students to leaddevotions inclass, goon
mission trips, volunteer andengage in
deeper philosophical discussions.
Sherri Spicer, CollegeofNursingandHealthCare
Professions:
“Integrating faith into the classroom in the
CollegeofNursingdirectly relates toour understanding
of nursingas a calling rather thana career.”
said. “What I’ve found is that there’s a genuine interest — the faculty is
beginning to drive this, not just at the Lunch and Learns but in general
— and there’s strong leadership in each college. It’s bringing to a head
something that’s already happening elsewhere on campus, just in little
pockets.
“So when we come together, what they tend to get excited about is
when one of their colleagues leads off and says, ‘Hey, here’s what I’m
doing.’ That’s where they start asking questions. What I’m really doing is
just making the conversation happen, and then I offer a little bit of insight
into the Christian world.”
As part of the program, the University also hosted on campus a public
speaker series featuring a group from Ravi Zacharias International
Ministries, Detroit pastor Christopher Brooks and philosophers Dr. Paul
Copan and Dr. J.P. Moreland.
The time is now
After a series of informal conversations, the idea formally took root in
2013 when GCU President/CEO Brian Mueller gathered a group of 40
prominent faculty and staff members to get their ideas about how to
integrate and reinforce the program in the curriculum. Hiles spent the
2013-14 school year organizing introductory presentations and roundtable
discussions at all of the colleges and preparing for the Lunch and Learns
and a separate speaker series in 2014-15.
When he attended the Lunch and Learn in January, Mueller noted
that the Integration of Faith, Learning and Work is especially important
because the University will be making significant faculty hires in the
coming years. “I don’t think there’s a better, more opportune time to do
this than right now,” he told the audience.
Dr. Hank Radda, GCU’s provost, said the challenge was to determine
how to implement the program in a thoughtful but expedient manner.
“You want to integrate more into the classroom, integrate more into
the curriculum, but that’s not a quick change. It’s a process, and we began
with the faculty,” Radda said.
“We started brainstorming with faculty in all the colleges and asked
them for their ideas, which were very helpful. We began formulating our
plans the second year, then worked on specific courses and areas in the
curriculum, delving a little more deeply into each college.”
For the 2015-16 school year, pending input from the administration,
Hiles said, “I’d like to open the door a little more to the conversation
about work. We’ve talked about the integration of faith and learning in
discipline-specific areas, and it just comes out implicitly, ‘This is what I do
for work.’ I’d like to make it a little more explicit.”
Faculty benefits, too
An interesting dichotomy of the Lunch and Learns is that while each of
the faculty presenters got huge support from peers in their own college,
regular attendees said they also benefited greatly from listening to
someone in an unrelated field.
The dynamic of introducing prayer into, say, a business classroom is far
different from doing it in the College of Theology, but the idea is the same.
“I found it very inspiring,” said Dr. Pete Charpentier, an assistant
theology professor. “I learned how to do a lot of things better. One of the
things you always have to be careful of is doing things the same way and
getting into ruts.”
Anna Faith Smith, assistant dean of COT, said, “It’s really critical for
the faculty to derive a sense of comfort when they speak to the students in
this way. If people think it’s safe, they’re empowered.”
The ultimate comfort is for students, of course — and not just while
they’re at GCU. As Radda put it, “The reality of this will be how they
carry their faith into their profession and the working world. Students
have to make it specific to their discipline to make the conversation
more relevant.”
But the benefits go both ways. As much as Savarirajan was amazed by
the impact prayer had on the students, some of whom had never prayed by
themselves, she also saw what it did for her.
“I am a Christian and I am also a scientist, so it makes sense to me,” she
said. “There’s a purpose. I can see the whole big picture of why God has
created us. As I observe His creation, everything makes sense. It helps me
to know Him better — not to know
about
Him, but to know
Him
.”
Savarirajan was particularly moved by the survey response of one
student: “Coming to GCU really made me take control of my faith and
make it personal to me because I no longer am able to piggyback on my
school’s or family’s religion but had to work on my own relationship
with Christ.”
Amen to that.
Lunch and Learn Presenters
