Introducing ‘Baylor in Deeds,’ the university’s new strategic plan

Baylor’s unofficial Scriptural foundation in recent years has been Matthew 5:14-16, especially: “You are the light of the world… Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”

Both the terminology and meaning have shaped recent major endeavors, from the “Where Lights Shine Bright” and “Give Light” campaigns through the Illuminate strategic plan. Baylor’s next major efforts will continue the focus on those verses, this time on the reason we let our light shine — “so that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”

That’s the heart behind Baylor in Deeds, the university’s new strategic plan, which was unveiled at the Fall Faculty and Staff Meetings last week and to the Baylor Family on Tuesday. The world needs a Christian university to develop faith-based leaders of character who can help solve the world’s greatest challenges, and today, more than ever, Baylor has the resources, scope and scale to make such an impact.

Baylor in Deeds will work to build on the university’s progress of the last quarter-century, as the Baylor 2012, Pro Futuris and Illuminate strategic plans led BU’s transformation into a tier-one, national research university (while keeping hold to our Christian faith). Those plans culminated in Baylor reaching R1 research status in late 2021.

But R1 wasn’t a finish line for Baylor; it was the starting point for the university’s next phase. The next step is to mobilize what Baylor has become to serve the church, the state and the world — Pro Ecclesia, Pro Texana, Pro Mundo.

The core Commitments of Baylor in Deeds should sound familiar: 1) Equipping Students to Flourish, 2) Broadening Interdisciplinary Research and Impact, 3) Building a Vibrant, Caring and Global Community, and 4) Demonstrating Christian Stewardship. This is who Baylor has grown into over the last three decades, and who Baylor will continue to be moving forward.

Within that framework are a host of exciting new opportunities for good deeds — everything from growing our research in areas such as human health and engineering, to working with national and international partners to better serve our neighbors in Latin America, to establishing Baylor as a leader in educating active, engaged citizens who treat others with civility and respect.

And that’s just the start. You can learn more about Baylor in Deeds in President Livingstone’s email to the Baylor Family from earlier this week, and at strategicplan.web.baylor.edu.

A new university brand campaign, “Baylor in Deed,” will support the new strategic plan in the same way “Lights Shine Bright” supported Illuminate. It’s a rallying cry — both telling the story of Baylor (our deeds), and reminding people: “Baylor? Yes, Baylor indeed.”

The world needs a Baylor that is about God’s work, both here and to the ends of the Earth. These upcoming years will be a time of growth as students (and the greater Baylor Family) are inspired to pursue lives of leadership and service, loving God and others in ways that contribute to the flourishing of people around the world.

Sic ’em, Baylor in Deed!