History

History: General
Houston Baptist College was created by action of the Baptist General Convention of Texas on November 15, 1960 culminating many years of work and study. The aim of the College founders was the establishment of a Christian college of the highest order in the city of Houston that stressed quality of life as well as quality of learning.

In 1952, the Union Baptist Association authorized a committee to study the possibility of locating a Baptist college in Houston. With the assistance and encouragement of the Education Commission of the Baptist General Convention of Texas, the committee conducted a survey in 1955. Acting upon information obtained with the endorsement of the Education Commission, the Association approved the concept of establishing a new college. In 1956, the Executive Board of the Baptist General Convention of Texas approved a recommendation that Houston Baptists be given assurance that the Convention would support such a college when the College Committee of the Union Baptist Association had succeeded in acquiring both (1) a satisfactory site for a campus of at least one hundred acres, and (2) a minimum corpus of at least three million dollars. Of this sum, one and one-half million dollars would constitute a nucleus endowment fund; one and one-half million dollars would be designated for a physical plant. The Union Baptist Association accepted these conditions and endorsed the requirements set up by the state Baptist convention.

In 1957, a Houston land developer, Frank Sharp, offered to sell Union Baptist Association 390 acres in southwest Houston for the construction of a college. The Board of Governors of Rice University agreed to lend most of the money needed with the land as collateral. To complete the funding, twenty-five business men, since called "founders," pledged to be responsible for $10,000 each. Therefore, by 1958, a campus site of 196 acres was acquired in southwest Houston, and, in 1960, the initial financial goal of repaying the loan was reached as a result of a campaign among the churches.

In 1960, the Baptist General Convention of Texas in its annual session at Lubbock, Texas elected the first Board of Trustees. This board in session in Houston, Texas on November 15, 1960 approved and signed the College charter. The next day, this charter was ratified and recorded with the Secretary of State in Austin. The way was then cleared to select administrative officers, develop a suitable physical plant, and design an appropriate academic program. Dr. W. H. Hinton began service as the first President of the College on July 1, 1962.

The College opened in September 1963 with a freshman class of 193 students, a cluster of new buildings, and a teaching staff of thirty faculty. A new class was added each year until the College attained a four-year program in 1966-67. By then, the full- time faculty had grown to fifty-four members, serving an enrollment of approximately 900 undergraduate students.

History: Degrees and Programs
Initially, the College offered only a Bachelor of Arts degree with academic courses in five divisions: Christianity, Fine Arts, Languages, Science and Mathematics, and Social Studies. The Board of Trustees, following the recommendation of the faculty and administration, authorized the establishment of the Division of Education and Psychology in 1964 and a Division of Business and Economics in 1966. With the opening of the fall semester of 1969, the College added a Division of Nursing, offering a Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing.

In 1966, the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools recognized Houston Baptist College as an official candidate for accreditation. The highlight of the 1968-69 academic year was the granting of initial accreditation by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools on December 4, 1968. A visiting committee made a careful study of the College in March 1971 and upon its recommendation, the Commission on Colleges extended accreditation for ten years. This accreditation was reaffirmed in 1981, 1991 and 2001.

In 1965, the Texas Education Agency first approved Houston Baptist College for the training of certified teachers for elementary and secondary schools. During its first semester, representatives selected by the Texas Education Agency evaluated the teacher education program; approval of the program was continued.

The baccalaureate degree program in nursing received accreditation by the National League for Nursing on April 21, 1972. In July 1972, all thirty-eight members of the first nursing class successfully completed the examination required and administered by the State Board of Nurse Examiners. An Associate Degree in nursing was added in June 1983. This program graduated its first class in 1985.

A study abroad program began in 1967 with a group of English majors in residence at the Shakespeare Institute, Stratford-upon-Avon, England for the month of April. Study abroad continued with programs in Mexico, the Middle East, and Europe. An International Study Center currently exists within the Enrichment Center as a campus-wide resource for students and faculty. It also supports ongoing study abroad and academic exchange programs including the Smith College of General Studies’ interdisciplinary summer course on culture and human experience, the Business College’s annual international trip (BUSA 4301), the Houston Grampian Society’s Nursing Exchange Program with Robert Gordon University (in Aberdeen, Scotland), the Language Department’s Alliance Francaise de Houston Scholarship, and the Christianity Department’s Summer Hebrew Ulpan at the University of Cambridge’s Centre for Modern Hebrew Studies. The MBA and the Master of Liberal Arts programs both include international study components for graduate students. Over a hundred HBU faculty and students participate in global learning experiences each year.

History: Structure and Organization
In 1973, Houston Baptist College officially became Houston Baptist University following completion of a formal self-study for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. At the same time, degree programs were revised, making the Bachelor of Science option available to all graduates. The instructional divisions were completely reorganized into college units.

Five colleges headed by deans replaced the previous structure of eight divisions. The new structure consisted of the H. B. Smith College of General Studies and four upper- level colleges -- the College of Business and Economics, the College of Education and Behavioral Sciences, the College of Fine Arts and Humanities, and the College of Science and Health Professions. A sixth College was created in 1978 by separating the College of Fine Arts from the College of Humanities. The seventh college was created in 1991 by separating the College of Nursing and the College of Science and Mathematics. In 1995, a College of Arts and Humanities was again combined from the previously separate colleges.

When the instructional areas were reorganized in 1973, the University adopted a quarter calendar that permitted multiple admission opportunities annually. Semester hours were retained as the standard credit unit. An early admissions program also was established which enabled students to secure high school diplomas at the end of the freshman year of college matriculation.

History: Graduate Programs
Graduate studies began in 1977 with the initiation of the Master of Business Administration and the Master of Science in Nursing degrees. Graduate studies leading to the Master of Education began in 1979. The Master of Science in Management degree and the Master of Accountancy degree were added in 1980. A Master of Arts in Psychology was added in 1982. A traditional Master of Business Administration degree was introduced in 1981 that was offered both on campus and on an interactive television delivery system to corporate and educational sites within sixty miles of the campus. The Master of Liberal Arts degree was initiated in 1985. In 1993, new majors were added to the Master of Business Administration degree, and a Master of Arts in Pastoral Counseling and Psychology degree was created. This degree was phased out in 2002 and replaced with the Master of Arts in Christian Counseling program. In 1995, a Master of Science degree in Health Administration and a Master of Science degree in Nursing Practice were initiated. In 1996, the Master of Science in Management was re-instituted for those already holding an MBA degree. The Master of Arts in Theological Studies was added in 1997. In 1999, the Master of Science in Accountancy and Information Technology was initiated. The Master of Arts in Christian Counseling program was begun in 2002.

History: Physical Plant
The physical plant of the University has kept pace with development in other areas. When classes began in 1963, only the Brown Academic Quadrangle and the campus dormitories were completed. The Frank and Lucille Sharp Gymnasium and the Atwood Theology Building were completed in 1964. The Moody Library, the Holcombe Mall, and the Morris Columns were constructed in 1968-69. The McDermott Plaza was completed in 1971 as a gift from trustee Ethyl Loos McDermott. The Cullen Science Center and Mabee Teaching Theater opened in 1977 providing space for the College of Science and Health Professions. In addition, in early 1977, the Memorial Hospital System Central Unit was completed on a site purchased from the University adjacent to the academic campus. The Atwood II building was completed in 1983 as a joint project of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and the University. Moreover, in 1983, an addition to the bookstore was completed that was funded by the M. D. Anderson Foundation. In 1985, the University relocated its Math and Associate Degree in Nursing departments to new housing in the Cullen Nursing Center, and the Glasscock Gymnastics Center was completed. In 1989, a new wing was added to the Moody Library, virtually doubling its library space and providing a permanent home for the University's Museum of Architecture and Decorative Arts.

In 1997, the Hinton Center was dedicated, marking completion of the largest academic facility on campus. The new visual campus landmark houses the colleges of Business and Economics and of Education and Behavioral Sciences as well as the Dillon Center conference facilities. In 1997, the University's new Bible in America Museum opened in Moody Library -- the largest collection of American Bibles on public display in the United States. A new campus apartment complex, Husky Village, was built adjacent to the University residence halls. The year 1998 marked the completion of the Baugh Center, named in honor of Eula Mae (Mrs. John) Baugh, that houses food service, recreational, counseling, study, and residential-support facilities. In the fall of 1999, the Memorial Hermann- HBU Wellness Center opened on the campus providing access to state of the art programs and facilities for the University's students and employees. A new addition to the Women's Residence College was constructed in 2000. And, in 2003, the Mabee Teaching Theater and the Glasscock Center were enhanced by a new lobby facility serving the conference capability of this complex.

History: Endowment Programs
Special endowment programs have further enriched the University. The University received three endowed chairs during the period 1971-1978 — the Herman Brown Chair of Business and Economics, the Robert H. Ray Chair of Humanities, and the John Bisagno Chair of Evangelism. In the same period, two endowed professorships were given — the Rex G. Baker Professorship in the College of Business and Economics and the Prince-Chavanne Professorship of Christian Business Ethics. The John S. Dunn Research Foundation funded the Dunn Endowed Professorship in Nursing in 1994 and a professorship for Clinical Excellence in Nursing in 2001. In 2005, the estate of former HBU employee Juanita Pool and her sister, Phyllis, funded the Juanita and Phyllis Pool Endowed Chair of Nursing. The Endowed Scholarship program was begun in 1971 increasing the endowment of the University and helping assure the recruitment of top academic students. In 2006, the University numbered more than 250 Endowed Scholarships funded through this program.

History: Leadership
In 1987, the University’s first president, Dr. W. H. Hinton was named University Chancellor and served in that capacity until his retirement in 1991. His successor, Dr. Edward Douglas Hodo, and his wife Sadie, came to Houston from the University of Texas at San Antonio where he served as Dean of the College of Business. During the Hodo years, the University achieved a position of financial solidarity that greatly enhanced its integral strengths in other areas of its operation. In 1997, Dr. and Mrs. Hodo received the HBU Spirit of Excellence Award, the highest honor bestowed by the University. New academic programs were developed, and the physical plant witnessed construction of the Hinton Center, the Baugh Center, the University Apartments, the Memorial Hermann-HBU Wellness Center, and the Glasscock Center expansion. In 2006, construction was approved for the first phase of a new Cultural Arts Center for the campus to include ultimately a chapel-recital hall, new housing for the Dunham Family Bible in American Museum, the Museum off American Architecture and Decorative Arts, a 1200 seat theater, and an atrium gallery unifying each of the individual facilities.

In the spring of 2006, Dr. Hodo announced his plans to move from the University Presidency to other areas of service effective June 30, 2006. A search committee was appointed by the Board of Trustees to seek the University’s third President. The Board of Trustees named Jack D. Carlson interim president effective August 1, 2006 and also appointed an Executive Management Committee to assist Interim President Carlson is the day-to-day management responsibilities of the University. Named to the committee were Dr. Don Looser, vice president for academic affairs; Richard Parker, vice president for financial affairs; and Sharon Saunders, vice president for marketing.

On August 8, 2006 the Board of Trustees named Dr. Robert B. Sloan Jr. the third president of Houston Baptist University effective September 1, 2006.

Retired University professor Dr. Marilyn McAdams Sibley has written a more complete history of the early years of the founding of the University, To Benefit a University: The Union Baptist Association College Property Committee, 1958-1975. Additional information is available through the archives of the Moody Library.

The Liberal Arts Program
The undergraduate liberal arts program has at its foundation the conviction that all worthy vocations are built on a basis of service to mankind. This is a program that seeks to liberate both faculty members and students from the limitations of opportunity and outlook, to increase their awareness of self and environment, to sharpen their capacity for critical and creative thought, and to equip them to meet the demands of intelligent citizenship in a rapidly changing and complex society. It is a program designed to produce general resourcefulness, leadership, the ability to solve problems, and a capacity for happy and successful living. Its elements embrace enduring values and its methods promote the continuation of independent study, to the end that one may enjoy a lifetime of intellectual adventure.
 Although vocational preparation is not its sole objective, the liberal arts program is intensely practical because of the belief that the best academic preparation in a rapidly changing society is not narrow training in specific skills, but broad development of general abilities. HBU strongly endorses the liberal arts experience as the best possible foundation on which to build a successful career.

The Campus Plan
The campus of the Houston Baptist University consists of 158 acres in southwest Houston bounded by the Southwest Freeway, Fondren Road, and Beechnut Street. The campus is designed as a complex of buildings surrounding a central mall that begins at the east with the Hinton Center and ends at the west with Sharp Gymnasium and the Glasscock Center. It is flanked by the Moody Library, the Cullen Nursing Center, the Cullen Science Center, the Mabee Teaching Theater, the M. D. Anderson Student Center, and the Stanley P. Brown Administrative Complex. Adjacent to the campus is the HBU-Memorial Herman Wellness Center for student and faculty use. Concentrically related to this complex are the complementary facilities for residence, athletics, and recreation. The campus master plan is designed to be completed with the construction of a cultural arts center, a chapel, and additional housing and recreational facilities.

ATHLETIC HISTORY

Houston Baptist University has rejoined the National Collegiate Athletic Association as a Division I member. The Huskies will be in their first year of provisional membership with the NCAA in the 2007-08 academic year.

“Membership in the NCAA will provide benefits and visibility for the University which will impact our students, athletes, coaches, alumni and the entire HBU community,” said HBU President Robert B. Sloan Jr. “Athletics is an integral component of the college experience, and competition at this level is consistent with our desire to reach a higher standard of excellence in every aspect of University life.”

HBU was a member of the NCAA from 1967 until 1990 and competed as a Division I member from 1973 until 1989. HBU left the NCAA for the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics in the fall of 1990, joining the Red River Athletic Conference as a charter member in 1998. While a member of the RRAC, the Huskies won 40 conference championships and competed in 35 NAIA national tournaments. HBU was recipient of the league’s All-Sports Award eight times. The Huskies were perennially nationally ranked in men’s and women’s basketball, baseball, softball and volleyball throughout their NAIA tenure.

HBU basketball finished the 2002-03 season as the number one-ranked team in the country, while women’s basketball advanced to back-to-back NAIA Final Fours in 2004 and 2005. The Husky volleyball team was the NAIA national runner-up in 2002, the softball team finished as the second-ranked team in 2005 and the baseball team competed in its first NAIA World Series last spring, finishing third. And, in their inaugural season in 2006, men's and women's soccer each finished as RRAC tournament runners-up.

In addition to the team success at the NAIA level, many individuals were honored for their contributions. Elele Ekadeli (volleyball), Rod Nealy (basketball) and Laura Hess (softball) each were honored as national players of the year, while basketball coach Ron Cottrell and volleyball coach Kaddie Platt received national coach of the year accolades. Also, baseball player Trevor Enders pitched for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays after a successful career in an HBU uniform.

“We have enjoyed a great deal of success at the NAIA level, but now it is time to return to the NCAA and make our mark there,” said director of athletics Ron Cottrell. “With the vision that has been established under the new leadership of Dr. Sloan, it is the natural progression for our university, as well as our athletic department.”

HBU has added men’s and women’s track and field and cross country to its sports offerings. The Huskies will also compete in women’s golf this year and will add men’s golf in the fall of 2008. HBU track and golf enjoyed success in the NCAA in the 1970s and 1980s. The Huskies’ rich golf tradition includes many who went on to professional golf careers. Some of those alumni include LPGA professionals Stephanie Farwig and Caroline Pierce and PGA professionals Tim Thelen and, most notably, Colin Montgomerie, among others. HBU also is proud to claim the 1982 NCAA high jump champion Ricky Thompson among its alumni.