As we move into the heat of the summer in Waco, I am reminded of how blessed we were this past academic year. Amid turbulent times across all higher education, God was gracious to our students, faculty and staff. I am looking forward to seeing how God continues to bless us during the summer as many in the Baylor Family study and serve across the world.

Beginning Monday, June 23, 2025, crews plan to begin reducing both directions of I-35 in Waco from 12th Street to S Loop 340 to two lanes, starting with the southbound mainlanes. 

Among the many draws to Baylor University is the chance to learn from elite faculty members at a Christian research university.

There are plenty of ways to measure this, from having dozens of faculty recognized among the nation’s most cited researchers to the University’s attainment of a top-30 national ranking for both undergraduate teaching and research. Another sign of Baylor’s elite faculty: the many researchers recognized as fellows in their fields.

International prize recognizes CERN collaborators, including four Baylor physicists, for groundbreaking discoveries at the Large Hadron Collider in Geneva, Switzerland.

I hope you saw the news earlier this week that Rev. Dr. Charley Ramsey has been named Baylor University’s new University Chaplain and Dean of Spiritual Life, effective Monday, June 9. 

Thirty-four Baylor students and recent alumni from across the disciplines have received some of the most prestigious awards for STEM research, public policy and diplomacy, critical language study and more. 

Charles M. Ramsey, Ph.D., B.A. ’97, M.A. ’00, associate University Chaplain and director of campus ministries and church connections, has been selected as University Chaplain and Dean of Spiritual Life, effective June 9. 

We could write a month’s worth of posts about recent Baylor graduate Kristen Nakamura (BA ’25). She was a Getterman Scholar, and a University Scholar studying English and math with a minor in creative writing. An award-winning poet whose Honors thesis and undergraduate research included translating the post-WWII haiku shared between her Japanese-American great-grandmother and her twin sister. Tutor. Piano teacher. BRH Choir member. Mission trip veteran. HRC College Council. Summa cum laude graduate. Phi Beta Kappa. Fulbright ETA recipient to Indonesia.

But for all of those honors, what Nakamura really wanted to talk about was the community and sense of belonging she found at Baylor.