By Sarah Gallaher | Staff Writer
Baylor was ranked No. 40 in the top colleges for future leaders in a recent article from TIME magazine. The university has a variety of leadership programs in different fields of study, all of which aim to equip students to become future leaders.
The Baylor Center for School Leadership, one of many such opportunities at Baylor, equips leaders in the field of education to be “the best school leaders possible,” according to BCSL department chair Dr. William Sterrett. Sterrett joined the faculty in 2022 and said he has seen immense growth in the program since.
“I am very glad to be at Baylor,” Sterrett said. “I came to Baylor because of the unique mission. We are the only Christian Research 1 university, and as our president says, we are an unambiguously Christian university.”
As one of the top 40 colleges for future leaders, Baylor has a variety of notable alumni, including Walmart CFO John Rainey and Freddy’s Frozen Custard and Steakburgers CEO Chris Dull.
However, Baylor’s approach to leadership impacts more than just alumni. Current undergraduate and graduate students have the opportunity to learn more about what it means to be a leader during their time at Baylor. The BCSL recently implemented a master’s program for school leadership that offers a dual-track cohort model for both Texas and independent school principals.
“We want them to be impactful in Texas and around the world,” Sterrett said.
Additionally, Baylor offers a leadership minor for students in the School of Education. BCSL executive director Dr. John Eckert teaches one of the undergraduate courses for the leadership minor alongside his work with graduate students.
“The Baylor students we work with come to us with a confident ability that they have truth,” Eckert said. “They know where they’re headed, and they know they need others. I think that’s the confidence that comes from being a Christian university.”
The TIME magazine article gave Baylor a leadership score of 81, but the article does not elaborate on the factors that contributed to the overall score. However, both Sterrett and Eckert said Baylor’s Christian values and R1 designation contribute to students’ leadership development.
“My experience is that Baylor does a great job developing leaders because it has this focus on Texas, the church and the world,” Eckert said. “I feel like there is a great market for developing leadership for Texas, for the U.S. and then increasingly an international focus on Christian leadership.”
Despite Baylor’s ranking, Eckert said there is always room for improvement. Empowering future leaders is an ongoing effort for Baylor, and according to Eckert, following the success of the master’s program, Baylor will offer a Ph.D. in educational leadership in the fall.
Moving forward, Sterrett said he wants Baylor to create new doors of access for leaders throughout the world, equipping the next generation to do important work.
“I hope that we help provide role models, that we provide pathways and we provide opportunities,” Sterrett said. “So, in other words, we say, ‘This is both inspiration of what you can be and information of how to get there.’”
