That Championship Season

In 1973 I went to New York City for the first time. The group with which I went had tickets for a Broadway play called “That Championship Season.” That was a special event for me - but nothing like the championship season that has been experienced this year at Union University.

Championship Athletics

The Union Lady Bulldogs, champions on the court and off, were crowned NAIA National Champions. These courageous young women, inspired by NAIA Coach of the Year David Blackstock, brought honor to Union. They exemplified heart, sacrifice and teamwork throughout their 35-3 season, which included a conference championship on their way to garnering the national crown. On April 15, they were recognized in Nashville by Gov. Don Sundquist and the Tennessee General Assembly for their outstanding accomplishments.

The men’s basketball team won more games than any previous Union team, finishing 30-5. They won the TranSouth Conference Tournament Championship and the conference tournament as well, finishing the season ranked No. 6 in the nation. Ralph Turner was named TranSouth Conference Coach of the Year. Congratulations to the Bulldogs and the Lady Bulldogs!

Championship Academics

Union faculty and students continue to exemplify the university’s core value of being excellence-driven. For the second year in a row, Union has been listed in the top tier of liberal arts colleges in the South by U.S. News and World Report. Union was also ranked as a highly selective institution by Time/Princeton Review. Five additional major recognitions have recognized Union this year for academic excellence. This year’s graduating class includes superb young scholars who will make their mark in medical schools, law schools, graduate schools, seminaries and the marketplace.

The Union TISL team (Tennessee InterCollegiate Student Legislature), made up mostly of political science and history majors, has been ranked tops in the state, edging out teams from Vanderbilt University and the University of Tennessee.

The SIFE team (Students in Free Enterprise) carried off the regional championship at the Southeast competition in Atlanta. Now they head for the national competition in Kansas City, Mo. in May. Congratulations, faculty and students!

Championship Gifts

Over the past few months God has blessed Union with significant major gifts/commitments, paving the way for the school’s future. We give thanks for five gifts/commitments designated either for scholarship purposes or the support of the Campus Master Plan:

• $3.1 million for the athletic/convocation facility by Benny and Norma Fesmire
• $2 million for the classroom phase of the performing arts facility by James Ayers
• $1.65 million for scholarships and the bell tower, which will anchor the new Campus Master Plan (an anonymous gift)
• $780,000 gift from the Audrey Barr Haney estate for scholarships
• $250,000 from a major business for the classroom phase of the performing arts facility

In addition, commitments of over $2 million have been made from over 50 churches for scholarship programs for students from Tennessee Baptist churches. For all this we heartily declare thanks be to God from whom every blessing flows!

Champion Speakers

This spring Union has hosted brilliant speakers on campus. Dr. Charles Wright, professor of English at the University of Virginia and the 1998 winner of the Pulitzer Prize in Poetry, delighted students, faculty and staff with his poetry reading in April.

This year’s Bible Conference featured tough-minded addresses by two brilliant apologists for the Christian faith, Dr. Walter C. Kaiser Jr. and Dr. James White. They provided biblical insights that challenged the current secular and postmodern issues facing the church.

Previously we announced that Lady Margaret Thatcher will be with us for the Fall Scholarship Banquet, October 20. I know many of you will want to be with us for this very special evening.

Our Spring Convocation focused on the subject of “Faith and Science,” which is amplified in this issue of the Unionite. We were privileged to have Dr. Michael Behe, author of Darwin’s Black Box, the 1997 Christianity Today Book of the Year, and a leader in the Intelligent Design Movement. Behe helped us to see how Christians can engage the academy in this important area.

We gladly confess our faith in Christ, as both Creator and Redeemer. As I have said before, it is a joy to serve at a place like this that is rigorously academic and unapologetically Christian. Indeed it has been a championship season at a championship university.