
WACO, Texas (BP) — Baylor University’s president announced in a letter Wednesday (July 9) that the school has rescinded a grant toward the study of “disenfranchisement and exclusion of LGBTQIA+ individuals and women” in churches.
The move came after Baylor’s Diana R. Garland School of Social Work announced on June 30 that it had received a grant of nearly $644,000 toward its Center for Church and Community Impact, also called C3I. The web page with the original announcement is no longer active.
The Baptist Standard, news journal for the Baptist General Convention of Texas (BGCT), reported that the grant was to fund a study “to help foster inclusion and belonging in the church.”
Through his weekly email and before Baylor decided to rescind, Texas Baptists Executive Director Julio Guarneri addressed “questions and concerns” over the university’s decision to receive the grant. He further stated the convention leadership was “trying to learn more about what this means.”
University President Linda A. Livingstone said the decision to rescind came about by Dean Jon Singletary and principal investigator Gaynor Yancey, which she agreed “is the appropriate course of action and in the best interests of Baylor University.”
She included that, “We remain committed to providing a loving and caring community for all — including our LGBTQIA+ students — because it is part and parcel of our University’s mission that calls us to educate our students within a caring Christian community.”
Guarneri further expressed appreciation for the decision, calling it “consistent with Baylor’s policies and statement on human sexuality” and commended Livingstone and Still “for their commitment to these biblical and historical principles and for their leadership.”
The Center for Church & Community Impact states its mission as “to equip congregations to create environments of relational belonging that extend to their surrounding community.” That includes “help[ing] congregations who wish to create a safe, inclusive, and supportive environment for everyone in their community.”
The BGCT 2025 budget earmarks $689,525 in student scholarships and ministerial financial aid for Baylor, second only to Dallas Baptist University ($793,188) among educational institutions. The most recent report on the agreement between the BGCT and Baylor, which is reviewed every ten years, came in February 2023 and cited $1.3 million in annual support from the convention toward ministerial education at Truett Seminary, financial aid for BGCT-affiliated pastors and ministers and their families, and through assistance for Baptist Student Ministries. The BGCT also selects 25% of Baylor’s board of regents.
Only designated funds, and not those received through the Cooperative Program, go toward Baylor’s general budget, Guarneri told the Baptist Standard.
Texas Baptists remain “committed to our conviction that biblical sexuality is a gift from God, which consists of a relationship between a man and a woman within the covenant of marriage,” he said.
Livingstone acknowledged how the controversy led to “concern and confusion for many within the Baylor Family and among our broader community of churches, partner organizations, and supporters.”
“This has been a learning opportunity for many involved in this situation, and we aim to work alongside our college and school leaders, faculty and research community, particularly during these challenging times for higher education,” she said.
In a statement, Eula Mae & John Baugh Foundation trustees said they were “deeply saddened by Baylor’s decision and said a similarly-funded project was part of Baylor’s School of Social Work for the past three years and had “yielded significant insights.”
(EDITOR’S NOTE — Scott Barkley is chief national correspondent for Baptist Press.)