“[Presidential candidate Mitt] Romney’s press secretary is a Southern Baptist and a graduate of Bob Jones University, and you don’t get much more ‘Kosher’ than that in the evangelical Christian world.” --on NPR All Things Considered today (on overcoming the “Mormon stigma”) [Can we mix our metaphors any more than that?]
I looked it up. The press secretary is Jared Young, who holds a B.S. in financial management from BJU. Hmm. I’m not sure if adding BJU to the mix would really allay the public’s fear of wacky fundamentalism already attributed to Romney’s campaign. Just sayin’…
I’m not sure what to think of the general perception of my alma mater. Sometimes I think the public is almost as ambivalent about it as I am. Other times I go back to thinking it's the kiss of death on any resume. Maybe it depends on the market (or constituency).
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Well, it fills a hole for Gov. Romney, who needs to have some evangelical credulity...
I went to BJU this summer and was really impressed by the atmosphere. Although I was nervous since I had on open toed shoes...
LOL
Nancy
Hehe. I'm glad you were impressed by your visit to the campus. I was, too, on my first visit, which is ultimately why I went there (a decision I have questioned since, but am still happy with now). Don't worry; open toed shoes are okay there, unless something has changed since I graduated. :-)
You must be right about the evangelical credulity. I guess I'm just a little skeptical of the media's (read NPR's) portrayal of "evangelical Christianity" as some kind of monolith. The name BJU is as divisive as it is unitive among Christians, even evangelicals. In fact, administration at BJ have expressly disclaimed the title "evangelical" because it is a little too eccumenical. Then again, infighting among Christians may become less relevent when there is a common "enemy." One can only hope...
Yeah, kinda wish for the good ole days of anonymity.....
I think your link is broken...
Thanks, mel. I think it's fixed now. Pesky little quotation mark got out of line.
Hello This is very interesting blog I think that Bob Jones university is a neat college in south carolina,My sister went there and graduated from there meet her husband there they married after graduation.Alot of conservative baptists due tend to go to college there.
Gods blessings-
I tend to view the school at a kiss of death on the resume or in public unless you can somehow buy time to get someone to accept you.
Becca has a valid point that the school is often more controversial within "christians" than without. I worked with most unbelievers this summer, and they were much less hostile to my first alma mater than many non-BJU Christians.
Well, as person with no real exposure to the South, the first frame of reference for Bob Jones that I was given was the report that Bush visited a college that banned interracial dating due to an obscure biblical reference to the importance of homogeneity. But it has respect as a University nonetheless, unlike Liberty University. Nothing like going to a law school thats not really a law school.
this bard character is a strange one. who calls non-christians "unbelievers" in a common conversation? its certainly some holier-than-though, loaded word choice if you ask me, which you didn't. but either way, nice blog, keep it up.
anonymous--Thanks. Well, in "common conversation" that might be odd, but it is not at all uncommon in a discussion regarding Christianity and relations among different groups of Christians to refer to those outside that umbrella as "unbelievers." They are unbelievers in the Christian faith. That does not at all suggest that they don't believe in anything. I think the term is meant to be discriptive rather than disparaging.
The mud-slinging for '08 is beginning already. The liberal media is really going to pound Romney, because he is against gay marriage in Massachusetts.
Hey, I was friends with Jared in college. I think that he graduated in 2000. He's a really nice guy. Anyway, I really like your blog.
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