Digital Commons Network^™

2016 Otterbein University Academic Honors Convocation Program, Otterbein University

Honors Convocation

No abstract provided.

The Application Of Prophetic Pragmatism: The Intersection Of The Theologically-Based Education Of The Black Church Leader, The Black Church, The Community, And Social Action, Errol K. Domingue

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This study addressed how the academy (specifically theologically-based higher education), the Black Church, and typically oppressed communities can act as a coalition that produces positive social change. This is an investigation of the training and education that ministerial leaders receive in theologically-based institutions of higher education, how that training and education affects the philosophy and activities of the local church, and ultimately how those connections translate to advocacy and activity for social change. Benjamin Mays’ career in the academy and the church is shown as the type of socially conscious leader that is necessary for social change. Cornel West’s prophetic …

Identifying Standards Of Quality In Christian Online Theological Education, Ryan Baltrip

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Changes in computer and communication technology have sparked an educational revolution. For over 20 years, higher education, as a whole, has been adapting to the changing educational landscape. Christian theological education, which is not immune to changing educational realities, has also been adapting to decentralized educational tendencies and experiencing rapid growth in distance and online learning. Christian theological education appears to be a decade or so behind higher education in its contemporary adaptation to online learning,. Questions that higher education began asking over a decade ago about online learning are now part of the contemporary conversation within Christian online theological …

Implications Of Theological Anthropology For Online Pedagogy In Graduate-Level Ministerial Training, Gabriel Benjamin Etzel

Faculty Publications and Presentations

The thesis of this dissertation is that by utilizing a biblical-theological framework, best practices of online graduate-level ministerial training can be presented in such a way that the role of the faculty, the objectives of the classroom, and the purpose of the institution are focused more effectively on the formation of students as ministers of the gospel. It is argued the role of the faculty member should be a model for students to follow, which necessitates institutions prioritize theological competencies ahead of technological and pedagogical competencies when hiring faculty, and institutions prioritize the faculty member's ongoing spiritual formation in the …

Revisiting The Merits Of A Contested Discipline: Reflections On The Study Of Old Testament Theology, Benjamin J. Lappenga

Pro Rege

No abstract provided.

Teaching The Bible As Scripture In An Academic Setting, Roger Mohrlang

Theology Faculty Scholarship

How do you teach sacred Scripture in academia? Such contrasting worlds—the human and the divine, the academic and the spiritual— one dealing with critical issues and the mind, the other with the Word of God and the heart! How can Christian scholars teach the Bible in a college or university setting?

Educating In The Spirit: An Examination Of The Person And Role Of The Holy Spirit In Christian School Education (Part One), Thyra Cameron, James Swezey

International Christian Community of Teacher Educators Journal

This essay is the first of a two-part article that examines the Person and role of the Holy Spirit within the context of Evangelical Christian school education. Both parts form the foundation of a study that compared and attempted to contrast two perspectives on the Holy Spirit: Reformed and Charismatic-Pentecostal. Part One is an extensive literature review of the Person and role of the Holy Spirit from the two perspectives. Part Two will be a cross case study of two principals who led schools representing each perspective. The rationale was that, since Christian schools submit to the authority of the …

Former Mentors' Perceptions Of The Faith-Based Approach To Reducing Recidivism Implemented By The Marinette-Menominee Jail Outreach, Inc., James Langteau

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative, hermeneutic phenomenological study was to examine the impact of a faith-based approach to reduce recidivism. The theoretical frameworks guiding this study included the belief system and self-efficacy theories. Participants consisted of a convenience sample of 21 former mentors of the Marinette-Menominee Jail Outreach. The setting was a Christian non-profit organization serving the Marinette and Menominee County Jails located in rural northern Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Semistructured interviews, surveys, and a focus group provided data to illuminate common themes. Data analysis included highlighting significant statements from volunteer mentors who engaged offenders to effect …

Toward An Integrative Theory Of Vocation And Volition: Locating The Historical Concept Of Christian Calling In The Contemporary Psychological Treatment Of Motivation, Timothy S. Walker

Doctor of Education (EdD)

The purpose of this research is to identify similarities between the Christian concept of calling and educational psychology's theories on motivation. This study includes a review of historical and contemporary literature concerning calling alongside a review of literature pertaining to Self-Determination Theory. I use these reviews first to understand how Christians have historically understood and applied the concept of calling as motivation. Secondly, they are used to determine if Self Determination Theory relates to the Christian concept of calling. And, thirdly, they are used to discover areas in which Self-Determination Theory offers insight into the Christian concept of calling's potential …

Relationship Between Involvement In Institutional Activities And Christian Life Commitment Among Undergraduate Students Of A Christian University In Mexico, Esteban Quiyono

Dissertations

Problem

A considerable gap in knowledge exists regarding religious commitment among young people in Mexican Christian colleges, where many institutional resources are invested to foster such commitment. This study attempted to identify the extent to which Christian commitments of undergraduate students in a Mexican Christian university are related to their involvement in institutional activities, influential agents, and selected demographic variables (gender, grade level, place of residence, and field of study).

Method

A descriptive cross-sectional and correlational design was conducted using survey research methodology with a stratified sample of 332 undergraduate students enrolled during the fall term of the 2002-2003 college …

Discipleship In Education: A Plan For Creating True Followers Of Christ In Christian Schools, Joseph Allotta

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Students are often tested to evaluate their academic knowledge, but few Christian schools evaluate whether a student has become a true disciple of Christ. Schools need to know what they can do that actually has an impact. This project will focus on high school seniors at Baptist schools in the Tampa Area. Students will take a custom survey to determine their biblical knowledge, use of spiritual disciplines, and beliefs on morality, along with what factors influenced them the most. School officials will be interviewed to identify how each is attempting to influence said aspects. Special attention will be given to …

Recipient Of The 2013 Alumni Distinguished Leadership Award, Gretchen E. Green '92

Alumni Distinguished Leadership Award

Dr. Gretchen E. Green is a physician leader who brings a combined focus on science and society to benefit her patients, fellow physicians, and the US population at large through her role as vice chair of the National Women’s History Museum Board of Directors. Currently an attending radiologist at Greensboro Radiology in North Carolina, Dr. Green has been actively involved in advocacy for women physicians and patients through research since graduating from IMSA. Dr. Green advocates for women undergoing breast imaging and obstetrical ultrasound, using her expertise as a radiologist and her background on the societal impact of imaging technology. …

Recipient Of The 2013 Alumni Distinguished Leadership Award, Kathleen Plinske '97

Alumni Distinguished Leadership Award

Dr. Kathleen Plinske is a distinguished educational leader with a passion for providing access to higher education to traditionally disadvantaged students. At a young age of 32, Dr. Plinske serves as President of Valencia College’s Osceola and Lake Nona Campuses in Kissimmee and Orlando, Florida. Dr. Plinske is responsible for all academic, administrative and fiscal leadership of the campuses, and was responsible for overseeing the development of a new $45 million, 150,000 square foot building at the Osceola Campus. Recently named as the top community college in the nation by the Aspen Institute, the Osceola Campus serves 12,000 students per …

Recipient Of The 2013 Alumni Trailblazer Award, B. Scott Gaudi '91

Alumni Trailblazer Award

Dr. B. Scott Gaudi is an internationally acclaimed astronomer who has been involved with the discovery of nearly two dozen extrasolar planets. In 2008, Dr. Gaudi received worldwide media attention for leading a team of 69 international astronomers in the discovery of a “scaled-down” Solar System. This discovery, published in the journal Science, implies that Solar Systems similar to ours might be common throughout the Galaxy. Dr. Gaudi is an associate professor in the Department of Astronomy at Ohio State University. He was awarded the Helen B. Warner Prize for “significant contribution to observational or theoretical astronomy” by the American …

Recipient Of The 2013 Alumni Titan Award, Dwan Lamar Prude '97

Alumni Titan Award

Dwan LaMar Prude has unselfishly, tirelessly and graciously shared his time, talents and Titan spirit with the IMSA community. From his strategic guidance to his mentorship of students, Prude’s dedication and commitment advances IMSA’s mission and work at every level. He has been a servant leader as he promotes IMSA, our PROMISE Programs, and the benefits of attending the Academy with great pride, passion and confidence. In 2012, Prude served as IMSA’s Convocation Speaker, kicking off the school year with a rousing and heartfelt speech that left students inspired for the new school year. That summer, he dedicated time to …

The Unity Of Knowledge And The Faithfulness Of God: The Theology Of Mathematical Physicist John Polkinghorne, Matt Delong

ACMS Conference Proceedings 2013

In this paper we will give a brief introduction to Polkinghorne's life and work. We will give an introduction to Polkinghorne's approach to philosophy and theology. We will introduce the two most significant influences on Polkinghorne's development as a theologian and philosopher of science. We will then give a necessarily telegraphic review of some of the topics addressed in Polkinghorne's theology, including his thoughts on science and religion, natural theology, evil, providence, prayer, resurrection, the soul and eschatology. We will then conclude with a few short examples of Polkinghorne's thoughts on mathematics.

Googol-Part Fugue: Another Imagination Of Divine Providence And Game Theory, Gideon Lee

ACMS Conference Proceedings 2013

The problem of evil presents an intellectual hurdle for some to believe in a good and omnipotent God. The emergence of open theism could be seen as an attempt to make a stronger case for the free will defense. However, in denying divine foreknowledge as traditionally understood, open theism contradicts biblical revelation not only in its direct claims, but also when its logical implications for divine providence are worked out. The open theist Alan Rhoda has sought to explain through game theory how some degree of divine providence is possible under open theism. That explanation is astonishing since the open …

Making Disciples Of Jesus Christ: Implementing An Effective Discipleship Strategy For Churches In America, Victor Ogundiran

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Various research findings on spiritual formation in the America church reveal that the current state of making disciples of Jesus Christ who are observing all that Jesus has commanded is woefully grim. This author believes what we have in place for making disciples is inadequate, unimplemented, or both. The purpose of this thesis project is to explain the current state of spiritual formation in the American Church and the reasons why it falls short of God's desire and design. This effort will include and incorporate research from at least 20 churches to see what discipleship systems they are using, if …

Imsa360: Spring 2013, Imsa Fund

IMSA Fund Reports

Having recently announced my retirement from IMSA, I am writing my last letter for IMSA360 to share my appreciation and admiration for the engagement and support of the entire IMSA community, which includes each and every reader of this publication. During the past six years, our collaborative work has produced some exceptional results as evidenced by our students’ success in national and international competitions, publications, presentations and leadership conferences. In addition, other highlights include our institutional recognition- especially the 2009 Intel Star Innovator Award-our growing donor base, the expansion of programs and services for Illinois students and teachers, a growing …

An Effective Prayer Training Model For Church Growth: Centered On Wangsung Presbyterian Church In South Korea, Geunbae Hwang

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this project is to investigate biblical church growth, specifically studying South Korean pastors roles concerning the healthy church and spiritual reinforcement, with a limited focus and application to WangSung Presbyterian Church and other churches in South Korea. This project primarily utilizes the New Testament, as well as literature on church growth and healthy spirituality. In addition, references specifically regarding church growth and statistical information from Korean church ministries will also be used. This project shares a new alternative way for the growth of churches: A prayer-training model as the most effective method for church growth. A healthy …

Principals' Decision Making In Discipline Policy Implementation: The Lutheran Schools' Perspective, Katherine Jane Brandon

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

This quantitative study examines the relationship of philosophical beliefs of administrators of Lutheran schools and the influence of those beliefs on discipline decision-making styles, job satisfaction, and other factors. The study patterns the survey work from William Perry (1999) and other theorists regarding philosophy and ethics. A theoretical framework postulates a positive relationship of objectivist philosophy with directed decision-making style and interpretivist philosophy with participative decision-making style.

The administrators from two Lutheran education organization’s listserves, through invitation, participated in the qualitative online survey. The investigation uses path analysis, factor analysis, and regressions to explore survey and descriptive data. Some contextual …

Hearing The Voices Of Those Who Are Educating For Shalom: What They Are Saying About Institutional Vision, Missional Goals, And Educational Models, Patricia R. Harris

Doctor of Education (EdD)

For the past 30 years, philosopher and educator, Nicholas Wolterstorff, has been speaking and writing about the multi-faceted, biblical idea of shalom and the phrase, educating for shalom. This study describes and analyzes the content of more than 100 voices of Christian higher educators who have written about the idea of educating for shalom as it refers to institutional vision, missional goals, and educational models. Within the context of this study, Wolterstorff's ideas about educating for shalom frame these educators' ideas in Chapter 3, as a summary of his ideas from his writings and speeches are presented in Chapter 2, …

News From The Crest (October 2012), Crest Associates

News from the Crest

Heidi Bernard, Director

Joanne Blacklidge, Editor

A Renewed Approach To Undergraduate Worship Leader Education, Allen Hendricks

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The church music degree program at Charleston Southern University, based on a European traditional/classical sacred music degree model, has been attracting fewer and fewer students. The last two students pursuing this degree were graduated in May, 2011. Prior to their graduation, the administration encouraged the music department to investigate current career markets and the worship leadership training strategies of other institutions. The purpose of this project is to design a suitable worship leadership degree and thus assist the university in its mission to equip churches with properly trained ministry leaders. Survey instruments will be used to discover the expectations of …

Transformational Discipleship: A Model For Sermon-Based Small Groups For Life Transformation, Jon Harless

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

In consideration of the Great Commission commanded by Jesus Christ, it is certain that the goal of every pastor is to present to the Lord transforming or maturing disciples of Jesus Christ. With this in mind, the purpose of this project is to research and champion the effectiveness of Transformational Discipleship by providing the biblical and theological merits of this discipleship process while also providing a more concrete understanding of the practical effectiveness of this method of discipleship for life transformation in the fulfilling of the Great Commission. This method of discipleship here described as "transformational" is when the pastor's …

Discipling Worship Leadership: Biblical And Theological Rationale For Discipling Worship Leaders, Byron Spradlin

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

A review of current worship literature reveals very little guidance to assist Protestant church leaders in training, discipling or mentoring congregational worship leadership. Therefore, this thesis project researched and presents a basic rationale for developing worship leadership discipling curricula strategically targeting the needs related to discipling and training artistic Christians who are called to worship leadership in the local church.

Where Does Faith-Learning Integration Happen? - Chapter 4 From "Faith Integration And Schools Of Education", Ken Badley

Faculty Publications - College of Education

No abstract provided.

Professional Identity Development In Online Christian Theological Education: A Case Study Of Preparing Pastoral Practice Through Discursive Activity, Rovina L. Hatcher

Theses and Dissertations--Curriculum and Instruction

The purpose of this dissertation study was to explore the professional preparation of students in online classes at a Christian theological seminary. Concerns of theological education involve the capacity or incapacity of community development and somatic or embodied learning in online education. Using a theoretical framework drawn from communities of practice (Wenger, 1998), professional clergical preparation (Foster, Dahill, Golemon, & Tolentino, 2005), and Gee’s (2000-2001) dimensions of identity development, the researcher focused the analyses on students’ written texts located in the discussion board fora of the online courses. These records were examined for indications of formation of the professional identity …

Christian Special Educators Responding To The Call To Serve: The Perception Of Disability With A Christian Worldview Lens, Nilsa J. Thorsos

International Christian Community of Teacher Educators Journal

Most Christian special education teachers respond to a call to teach children with disabilities and are inspired to share the plan, purpose, and perspective of Christ; in other words to have the mind of Christ (Tucker, 1996, p. 29). This paper examines how the Old and New Testament traditions permeate the way people with disabilities are perceived in Western culture. An examination of the Old Testament shows a perception of disability as connected with sin, a manifestation of God’s punishment and exclusion of people with disability from the temple (Winzer, 1993, p. 17). The New Testament provides narratives of compassion …

Faith Integration Development: Faculty Conceptions Of Faith-Learning Integration, Brandon J. Jacob

Master of Arts in Higher Education (MAHE) Theses

The integration of faith and learning (IFL) is the foundation upon which faith-based higher education has been built. As such, it imperative that educators at faith-based colleges and universities understand and implement this integration effectively. The purpose of this study was to determine how academic and student affairs educators conceptualize and practice the integration of faith and learning. The study also sought to identify key similarities and differences that exist between academic and student affairs educators regarding the integration of faith and learning. To answer these questions, a sample of nine academic educators and four student affairs educators were interviewed …