"The cost of sending a young person to a state university will, in many cases, be a life marked by ambivalence toward spiritual things"

Some trust in chariots, and some in institutions of higher learning, but we will remember the name of the Lord our God.

The truth is that parents who surrender their kids to programs and institutions to raise them up will be disappointed. I grew up at Bob Jones since the day I was born. I have a group of friends that I grew up with some of whom are serving the Lord today, and others have abandoned the faith completely. There are PLENTY of students who go through state schools with their faith intact. It seems to me the difference is mostly that parents have to put teaching their children into higher gear: when they rise up, and going on the way, and every other time.

It’s an ad piece. Probably shouldn’t read too much into it.

However, it is quite partisan. But what would you expect from MBBC’s in house magazine?

[TylerR]

It’s an ad piece. Probably shouldn’t read too much into it.

Should a Christian Teen Attend a Secular College?

I am somewhat leery of people whose method of promoting their product is to demonize the competition.

You mean…people that are unsaved do sinful things like drugs, gambling and sleeping with whomever they want?
You mean…there’s a whole bunch of people out there that don’t love God and live for themselves?
You mean…that there is a whole sin-filled environment that we’re sending our kids into and we can’t keep them in our hermetic bubbles?

I’m Shocked…SHOCKED, I say.

/humor

Seriously - if someone is affected by that ad enough to send them to BCM as a result…they’ve got some serious issues.

I think part of it goes back to where your kids went to high school. My daughter graduated from public high school, and she made big stands for her faith there. She is used to that. But by the time she leves junior college, she wont have to be in the dorms anyway. The other stuff, she deals with now. All of you made the other points that Iw ould have made.

My favorite part of the ad was the scare quotes for “elite” schools, as if Harvard and Stanford and such simply pretend to offer superior educational opportunities. They bribe the judges! Don’t be fooled! Instead, get a real education at our “Christian” school.

On another note, you must be doing something wrong if the only selling point for your school is something definitional, like a Christian school being Christian. I can’t wait to see the ad for West Coast Baptist. “Come visit! We’re on the West Coast! And we’re Baptist!”

To be fair, Maranatha does regularly tout their regional accreditation and their excellent academic standings, especially compared to secular colleges. They do all that, and more, quite a bit.

This particular piece was obviously aimed at some distraught parent, upset at sending precious Jack or Jill to an “evil” secular college. Hey, for the target market, this might be a pretty effective ad!

Briefly comment because my own (or my wife’s) was 40 years ago (University of Cincinnati for me and Florida State for her)

Maranatha said:

But, please consider for a moment just what your young person will be facing every day:

• Peers with a view of faith and morality that is ambivalent at best, antagonistic at worst.
• Professors who decry Christianity as “intolerant” and intellectually bankrupt.
• Fellow students who will question, and often ridicule, those with conservative lifestyle standards.
• A dormitory where they will be forced to share a bathroom, floor, or even their room with someone of the opposite sex.
• A social atmosphere where drinking, drug abuse, and immorality are encouraged and even expected.

Observations:

• Two of my children managed to attend and graduate without being in the dorm
• Dormitory: Daughter graduated 5 years ago from St school. Was in a dorm for 1st year. She never experienced this
• On peers. Really this is no different than life after college. But there are Christians at the secular college. Christians can choose peers with whom to associate
• On social atmosphere. See peers

Jay’s comments, above, pretty accurately characterize my response to the substance of the article! I don’t think much can be gained by hermetically sealing our kids in theological Tupperware their whole lives.

I want to echo what Greg just said. No one is arguing that we seal off our kids — entirely — for the rest of their lives. Being home schooled or attending a Christian day school does not have to mean our kids are isolated or that we are trying to insulate them entirely from the world.

I have never understood the argument of parents who want to say that public school is as good as (or better than) a Christian environment for schooling kids. I would never argue the Christian day school is perfect. On the other hand, I would rather have a group of people sharing my world view and spiritual priorities teaching my kid than people opposed to my views. I would rather have the predominant number of parents and students involved with my child’s education pulling in the same direction I am pulling, albeit imperfectly, than have them pulling in opposition to me. I think this is more important the younger you are talking about, but, we don’t send trainees in any other sector of life out to the front lines to learn the ropes. We put them in protected environments and let them slowly test their abilities as they train. I just keep coming back to the first sentence. List all the cons you will against the home school and the Christian day school, and you will still have a shorter list than the public state schools. I am still going to have to parent no matter where the kids are educated, but why not get the best education I can get for my kids, one that challenges them academically as it disciples them in the faith.

Just ran across this story and though it was apropos to the discussion.

Ivy League Institution to Offer Nude Yoga Class?

Brown’s nudity event is somewhat rare among collegiate campuses. Brown already has a Sex Week in March, which is not unlike similar events at other Ivy League schools like Harvard University, the University of Pennsylvania and Yale University — the originator of the college Sex Week.