Across the Nation is our monthly rundown of news briefs, links and quotes from Churches of Christ across the U.S. Got an idea for this column? Email Calvin Cockrell at [email protected].
Featured image (above): Second Lieutenant Cody Goodwin, left, receives his commission at Freed-Hardeman University.
MONTGOMERY — Faulkner University has announced a new digital ministry degree track designed to equip students to serve, teach and evangelize online. The new ministry track coordinates with Faulkner’s recently launched digital media degree program led by Tommie Lee Washington, an Emmy Award winner and former ESPN animator.
“Nowhere else can you find this kind of opportunity, where you’re prepared for ministry but you’re given a new skill set to creatively communicate and to amplify the Gospel in the digital age,” said Jason Helton, media outreach minister for the Madison Church of Christ.
Earlier this year, Faulkner also announced a new Church of Christ Heritage Award, which guarantees a minimum financial aid package of $12,000 per year to qualifying students who are members of a Church of Christ.
SEARCY — Harding University is using a $1 million gift from a private donor for advancements in technology and education.
This fall, Harding is offering a course titled “Bitcoin, Monetary History and the Financial Frontier,” to be taught by alumnus and Blockworks content director Bennett Holloway. Course curriculum includes Bitcoin’s novel design principles and ideology as well as discussions about how it’s shaping the trajectory of financial infrastructure.
“It’s difficult to overstate the speed and complexity of technological change in today’s marketplace.”
“It’s difficult to overstate the speed and complexity of technological change in today’s marketplace,” Holloway said. “A solid understanding of the core technologies driving innovation and the historical forces behind them will equip students to keep pace and excel in the modern workforce.”
Harding has also launched new AI major in the department of computer science. Students who choose this major will learn how to design and create AI tools and consider how AI can be used ethically to benefit others.
PRAY — Each year, a collection of youths travel 50 miles north of Yellowstone National Park — to the appropriately named town of Pray, nestled in Paradise Valley — for spiritual enrichment.
Some trek from as far away as Juneau, Alaska, to attend Yellowstone Bible Camp, which is supported by Churches of Christ around the state.
This year, a group of eight teens from the Juneau Church of Christ attended — and one put on Christ in baptism there.
Eight teens from the Juneau Church of Christ in Alaska attend Yellowstone Bible Camp in Montana.
Five others came from the Last Frontier state for a junior camp week at Yellowstone.
The Alaska congregation hosts annual fundraising events to cover the costs of registration and travel.
This was also the final year as camp director for Bill Goben, a longtime Montana minister. He has been involved in the camp ministry for nearly 70 years — since his father, Clint, and two other Christians founded the camp.
Related: Christians use AI to share Jesus
They converted its log cabins and lodge from a former dude ranch in 1956.
Yellowstone will celebrate its 70th anniversary next year and dedicate its new log bridge, a replacement for one destroyed by flooding in 2022.
NASHVILLE — Lipscomb University is embracing AI. The university began providing all faculty, staff and students with access to artificial intelligence tools through a campus-wide integration of BoodleBox, an education-focused platform for AI tools.
Lipscomb also adopted an AI usage policy, began training faculty and staff in its use and integrated it into many of the university’s operations, along with creating a graduate degree program in applied AI.
“We are committed to building AI literacy and fluency in our community w
hile staying true to our mission of preparing students for lives of purpose,” said Lipscomb President Candice McQueen. “Lipscomb’s Christ-centered mission adds a distinct lens to its approach to adopting and embracing this technology.”
BAPTIZED — PAISLEY and BURKLEE BRASHER of the Sunset Church of Christ in Lubbock, Texas. MIRIAM MADRID of the Cedartown Highway Church of Christ in Piedmont, Ala. TYSHAWN TONEY of the Harlem Church of Christ in New York. JULIE ANN ROSE MARQUEZ of the Kauai Church of Christ in Lihue, Hawaii. JANINE and JAZZLYN HORNER of the Rabun County Church of Christ in Tiger, Ga. ROBIN PARNELL of the Old Burwell Church of Christ in Ringold, Okla.
NAMED — SHELBY RIGSBY, principal of John Ross Elementary School in Edmond, Okla. Rigsby is a graduate of Oklahoma Christian University. ALDEN BASS, minister for the Lindsley Avenue Church of Christ in Nashville, Tenn.
From left, Shelby Rigsby, Alden Bass, Lynneth Miller Renberg and Sean Wu.
AWARDED — CODY GOODWIN with his certificate of commission as a U.S. Army second lieutenant at Freed-Hardeman University’s spring commencement in Henderson, Tenn. JACK MCGRATH with his fourth Los Angeles Area Emmy Award for his documentary “Backstage: Dodgers.” He is an alum of Pepperdine University in Malibu, Calif. Oklahoma Christian University alum LYNNETH MILLER RENBERG with a Fulbright Scholarship to research dance and religion in medieval Fennoscandia at the University of Tromsø in Norway. KEN STEELE with the 2025 Oklahoma Book Award in fiction for his debut novel, “The Promise of Unbroken Straw.” Steele is a graduate of Oklahoma Christian University. Pepperdine student SEAN WU with the Rhodes Scholarship, a first for the university.
HONORED — HUNTER GOODMAN as the Colorado Rockies’ representative in the MLB All-Star Game. Goodman is the son of former Freed-Hardeman softball player Stephanie “Ziggy” Goodman. FAULKNER UNIVERSITY in Montgomery, Ala., for its softball team having the highest grade-point average in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics.
Filed under: Across the Nation AI Alabama Alaska Arkansas artificial intelligence Education briefs Faulkner University Harding University Lipscomb University Montana National News Newsmakers Scolarships Summer Camp Tennessee Top Stories
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