President
and chancellor of the university is Dr. Linda Livingstone, who began
her tenure at Baylor in June of 2017. She came to Baylor from George
Washington University, where she was dean and professor of manager of
the university's School of Business. Dr. Livingstone is the first female
president in Baylor’s 172-year history.
Dr. Livingstone returned to Baylor after time on the Waco campus from 1991-2002. From 1998-2002, she served as associate dean of graduate programs for the Hankamer School of Business in which she was responsible for all graduate degree business programs. Dr. Livingstone was an associate professor in the department of management from 1997-2002 and an assistant professor in the same department from 1991-1997. She also was a member of the Faculty Athletics Council during her tenure at Baylor.
Livingstone replaced Ken Starr, who was ousted in the midst of the football team's recent rape scandal, which also cost football coach Art Briles and athletic director Ian McCaw their jobs.
Baylor got is start in 1841 when 35 delegates to the Union Baptist Association meeting voted to adopt the suggestion of Rev. William Milton Tryon and R.E.B. Baylor to establish a Baptist university in Texas, which was a self-declared Republic still claimed by Mexico. Baylor became the school's namesake. Some at first wished to name the new university "San Jacinto," to recognize the victory which enabled the Texans to become an independent nation, then before the final vote of the Congress, the petitioners requested the university be named in honor of Judge R. E. B. Baylor.
In the fall of 1844, the Texas Baptist Education Society petitioned the Congress of the Republic of Texas to charter a Baptist university. Republic President Anson Jones signed the Act of Congress on February 1, 1845, officially establishing Baylor University. The founders built the original campus in Independence, Texas. During the 1846 school year, Baylor leaders began including chapel as part of the Baylor educational experience. The tradition continues today. In 1849, R.E.B. Baylor and Abner S. Lipscomb of the Texas Supreme Court began teaching classes in the "science of law," making Baylor the first in Texas and the second university west of the Mississippi to teach law.
In 1851, Baylor's second president Rufus Columbus Burleson decided to separate the students by sex, making the Baylor Female College an independent and separate institution. Baylor University became an all-male institution. Following the Civil war, the city of Independence slowly declined, primarily caused by the rise of neighboring cities being serviced by the Santa Fe Railroad. Because Independence lacked a railroad line, university fathers began searching for a location to build a new campus.
Beginning in 1885, Baylor University moved to Waco, which was on the railroad line. It merged with a local college called Waco University. That same year, the Baylor Female College was moved to a new location in Belton, Texas. It later became known as the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor. A Baylor College Park still exists in Independence in memory of the college's history there. Around 1887, Baylor University began readmitting women and again became coeducational.
In 1900, three physicians founded the University of Dallas Medical Department in Dallas, although a university by that name did not exist. In 1903, Baylor University acquired the medical school, which became known as the Baylor College of Medicine, while remaining in Dallas. In 1943, Dallas civic leaders offered to build larger facilities for the university in a new medical center if the College of Medicine would surrender its denominational alliances with the Baptist state convention. The Baylor administration refused the offer and, with funding from the M.D. Anderson Foundation and others, moved the College of Medicine to Houston. In 1969, the Baylor College of Medicine became technically independent from Baylor University. The two institutions still maintain strong links and Baylor still elects around 25 percent of the medical school's regents. They also share academic links and combine in research efforts.
During World War II, Baylor was one of 131 colleges and universities nationally that took part in the V-12 Navy College Training Program, which offered students a path to a Navy commission.
Notable Baylor Alumni:
Notable alumni include: Puliter-Prize-winning composer Steven Stucky;
GMA Dove Award-winning composer Bruce Greer; Grammy Award-winning
Christian recording artist Phil Driscoll; Christian recording artist
David Crowder; Grammy-winning Gaither Vocal Band tenor David Phelps;
screenwriter and director John Lee Hancock (The Blind Side);
screenwriter Derek Haas (with works including 3:10 to Yuma and Wanted);
Emmy Award-nominated director Kevin Reynolds; Emmy-winning actress
Angela Kinsey (the character of Angela Martin in NBC's The Office);
Emmy-nominated actress Allison Tolman; Tony Award-nominated actress
Elizabeth A. Davis; actress Carole Cook (a protégé of Lucille Ball);
stand-up comedian Jeff Dunham; The Silence of the Lambs writer Thomas
Harris; People Magazine co-founder Hal C. Wingo; The Weather Channel CFO
Jerry Elliott: American Airlines CEO Thomas W. Horton; Western Refining
CEO Paul Foster; Albritton Communications Company founder Joe
Allbritton; XTO Energy CEO Bob R. Simpson; chairman of the McLane Group
and former owner of the Houston Astros Drayton McLane, Jr.; chairman of
the Martin Organization and former PayPal executive Rod D. Martin;
Oracle Corporation CEO Mark Hurd; former chairman and CEO of Stanford
Financial Group Allen Stanford; EXUSMED CEO and founder of Empowering
Spirits Foundation A. Latham Staples; former mayor of San Antonio Phil
Hardberger; former Governors of Texas Ann Richards and Mark White;
former Federal Bureau of Investigation director William S. Sessions; and
former US Ambassador to Sweden Lyndon Lowell Olson, Jr.; 2011 Heisman
Trophy-winner and Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III;
Phoenix Mercury WNBA player Brittney Griner; four-time Olympic old
medalist Michael Johnson; Baseball Hall of Fame inductee Ted Lyons;
Grammy–winning recording artist Willie Nelson; actor Austin Miller and
Senator Rand Paul attended Baylor but did not receive degrees; former
U.S. Vice President John Nance Garner (Franklin D. Roosevelt President)
received an honorary doctor of laws degree from Baylor in 1936; actor
and comedian Bill Cosby received an honorary doctor of humane letters
degree from the university in 2003.
Baylor Traditions:
Here are some traditions observed by Baylor students and alumni:
Colors: Green and gold. In 1897, while on a train to Bryan for a debate tournament, a member of the student committee which previously had been selected to choose appropriate colors for the University looked out the window at the wild spring dandelions and remarked that the vivid yellow and green flowers made a "lovely combination." Other committee members agreed and when they returned to Waco the color combination of "green and gold" was recommended and readily adopted by the student body.
Mascot: In 1914, after 70 years without an official mascot, Baylor students voted to name the American black bear the official "Patron Saint of all Baylordom." More than two dozen animals were on the ballot, including the buffalo, eagle, antelope, bookworm and bear; the bear won convincingly. The first live bear was a gift from soldiers at Camp MacArthur in Waco in 1917. Each bear mascot is given the title "Judge," in honor of the university's namesake, Judge R.E.B. Baylor. The bears are housed on campus in the Bill and Eva Williams Bear Habitat. They are cared for by students in the Baylor Chamber of Commerce.
Baylor
used to feature at least one live bear at football games, where the
bear would drink a Dr. Pepper. But, since 2010, the bears are no longer
allowed at football games or other campus events on leashes. The USDA
informed Baylor officials that they would no longer be permitted to
bring the bears to games per Federal Code of Regulations 2.131(c)(1),
which states, "During public exhibition, any animal must be handled so
there is minimal risk of harm to the animal and to the public, with
sufficient distance and/or barriers between the animal and the general
viewing public so as to assure the safety of the animals and the
public."
The school's costumed mascot is named Bruiser, who was introduced at the beginning of the 1981-1982 basketball season. The mascot appears at football and basketball events, along with university pep rallies and community events. Bruiser also travels with the basketball team to games for the Big 12 Basketball Tournament, NIT and NCAA Tournaments.
Baylor Line: The Baylor Line is a tradition where freshmen wear special football jerseys and before a home football game, make a run down the field to create a giant human tunnel through which the football team runs through to enter the stadium. Six members of the Baylor Line carry flags with the letters B-A-Y-L-O-R while the rest of the Line runs behind them. Afterward, students rush the sidelines and stand in a Baylor Line section behind the opponents' bench.
The
Baylor Line was organized in 1970 and was an all-male organization
until 1993, when women were allowed to join. At its inception, the
Baylor Line was a group of freshmen men who lined the front of Baylor's
student section for the express purpose of protecting Baylor women from
the other team's more violent fans.
See the Baylor Line: here
The Noble NoZe Brotherhood: The Noble NoZe Brotherhood, an unofficial fraternal organization, was founded in 1924 to study the art of bridge construction, in association with the Baylor Bridge Association. The NoZe Brotherhood provides the university with pranks and satirical writings in its newspaper, The Rope. Members hide their identities to keep their actions anonymous.
Immortal Ten: On January 22, 1927, a bus carrying the Baylor basketball team collided with the Sunshine Special train in Round Rock, Texas. Ten members of the traveling party were killed and many others were injured in the accident. The story of the Immortal Ten is told each year at Freshman Mass Meeting, where the names of the ten are called out. In 1996, the senior class provided initial funding to create an Immortal Ten statue on campus. Fundraising and planning for the statue continued over the ensuing years. On June 22, 2007, the statue sculpted by Bruce R. Greene was unveiled. The Immortal Ten memorial was dedicated during Homecoming on November 2, 2007, in Traditions Square.
Chapel: Since the University opened its doors in May 1846, Chapel has been a part of the Baylor experience. Originally a daily requirement for all students, faculty and staff, today students are required to attend. Most students must attend 21 or the 28 Chapel Sessions each semester. First-Year students involved in University 1000 during the fall semester must attend 26 of the 34 sessions.
Homecoming:
One of the nation's first homecoming celebrations originated at Baylor
in November 1909. Not long after, the idea was adopted by the University
of Illinois in 1910, the University of Missouri in 1911 and at
universities throughout the U.S. in the years that followed. The Baylor
Homecoming event began as a way to reconnect alumni with current
students. In addition to a football game, today it includes a bonfire,
concerts, speeches, receptions, class reunions, pep rallies and the
nation's oldest and longest collegiate parade.
Watch Baylor's 2019 homecoming parade: here
Memorial Lampposts: During World War II, more than 4,000 Baylor men and women served in all branches of the armed forces. By the end of the war, 125 had made the supreme sacrifice in defense of their country. To commemorate those who had fallen, red granite lampposts were erected across campus to stand as a guard of honor by day and to illuminate the streets and paths by night. The first group of the granite "honor guards" was dedicated on October 25, 1946. A plaque, engraved with the name of one who died, was attached to every post, and the Baylor chapter of Angel Flight (now, Silver Wings Society) was charged with the responsibility of placing a wreath upon the plaque on the anniversary of each death. As the size of the campus increased, additional lampposts were erected and made available to commemorate the death of any loved one.
Sic 'Em Bears Yell: In 1960, Baylor's yell leaders introduced the "Bear Claw" hand signal, made by slightly curving all five fingers inward to form a claw, and the "Sic 'Em, Bears" yell.
Watch and listen: here
Golden Wave Marching Band: For
more than 100 years, the 340-member Golden Wave Band has been an
integral part of Baylor University, but it was not until 1928 that new
uniforms inspired its lasting name. That fall, under the direction of
Everett McCracken, the Baylor Marching Band introduced its new golden
uniforms at a Baylor-SMU football game. The next spring, the 43-member
group made a tour of west Texas on behalf of the Greater Baylor
Campaign. A reporter wrote that the band seemed to be sweeping across
the land like a Golden Wave!
The band is known for playing "Tennessee Waltz" at the end of every game, and the tune "Word Up"' during the game. Members of the Golden Wave Band span all majors and fields. Students from engineering, education, pre-law, pre-medicine, religion, University Scholars, as well as music share their musical talents with the Golden Wave.
See the band perform on the field: here
See the band perform Tennessee Waltz: here
Dr. Livingstone returned to Baylor after time on the Waco campus from 1991-2002. From 1998-2002, she served as associate dean of graduate programs for the Hankamer School of Business in which she was responsible for all graduate degree business programs. Dr. Livingstone was an associate professor in the department of management from 1997-2002 and an assistant professor in the same department from 1991-1997. She also was a member of the Faculty Athletics Council during her tenure at Baylor.
Livingstone replaced Ken Starr, who was ousted in the midst of the football team's recent rape scandal, which also cost football coach Art Briles and athletic director Ian McCaw their jobs.
Baylor got is start in 1841 when 35 delegates to the Union Baptist Association meeting voted to adopt the suggestion of Rev. William Milton Tryon and R.E.B. Baylor to establish a Baptist university in Texas, which was a self-declared Republic still claimed by Mexico. Baylor became the school's namesake. Some at first wished to name the new university "San Jacinto," to recognize the victory which enabled the Texans to become an independent nation, then before the final vote of the Congress, the petitioners requested the university be named in honor of Judge R. E. B. Baylor.
In the fall of 1844, the Texas Baptist Education Society petitioned the Congress of the Republic of Texas to charter a Baptist university. Republic President Anson Jones signed the Act of Congress on February 1, 1845, officially establishing Baylor University. The founders built the original campus in Independence, Texas. During the 1846 school year, Baylor leaders began including chapel as part of the Baylor educational experience. The tradition continues today. In 1849, R.E.B. Baylor and Abner S. Lipscomb of the Texas Supreme Court began teaching classes in the "science of law," making Baylor the first in Texas and the second university west of the Mississippi to teach law.
In 1851, Baylor's second president Rufus Columbus Burleson decided to separate the students by sex, making the Baylor Female College an independent and separate institution. Baylor University became an all-male institution. Following the Civil war, the city of Independence slowly declined, primarily caused by the rise of neighboring cities being serviced by the Santa Fe Railroad. Because Independence lacked a railroad line, university fathers began searching for a location to build a new campus.
Beginning in 1885, Baylor University moved to Waco, which was on the railroad line. It merged with a local college called Waco University. That same year, the Baylor Female College was moved to a new location in Belton, Texas. It later became known as the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor. A Baylor College Park still exists in Independence in memory of the college's history there. Around 1887, Baylor University began readmitting women and again became coeducational.
In 1900, three physicians founded the University of Dallas Medical Department in Dallas, although a university by that name did not exist. In 1903, Baylor University acquired the medical school, which became known as the Baylor College of Medicine, while remaining in Dallas. In 1943, Dallas civic leaders offered to build larger facilities for the university in a new medical center if the College of Medicine would surrender its denominational alliances with the Baptist state convention. The Baylor administration refused the offer and, with funding from the M.D. Anderson Foundation and others, moved the College of Medicine to Houston. In 1969, the Baylor College of Medicine became technically independent from Baylor University. The two institutions still maintain strong links and Baylor still elects around 25 percent of the medical school's regents. They also share academic links and combine in research efforts.
During World War II, Baylor was one of 131 colleges and universities nationally that took part in the V-12 Navy College Training Program, which offered students a path to a Navy commission.
 |
| Ann Richards |
Here are some traditions observed by Baylor students and alumni:
Colors: Green and gold. In 1897, while on a train to Bryan for a debate tournament, a member of the student committee which previously had been selected to choose appropriate colors for the University looked out the window at the wild spring dandelions and remarked that the vivid yellow and green flowers made a "lovely combination." Other committee members agreed and when they returned to Waco the color combination of "green and gold" was recommended and readily adopted by the student body.
Mascot: In 1914, after 70 years without an official mascot, Baylor students voted to name the American black bear the official "Patron Saint of all Baylordom." More than two dozen animals were on the ballot, including the buffalo, eagle, antelope, bookworm and bear; the bear won convincingly. The first live bear was a gift from soldiers at Camp MacArthur in Waco in 1917. Each bear mascot is given the title "Judge," in honor of the university's namesake, Judge R.E.B. Baylor. The bears are housed on campus in the Bill and Eva Williams Bear Habitat. They are cared for by students in the Baylor Chamber of Commerce.
The school's costumed mascot is named Bruiser, who was introduced at the beginning of the 1981-1982 basketball season. The mascot appears at football and basketball events, along with university pep rallies and community events. Bruiser also travels with the basketball team to games for the Big 12 Basketball Tournament, NIT and NCAA Tournaments.
Baylor Line: The Baylor Line is a tradition where freshmen wear special football jerseys and before a home football game, make a run down the field to create a giant human tunnel through which the football team runs through to enter the stadium. Six members of the Baylor Line carry flags with the letters B-A-Y-L-O-R while the rest of the Line runs behind them. Afterward, students rush the sidelines and stand in a Baylor Line section behind the opponents' bench.
 |
| Members of the Baylor Line |
See the Baylor Line: here
The Noble NoZe Brotherhood: The Noble NoZe Brotherhood, an unofficial fraternal organization, was founded in 1924 to study the art of bridge construction, in association with the Baylor Bridge Association. The NoZe Brotherhood provides the university with pranks and satirical writings in its newspaper, The Rope. Members hide their identities to keep their actions anonymous.
Immortal Ten: On January 22, 1927, a bus carrying the Baylor basketball team collided with the Sunshine Special train in Round Rock, Texas. Ten members of the traveling party were killed and many others were injured in the accident. The story of the Immortal Ten is told each year at Freshman Mass Meeting, where the names of the ten are called out. In 1996, the senior class provided initial funding to create an Immortal Ten statue on campus. Fundraising and planning for the statue continued over the ensuing years. On June 22, 2007, the statue sculpted by Bruce R. Greene was unveiled. The Immortal Ten memorial was dedicated during Homecoming on November 2, 2007, in Traditions Square.
Chapel: Since the University opened its doors in May 1846, Chapel has been a part of the Baylor experience. Originally a daily requirement for all students, faculty and staff, today students are required to attend. Most students must attend 21 or the 28 Chapel Sessions each semester. First-Year students involved in University 1000 during the fall semester must attend 26 of the 34 sessions.
Watch Baylor's 2019 homecoming parade: here
Memorial Lampposts: During World War II, more than 4,000 Baylor men and women served in all branches of the armed forces. By the end of the war, 125 had made the supreme sacrifice in defense of their country. To commemorate those who had fallen, red granite lampposts were erected across campus to stand as a guard of honor by day and to illuminate the streets and paths by night. The first group of the granite "honor guards" was dedicated on October 25, 1946. A plaque, engraved with the name of one who died, was attached to every post, and the Baylor chapter of Angel Flight (now, Silver Wings Society) was charged with the responsibility of placing a wreath upon the plaque on the anniversary of each death. As the size of the campus increased, additional lampposts were erected and made available to commemorate the death of any loved one.
Sic 'Em Bears Yell: In 1960, Baylor's yell leaders introduced the "Bear Claw" hand signal, made by slightly curving all five fingers inward to form a claw, and the "Sic 'Em, Bears" yell.
Watch and listen: here
The band is known for playing "Tennessee Waltz" at the end of every game, and the tune "Word Up"' during the game. Members of the Golden Wave Band span all majors and fields. Students from engineering, education, pre-law, pre-medicine, religion, University Scholars, as well as music share their musical talents with the Golden Wave.
See the band perform on the field: here
See the band perform Tennessee Waltz: here
Alma Mater: Baylor's alma mater is "That Good Ol' Baylor Line." In 1906, a student penned humorous words to the tune of "In the Good Old Summer Time" and they became generally accepted among the student body as the school fight song. However, in 1931, Enid Eastland Markham, wife of music professor Robert Markham, felt the words were neither dignified enough nor representative of the total university, so she decided to write new lyrics, which were soon sanctioned as the official school song. The Good Old Summer Time tune was later arranged to fit Mrs. Markham's "Baylor Line" through the work of Jack Goode, Donald I. Moore and Charles F. Brown. Baylor fans sing the alma mater while holding their "bear claws" in the air. The song always is followed with a "Sic 'em Bears!"
Listen: here
Fight Song: During the fall of 1940, Baylor student organizations wrote letters to famous musicians, asking them to compose a fight song for Baylor. Brothers Fred and Tom Waring agreed to do so. They wrote "Bear Down Baylor Bears," which was performed by the Pennsylvanians on the Waring's live national NBC radio broadcast ("The Chesterfield Pleasure Time Radio Show") on December 20, 1940. The song was used until 1947, when Baylor students Dick Baker, BA '50, and Frank Boggs, BA '48, decided they weren't satisfied with it, saying the song was "horribly hard to sing." So, the roommates took it upon themselves to write a new fight song, which today is known as "Old Fight!"
Listen: here
Originally Pat Neff Hall housed an electronic tubular bell chime set consisting of 25 bells given by Trustee Cullen Thomas that debuted in December 1939 with the hymn "Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow." However, the chimes inevitably wore out. Thanks to the generosity of the family of Baylor alumnus and current Regent Emeritus Drayton McLane, the chime set was replaced with the current 48-bell carillon in the late 1980s. The bells of the carillon range in weight from 29 pounds to 4,370 pounds. The weight of the instrument is more than 22 tons. The carillon is operated by University Carillonneur Lynnette Geary.
Learn more: here
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