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OBU—Oklahoma Baptist University

Core Values

The following core values represent the institutional convictions, passions, and beliefs of Oklahoma Baptist University. These core values therefore shape the standards and beliefs of the mission and purpose of the university.

Christ Centered

Jesus Christ is the center of all things, and as such is the ultimate goal of an OBU liberal arts education. Oklahoma Baptist University is genuinely committed to and operates within the framework of the Christian world and life view as set forth in the Old and New Testaments. At the center of this commitment is the person and work of Jesus Christ, the incarnate Son and Word of God, and the divine Creator and Savior of the world. OBU aspires to be a Christ-centered institution of higher education in its character and conduct, and in its academic pursuit of truth. This aspiration calls for all faculty, staff, and students to integrate the Christian faith in all learning based on the supposition that all truth is God's truth and there is no contradiction between God's truth made known in Holy Scripture and that which is revealed through creation and general revelation.

Excellence Driven

Excellence should permeate all efforts and all facets of Oklahoma Baptist University. The Christian faith mandates excellence in service to God and humanity in all spheres of life and conduct. This commitment to excellence in all things is an expression of the Lordship of Christ and necessitates the stewardship of His creation. Because the Lord cares about our work, OBU strives to be motivated in humility to excellence in all things for the glory of God.

Learning Focused

Oklahoma Baptist University seeks to promote the virtue of a life of learning and to fulfill the Great Commandment. Scripture affirms our responsibility to love the Lord with all our heart, our soul, and our mind. Every area of the University should be focused upon the mission of scholarship, teaching, and learning. Learning does not occur simply for its own sake, but learning should instead transform each believer into the image of Christ. Through the undergraduate and graduate curriculum, OBU values the life of the academy and seeks to instill in its students a lifelong pursuit of learning and wisdom.

Missional Purposed

As a Christian liberal arts university, Oklahoma Baptist University exists to transform lives for missional purpose in global engagement. OBU strives to equip and educate students to engage a diverse world in obedience to the Great Commission and in submission to the Lordship of Christ. OBU seeks to prepare servant leaders with the character traits of Christ, the intellectual knowledge and wisdom attained from the liberal arts, competencies required for professions, and motivation for responsible Christian action and service.

Community Directed

Oklahoma Baptist University strives to create and nurture a university community where persons relate to one another in Christian charity and compassion. Creation in the image of God is the basis for human dignity and uniqueness, and is therefore affirmed for all persons. Jesus Christ is the perfect image of God, and the result of the process of salvation is becoming fully like Christ and thus, most human. OBU is committed to the commandment to love others as ourselves and endeavors to value and relate to all persons in accordance with their created uniqueness. This belief applies both to individual persons and to all human social structures.