Surprise, Surprise, Accreditation Isn’t the Test of Academic Quality After All
Prior to my arrival to Bob Jones University, I made sure I knew—to the best of my knowledge—what exactly I was getting into with the education system there. From the school’s history with its’ ban on interracial dating to even the George Bush visits, I had to be very careful with the institution that I was getting involved with in the first place. My days at the University of Connecticut was closing in—after three semesters at the school—I started to realize how prevalent CRT (Critical Race Theory) permeated the field of English Language & Literature. Almost every subject I wanted to discuss (e.g. Shakespeare, Hawthorne, Twain, etc.) the subjects of race and intersectionality ensued like the teachers could not get away from them.
That was 2007.
Flash forward to 2011 and a whole array of BJU alumni moping, whining, ranting, and raving about how the University was not truly accredited because it wasn’t regionally accredited (for those snarky leftists—quick note—once a student can receive federal subsidies to study at BJU, it’s nevertheless accredited). Go to any website like WUTBJU and Stuff Fundies Like, one is going to find a bit of humor on the Independent Baptist culture and a few other air outs of dirty laundry. To be quite fair here, one could never imagine the holier than thou Dr. Camille Lewis thinking of little else other than her relentless dirt digging about BJU’s past connections with the KKK while trying to encourage her people to vote Democrat (none dare point to the hypocrisy of such women).
Apart from these things and the University’s flawed decisions, there always seems to be an endless myth pedaling of associating the accreditation status of institutionalized education with its quality. Against the backdrop of former BJU alumni screeching and hollering to the tune of this moronic myth—it’s more important to focus on the realities this belief does not include—especially when it comes to degree mills and real Alma Maters. For those outgoing transfers from the University, to find someone who left the University of Connecticut to attend an allegedly less than par education institution such as this would be such a shock. For former students—like myself—who foresaw the elements of the cancel culture before 2020, this serves as a fair reminder of how far out of touch the left has become.
Back in my UConn days when the #Metoo and Cancel Culture were not so prevalent, I found myself enthralled in midst of creating intellectual challenges most professors did not appreciate. When I took my first semester of psychology, there was an instance where the professor managed to dabble the students into the world of evolutionary psychology by discussing the origins of our brains where I quickly asked, “If nature functions as a blind force, how does nature decide for itself which fold works best for our brains?,” which yielded a convoluted answer. Despite my fading recollections of this event, never will I ever forget the scornful look on his face for demanding a relatively intelligent answer to the subject.
And I won’t forget the time I took a mathematics course where I was required to complete a Sudoku puzzle as part of my final exam. Instead of spending the right amount of time educating on practical mathematical problems, I became relatively aware these educational professionals were not doing me a favor for preparing me for the world I live in.
Neither will I ever forget the time where one of my college friends shared her frustrations of catching another student ripping off her pro-life posters or the attempts of students shouting at me for wearing a shirt that simply stated “UConn Pro-Life” with a sketch of an unborn child, or how I managed to challenge a bunch of women studies majors on the propaganda they were using. Their answer when I prompted one of them in the elevator was a simple, “Let’s agree to disagree” and move-on.
So much for intellectual challenges.
The instances like these was what prompted me to find a Christian School because essentially, I was not satisfied with the lack of serious intellectual rigor to what I thought would be an appropriate education. For students who enjoy the English Language and the Arts, I realized the professors didn’t have a clue on teaching the proper methods of literary interpretation and how to effectively communicate with style. Those, if I ever were to do well in the world of reading and writing, were the key elements to making education beneficial in the first place.
Enter Bob Jones University.
There may be quirks with Alma Mater, and there are plenty to pick and choose from—like socially awkward weirdos—like moi—to prestigious well-to-do pre-law and ministerial students (other dudes) where I enjoyed teasing, jabbing, and engaging in high ended intellectual discussions. My best academic semesters were my first, second, and last ones because not only did I manage to take a stab in the world of writing, but I also learned the art of how to interpret everything appropriately.
And that was what I was grateful for really.
In light of what has happened over the past decade, I learned to appreciate the restrictions the University has placed on its faculty and student body, placing limits on what could or should be said on particular subjects. While I am no fan of its moronic decisions, especially if these damage the University’s image, I want to point out that this place has something better to offer than what has been happening recently at other educational institutions whose examples include:
Students demanding its alma mater to hire black queer professors.
University Administrators placing trigger warnings for American Flags.
Activists demanding students to be punished for hate speech.
Students demanding the firing of professors for attending a pro-police rally.
Academics supporting the dismantling anti-black linguistic racism.
Students marching for more diversity—too many white people.
Professors needing to worry over their jobs for disagreeing on BLM.
Law students demanding classroom diversity monitors for questionable conduct.
Athletes boycotting practices because its director stated all lives matter.
And my personal favorite…
Proper English Grammar is now deemed racist.
For those who believe my instincts are far off the base, let me ask you one particular question: what is the entire point to intellectual inquiry when a particular institution sells itself out for a brand of ideology that could not be questioned, challenged, or examined?
For if Bob Jones University was to be said on the same level that discouraged such an atmosphere, where are the student and faculty activists who want to peddle such anti-intellectual (and hateful) ideology? Why are the professors living their routine day-to-day lives instead of living in fear of their students who are supposed to control the outcome of the classrooms? Why do students happen to act like blooming adults not like teenage pre-Madonna’s?
While leftists continue to scream about their demands for educational diversity, may I encourage those who want a better education to enroll at a University that cares about its student body?