历史

Southwest 浸会大学 first opened its doors in 1878 in Lebanon, Mo.，如西南 浸信会大学. In 1879, the college was chartered by the state of Missouri 和 moved 对玻利瓦尔. Early writings recount a legacy of sacrificial giving 和 extraordinary efforts by Baptists in southwest Missouri to establish 和 maintain the college. 的 创始人Abner S. 英格曼和詹姆斯. Maupin, faced many difficulties as they rode horseback seeking funds, students 和 an ideal college site.

Each spring semester, SBU celebrates Founders Day. It is a time to reflect upon our rich heritage 和 to remember that in 1878, our founding fathers, Ingman 和 Maupin, established Southwest 浸信会大学. Founders Day is an important time when we are challenged to reflect on our past 和 to thank God for the people who have made the 今天的成功是可能的.

的 college faced many hardships in its early years 和 actually closed from 1910-13 to regain financial solvency 和 to recover from a devastating fire that destroyed the college’s only building. 的 efforts 和 prayers of area supporters 和 Missouri Baptists brought results, 和 the college reopened in 1913 as a two-year junior college.

的 University has maintained its strong 浸信会遗产 through its affiliation with the Missouri Baptist Convention, which provides financial support for the University 和 elects the 25-member board of trustees which governs 该机构. 的 Missouri Baptist Convention approved plans in 1964 for the college to become a senior liberal arts college. 的 first baccalaureate degrees were awarded in 1967. Bolivar citizens donated a 102-acre farm on the southern edge of the city that allowed the college to exp和 beyond the small 10-acre campus located near downtown.

Another milestone occurred in 1981 when the college name was changed to Southwest 浸会大学. In 1995, the University entered a joint nursing education agreement 与圣. John's Regional Medical Center in 斯普林菲尔德, Mo.形成;形成. 约翰的学校 SBU的护理. 这所学校后来成为圣. John's College of Nursing 和 健康 2005年科学展望. St. John's changed its name in 2012, making the name of the college Mercy College of Nursing 和 健康 Sciences of SBU. 今天, College of 健康 Professions maintains a valuable partnership with Mercy 健康 Systems.

Today, SBU is a thriving higher education institution with more than 3,000 undergraduate 和 graduate students enrolled annually. 的 152-acre main campus is located in the southern portion of Bolivar, a community of about 10,300 residents that serves as the county seat of Polk County. Bolivar is located about 25 miles north of 斯普林菲尔德, which is the third-largest city in the state of Missouri after St. 路易斯和堪萨斯 城市. 的 University also operates campuses in 山景城, 萨勒姆 和 斯普林菲尔德, Mo. An 在线校园 2019年新增.

遗产

From its inception, the University has been a distinctively Christian 和 Baptist institution in terms of worldview 和 ideological commitments. 基督教的世界观， which is grounded in the Old 和 New Testaments, is the belief that:

• God is creator 和 sustainer of the universe 和 the ultimate source of all truth, beauty, 和 moral value wherever they are found.
• God both judges 和 redeems humanity, thereby inviting men 和 women to define their relationship with Him, with fellow human beings across the globe, 和 with history.
• All people are to be treated with respect since they have been created in the image of God 和 have innate worth.
• Human beings have sufficient capacity 和 freedom of will to develop their physical, social, psychological, 和 spiritual well-being.
• Christians are to be change agents in society, sharing the Christian message 和 lifestyle, in that persons are responsible for their relationship with God, with fellow human beings, 和 with their environment.
• Christians must exercise responsible citizenship.

的 cornerstone of Baptist tradition is the conviction, based upon biblical principles, that each person has freedom of conscience before both God 和 man. 的影响 of this tradition for Baptist higher education are the:

• acknowledgment of God as the ultimate source of all knowledge 和 truth
• commitment to scholarly endeavor under God
• desire for open inquiry 和 responsible scholarship, 和 the freedom to promote the results of this scholarship
• freedom of others to hold 和 to promote contrary scholarly views