God on the Quad: How Religious Colleges and the Missionary Generation Are Changing America

Prior to starting this book I did not think that I would like it at all; however, I was mistaken. I highly recommend this book for members of the higher education community and those of particular faiths that may be attending college. "God on the Quad" starts with a rather strange introduction which speaks of "red states" and "blue states" and makes a large number of generalizations about liberals and conservatives that may anger some people. After reading the entire book I could not really determine how the introduction frames (or even relates to) the rest of the book. If you, as a reader, feel that you get offended by political commentary then I recommend you skip the introduction. Starting at chapter 1 the book is worthwhile. The book starts with a few case studies from various religious colleges: Brigham Young University, Bob Jones University, Notre Dame, St. Thomas Aquinas, Baylor, and a few others. Obviously the faiths of the schools and degree of fundamentalism range from each institution to the next. After the case studies, Riley follows a few themes such as "sex, drugs, and rock and roll," minorities and diversity, and political activism at religious institutions. The problem I have is that Riley does not hide her biases towards various schools. For example, she writes with a negative voice when writing about Bob Jones University. I truly felt like there was nothing good about Bob Jones University, according to Riley. One reason for this may be because of the way she was treated on the different campuses. I do believe that her research would have been presented better if the biased voice had been removed and equal comparisons had been made. Another big problem I had with the writing is that Riley makes the assumption that "secular" means "anti-religious" and makes it a strong reoccuring theme throughout the book that secular institutions foster hostile climates for students of faith. While I think she has some merit here, I would've liked to have seen more investigation into this percieved phenomenon. For example, do religious students feel uncomfortable at secular institutions because everyone in their dorm drinks? Or are they uncomfortable because everyone makes fun of them for not drinking? There is a huge difference that would be worth further exploration before actually accusing secular institutions of fostering hostile enviornments when, for the most part, they are trying their hardest to accomodate every single diverse individual. Finally, this book does provide a lot of insight on why students choose to attend religious colleges and also how religious colleges are expanding and filling a niche in the overall spectrum of higher education.

A well-written, fair-minded survey of various religious colleges and universities (including my alma mater, "Old" Notre Dame) and how they are grappling with issues of race, gender, political correctness, and other battlefronts in the cultural wars raging in the country. The major focus is on half a dozen schools, including ND, Brigham Young, Thomas Aquinas College (an orthodox Catholic "Great Books" college), Yeshiva, and the "notorious" Bob Jones University, but other institutions are covered as well. Any simple-minded hypothesis you may have formed regarding the "inferior" quality of education at schools with an explicit religious emphasis is sure to be overturned here. (For example, did you know that the hyper-fundamentalist Bob Jones University has a well-regarded art collection? I certainly didn't.) Far from being backwaters laden with hicks and idol-worshippers, these colleges and universities provide some real intellectual "diversity" amidst a sea of sameness, have preserved an air of academic seriousness in an era of increasingly trivialized scholarship, and possess the inestimable advantage of a framework of "shared values" within which to examine the surrounding culture - and change it in meaningful ways.

This book contains essential information for parents and for students who are preparing for college and contemplating the scant options out there for a wholesome -- some might say a sane -- environment in which to live and study. I found myself wishing Mrs. Riley had covered several other colleges I've heard about; Grove City College in particular comes to mind. And I'd have appreciated an entire chapter on Wheaton. But with regard to the colleges and universities she does home in on, I learned much that I had wondered about. For example, Mrs. Riley examines the dating scene (or courtship scene, or hooking up scene, as the case may be) in detail and captures the ethos on each campus much more thoroughly than does that other indispensable guide for conservative students, ISI's Choosing the Right College. Although her writing is workmanlike, with occasional small lapses in grammar or diction, Mrs. Riley deserves high praise for the earnestness with which she pursues her subject, for her sense of the interesting questions, and -- with one possible exception, to which I'll return -- for the evenhandedness with which she treats schools of various faiths. Among the schools she analyzes, Baylor seems to come off best. Interestingly, Baylor is the only subject school in which the administration is attempting a return to religious values that were compromised during the sixties and ensuing decades. The other schools discussed in the book are either still loosening up or have stood firm. Perhaps as a consequence, there is more of a discernible struggle at Baylor to make a place for cultural renewal; yet the code of conduct there appears to be advisory rather than compulsory, and I gather that Mrs. Riley approves. She seems to think that the most successful religious schools need to accommodate the culture to about the extent that Baylor does in order to analyze it or challenge it fruitfully. Not surprisingly, accommodations in the form of clubs or forums dealing with homosexuality are among the most controversial at religious schools, and Baylor`s position on homosexuality, as cited with approval by Mrs. Riley, is instructive. Although Baylor's president reacted forcefully when the student newspaper advocated same-sex marriage, others in the administration have pointed to a need for greater opportunities for students to examine and discuss homosexuality from various perspectives. I question that. Once "love the sinner, hate the sin" becomes merely one point of view among many, it is a short step to the current Harvard controversy, wherein actress Jada Pinkett Smith has been criticized by the the Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian, Transgender, and Supporters Alliance because her remarks -- describing her own experiences with marriage, children, and career -- were too "heteronormative." In the end, I prefer the honest response of Thomas Aquinas College to a hypothetical homosexual student: "Then, you have a cross to bear of a more than usually diffi

There are more and more conservative students on college campuses today. On secular college campuses and even more so on religious college campuses there is a trend that the students are becoming more conservative. The intellectual grounding at Christian colleges and other religious schools is preaching not just the religious-based life but also the conservative-based political orientation. The author has written a very interesting and eye-opening book about the influence of religious colleges on the college students of today. There is an author event available on C-Span2 Book TV - very informative.

Naomi Schaefer Riley provides a fascinating account of education, student life, and the intersection of tradition and modernity at religious colleges in America. She is a fantastic writer, insightful, and entertaining. I cannot recommend this book enough!