Bakke Graduate University vs Piedmont International University

The discussion here is a little off the rails. Bakke Graduate University was not named after a founder, but rather the Bakke family siblings who were instrumental in leadership at Northwest Graduate School of Ministry when it faced financial crisis 15 years ago. The four family members (none of whom are on the board or active in the University at the current time) represented Ray Bakke who was a noted Theologian, Dennis Bakke (a business leader and Carter administration official), Lowell Bakke, who was a local church pastor, and the sister who was a lifelong Sunday School teacher. The point of naming it, was that the school teaches the intersection of theology and work, and the importance of the church and the Bakke family illustrated that. Maybe not a wise choice to name a school after a family, but it was a name of honor for a family who represented the ideals of the University, not in a self-serving founder narcissism way.

My experience there was awesome. It helped me build lifelong relationships with industry and ministry leaders on a global level, and enriched me in many ways. The school is niche, but in its niche (urban ministry and leadership) it has a global reputation that is very positive. Nobody goes here just to just get a degree, but to learn how to make a difference in their community by being a steward of the gifts God has given them, and to use their skills in business as ministry, as servant leaders and as a calling.

As for fundamentalist, the school is hardly that. Many different denominations attend, the faculty is welcoming of conservatives and liberals, and it is not ideological either politically or dogmatically. In fact my experience has been that they have been quite accepting. These are not GQP Christians, but urban ministers who work with all and in many cases, in the trenches doing servant work.