OBU Professors Provide Individualized Learning Experiences, Faith-Based Teaching and Ethical Guidance

OBU employs experienced, passionate professors to provide students with the best education, but experience and passion aren’t our professors’ only common traits. Those who teach at OBU have a gift for educating others, the hope to provide guidance to every student and the responsibility to teach ethical behaviors for application in the professional world.

“The thing that impressed me most when I started teaching at OBU is that the entire faculty cares greatly about the students,” says David Gillogly, OBU adjunct professor. “They aren’t just there to do research and read books, their primary reason for being there is to impact their students. OBU facilitates that in their culture and it’s contagious.”

Individualized Teaching and Guidance

At a large university, it’s difficult for professors to talk one-on-one with students and get to know them because there just isn’t the time. “At OBU we do more than what’s required in a classroom. We hear their hearts, what they are worried about and what they want to do, so that we can tailor their education to fit their specific needs,” Gillogly says.

OBU professors have a servant-like mindset. They truly want to help each student succeed and fulfill their individual goals. Larger universities may employ helpful professors, but OBU provides this help in a setting where students can be truly treated as individuals in their studies.

Joe Paquette, past OBU student, shares how professors like Gillogly would put students in touch with potential employers to help them make relevant industry connections. Paquette has been working at Express Employment Professionals for nine years because of a connection that Gillogly helped facilitate years ago. Gillogly shares that he stays in touch with many of his students after graduation, occasionally grabbing lunch to check in. 

OBU adjunct professor Jerry McMahan explains where his inspiration for teaching developed. “My heroes as a child were my teachers,” says McMahan. “In a way, I guess I never outgrew that respect for teaching and for learning.”

Faith-Based Teaching

OBU goes beyond teaching the material and focuses on a faith-based teaching style. Scripture and faith-based lessons are intertwined with required core education.

Professors serve as role models to students focusing on Christ throughout all facets of their lives: both personal and professional.  “Church life needs to direct your professional life, so I like to spend a lot of time talking about that, which I wouldn’t get to do at other universities,” says Gillogly. “Being ethical is part of being a Christian employee or employer. It impacts the kind of work you do; the way you do the work; the way you treat others, deal with customers and decide what work you want to do.”

OBU students appreciate the additional guidance. “It’s important to me that OBU teaches Christian faith in class and I’m happy to be at a school that encourages using faith-based morals in professional situations,” says Trent Tipton, OBU student.

Teaching Ethics for Real-Life Settings

Many OBU professors draw upon real- life experience in their teaching. Hearing examples from the real world can help students learn practical application and visualize moments they might face in the future when ethics may be tested. “My work experience allows me to teach students in practical terms what they are reading from their textbooks,” says Gillogly.

Gillogly has been teaching at OBU on and off for more than 15 years, after his retirement from Express Services in 2000. Gillogly’s classes cover material that can assist students entering or currently in the workplace. He touches on matters like dealing with bosses, managing your career and dealing with employees. He believes these examples are better taught through real-world anecdotes.

Here, learning goes beyond the textbook and even beyond the classroom. If OBU seems like the right place for you to start your career, apply today!