Rory R. Lee (born April 14, 1949) is a
Southern Baptist
The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) is a Christian denomination based in the United States. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination, and the largest Protestant and second-largest Christian denomination in the United States. The word ...
clergy
Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...
man, educator, and former college administrator and president who has been since 2004 the executive director of Baptist Children's Village, a statewide ministry based in
Ridgeland,
Mississippi
Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...
, which provides group homes for children along with psychological and spiritual counseling for families.
Background
In 1971, Lee received his bachelor's degree in
Bible
The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...
studies from
Mississippi College
Mississippi College (MC) is a private Baptist university in Clinton, Mississippi. Founded in 1826, MC is the second-oldest Baptist-affiliated college or university in the United States and the oldest college or university in Mississippi.
Histor ...
in
Clinton, Mississippi, where he was already working as an admissions counselor while still studying for his degree. In 1973, he obtained his master's degree in counseling from MC. Thereafter, he became the dean of men and from 1976 to 1994 the bi-vocational pastor of Antioch Baptist Church in
Hazlehurst in
Copiah County south of the capital city of
Jackson
Jackson may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Jackson (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the surname or given name
Places
Australia
* Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region
* Jackson North, Qu ...
.
During his tenure at Antioch, the church grew in membership, missions, stewardship, and Bible studies. In the meantime, Lee in 1984
[ earned his doctorate from the ]University of Mississippi
The University of Mississippi (byname Ole Miss) is a public research university that is located adjacent to Oxford, Mississippi, and has a medical center in Jackson. It is Mississippi's oldest public university and its largest by enrollment.
...
at Oxford
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
.
Lee and his wife, Janet, have two children, Lauren and Lacey.[
]
College administration
At Mississippi College, Lee was successively dean of admissions, director of development, vice president for development, and from 1989 to 1997 the vice president for institutional advancement. In 1993, Lee was named for eleven months the MC interim president after president Lewis Nobles was removed for the embezzlement of college funds.[ Lee resigned from the pastorate at Antioch to devote full-time to the interim college presidency. Lee remained as vice president for institutional advancement for two years after a new president was selected, but in 1996, he left MC to begin a one-year stint as president of Baptist-affiliated ]William Carey College
William Carey University (also known as Carey, William Carey, or WCU) is a Private university, private Christianity, Christian university in Mississippi, affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention and the Mississippi Baptist Convention. T ...
in Hattiesburg
Hattiesburg is a city in the U.S. state of Mississippi, located primarily in Forrest County (where it is the county seat and largest city) and extending west into Lamar County. The city population was 45,989 at the 2010 census, with the populat ...
, Mississippi.[ There, Lee coordinated the strategic planning process of the institution and formulated telecommunications and faculty development plans.][
In 1997, Lee was named the ]seventh
Seventh is the ordinal form of the number seven.
Seventh may refer to:
* Seventh Amendment to the United States Constitution
* A fraction (mathematics), , equal to one of seven equal parts
Film and television
*"The Seventh", a second-season e ...
president of Louisiana Christian University
Louisiana Christian University (LCU) is a private Baptist university in Pineville, Louisiana. It enrolls 1,100 to 1,200 students. It is affiliated with the Louisiana Baptist Convention (Southern Baptist Convention).
Louisiana Christia ...
in Pineville, Louisiana
Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...
. Pastor Thomas James "Jim" Spencer (1938-2006) of Kingsville Baptist Church in Ball
A ball is a round object (usually spherical, but can sometimes be ovoid) with several uses. It is used in ball games, where the play of the game follows the state of the ball as it is hit, kicked or thrown by players. Balls can also be used f ...
, chairman at the time of the LCU trustees, said that the unanimous selection of Lee to replace the retiring Robert L. Lynn had been "a unifying effort for the board. Dr. Lee is an outstanding young man who is both a professional college administrator and a dedicated Christian servant. ... that all Louisiana Baptists can rally around and support."
At LCU, Lee worked for the construction of new facilities on campus, the addition of two new sports to the athletic program, and an increase in the number of faculty members with terminal degrees in their field.[ He described his view of ]academic freedom
Academic freedom is a moral and legal concept expressing the conviction that the freedom of inquiry by faculty members is essential to the mission of the academy as well as the principles of academia, and that scholars should have freedom to teac ...
as "absolutely critical to academic excellence in a college. Teachers must have the freedom to teach their disciplines. But at a Christian college, academic freedom is bordered by the mission statement of the college."[
Controversy preceded Lee's decision to resign as president effective in June 2004. In December 2003, LCU trustees revised the college policy on academic freedom, a decision made after Lee had removed two books used in a class from the campus bookstore. Lee took that action after a student complained about a love scene and profanity in both books. The revised policy requires that faculty submit their textbooks for approval by the department chairperson and the vice president for academic affairs.]
Baptist Children's Village
After seven years, Lee left LCU to assume his current position in Ridgeland in Madison County in the Jackson
Jackson may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Jackson (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the surname or given name
Places
Australia
* Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region
* Jackson North, Qu ...
metropolitan area
A metropolitan area or metro is a region that consists of a densely populated urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories sharing industries, commercial areas, transport network, infrastructures and housing. A metro area usually com ...
as the executive director of the Baptist Children's Village, which provides short-term and long-term care for abandoned, neglected, or abused children. Lee said that his duties can make one "very sad and very angry. But we’ve learned not to dwell on those negative feelings. Instead, we focus on showing Christ
Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, names and titles), was ...
's love not only to the children, but also to their families. This is a healing ministry."[ Lee said that his life goal is to have "no repeat customers" and to eliminate the need for a facility like Baptist Children's Village.][
Lee said that his preparation for his ministerial and administrative duties came through his longstanding ties to Mississippi College, which in 2011 named him "Alumnus of the Year".][
]
References
External links
Baptist Children's Village
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Rory
1949 births
Living people
People from Jackson, Mississippi
People from Clinton, Mississippi
People from Hazlehurst, Mississippi
People from Hattiesburg, Mississippi
People from Pineville, Louisiana
Baptist ministers from the United States
Mississippi College alumni
University of Mississippi alumni
Presidents of Louisiana Christian University
Baptists from Mississippi
Baptists from Louisiana