Robert B. Sloan, Jr.

Dr. Robert B. Sloan Jr. served as Chancellor of Baylor University in 2005 and 2006. From 1995-2005 he served as the 12th president of Baylor University, leaving his position as founding dean of Baylor's George W. Truett Theological Seminary.

Sloan was born in Coleman, Texas, in 1949, but was reared in Abilene, Texas, where he graduated from Cooper High School in 1967. He attended Baylor from 1967 to 1970 and was a member of the baseball team his freshman year. He graduated ahead of his class, earning a bachelor of arts degree cum laude in 1970. He was a member of Alpha Chi National Honor Society and the Honors Program, graduating "With Distinction." He then attended Princeton Theological Seminary, where he earned the master of divinity degree magna cum laude in 1973. He conducted post-baccalaureate research in church history at the University of Bristol, England, from 1973-74 and earned the Doktor der Theologie degree insigni cum laude from the University of Basel, Switzerland, in 1978.

Sloan joined the faculty of Baylor's Department of Religion in 1983 after holding teaching positions at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth from 1980-83. In 1990 he became the first holder of the George W. Truett Chair in Evangelism at Baylor, and in 1993 he was appointed dean of Truett Seminary. Baylor regents in February 1995 named Sloan to succeed Dr. Herbert H. Reynolds as president of the University.

From 1980-1995 Sloan served as interim pastor of more than 20 churches throughout Texas (plus one in Oklahoma) while holding full-time academic positions at SWBTS and Baylor. From 1991-92 he was president of the Southwest Commission on Religious Studies. In his academic capacity he has held membership in numerous professional societies, including the Society of Biblical Literature, the Southwest Biblical Seminar, the Institute for Biblical Research, the National Association of Baptist Professors of Religion and Studiorum Novi Testamenti Societas. He has authored two books, assisted with editing several others, and has published more than 50 articles and chapters for scholarly or ecumenical journals and publications. He has presented numerous academic papers and received awards and grants for his scholarship. Sloan served as the designated "Convention Preacher" for the 1991 Baptist General Convention of Texas, which met that year in Waco.

He has held numerous civic positions in the Waco area, including school board president of the Lorena Independent School District, service on the Cooper Foundation Board, the Tadpole Foundation Board of Directors, and the Waco Big 12 Task Force. In 1996, Sloan was inducted into the Little League Hall of Excellence. He also serves on the board of Texas Baptists Committed. He has been involved in numerous organizations related to higher education, including the Baylor College of Medicine, the Big 12 Athletic Conference Board of Directors, the board of the Independent Colleges and Universities of Texas, the Group of 6 (the six major athletic conferences), and the American Association of Presidents of Independent College and Universities.

In August of 2006 Sloan was named the third president of Houston Baptist University, and inaugurated on the HBU campus in November of that year.

He is married to the former Sue Collier (BA '70) of Cisco, Texas, and they have seven children plus one daughter-in-law and one son-in-law: Charissa (BA '95, MA '96, JD '99); Bryan (BA '98) and Amy (BA '03); Eraina (BA '99, MSEd and MDiv '02) and Bryan (JD '02); Michael (BA '02, Texas Tech MA '04, St. Andrews, MLitt '06); Alathea (BA '03); Sophia (BA '06); and Paul.