Declining Church Membership Creates Hiring Challenges for Churches of Christ-Linked Universities

National Photo provided by LCU Sept. 16, 2026

Declining church membership creates university hiring challenges

Why many universities associated with Churches of Christ are hiring from outside the fellowship.

As church membership in the U.S. continues to decline, universities affiliated with Churches of Christ face increasing difficulty in hiring qualified faculty for specialized programs. These institutions, which often maintain strong ties to the fellowship, are now turning to external candidates to meet growing academic demands.

The Christian Chronicle interviewed the presidents of 11 higher education institutions linked to Churches of Christ. Nine of these require all board members to be members of the fellowship. Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tenn., mandates that 75 percent of its board be members of Churches of Christ. Pepperdine University in Malibu, Calif., requires a majority of its board to be members of the fellowship.

Freed-Hardeman University in Henderson, Tenn., upholds a policy established over a century ago, stating that its board, administration, faculty, and staff should be members of Churches of Christ. The only exception is for hourly employees in hospitality and housekeeping.

At other institutions, including Lipscomb, Harding University in Searcy, Ark., and Oklahoma Christian University in Oklahoma City, the majority of faculty are members of Churches of Christ. However, these schools have adopted statements of faith that all employees must sign rather than requiring membership.

“We have loosened strings on faculty,” said Oklahoma Christian University President Ken Jones. “They have to be willing to agree to our covenants — who we are as a university — and deeply Jesus-centered in their faith and committed to a local congregation.”

Jones noted that the university cannot fill its faculty ranks otherwise. “You don’t have to believe exactly what the Church of Christ believes, but you have to agree to live in this environment with us.”

Richard Johnson, president of Crowley’s Ridge College in Paragould, Ark., reported that more than 90 percent of employees are members of Churches of Christ. “We try to hire all employees within Churches of Christ when we can,” Johnson said, “but that doesn’t mean we’re always successful.”

Employment at these institutions is not dependent on membership in a Church of Christ but rather on a set of spiritual, religious principles and beliefs that every employee assents to upon hire.

This shift reflects broader challenges within the fellowship as it navigates the tension between maintaining its identity and adapting to changing demographics and academic needs. The situation underscores the importance of finding balance between tradition and practicality in serving both spiritual and educational communities.

Source: Read the original report