MTP 47: Derek Crews Part 2 on A Professor’s Prayer List: How to Minister to Students Online

In this episode of Meet The Prof, Shane continues his conversation with Derek Crews, a Professor of Management at Texas Woman’s University. Derek shares how his approach to student relationships has changed over the years as he transitioned from in-person to primarily online teaching. He explains how he intentionally prays for his students and subtly integrates his faith in ways that spark spiritual conversations. From personal prayer lists to inviting students into his home for the holidays, Derek offers practical examples of how Christian professors can influence students for Christ in both virtual and in-person settings.

Read more about Derek Crews online:
 Meet The Prof Profile

Email:
dcrews@twu.edu

Main Takeaways:

• Christian professors can make an impact even in online teaching by praying for students by name.
• Small gestures, such as responding to students with empathy, can lead to deep spiritual conversations.
• Faculty members can display their faith in their office through religious symbols and literature.
• Inviting students into personal life events, like family gatherings, can create opportunities for mentorship.
• Professors have more legal freedom than they may realize when it comes to faith expressions in the workplace.

Christian professors, share how Jesus has rescued you on Meet The Prof: https://meettheprof.com/create-profile/

Watch Meet The Prof on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@MeetTheProfOfficial/videos

Listen on Apple Podcasts:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/meet-the-prof-with-shane-and-spence/id1733311320

Listen on Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/show/6kizp6klascdMj1nqaj6LD

Find over 500 Christian Professors on MeetTheProf.com:
https://meettheprof.com/

Get free resources for answering questions about God at:
https://www.everystudent.com/

College students, follow us on Instagram and send us a question(s) for Christian professors by DM here:
https://www.instagram.com/meettheprofofficial/

If you’d like to financially support our Faculty Commons ministry, you can do so online at https://give.cru.org/0424344

Transcript

0:00

Hey there, my name is Elijah. I go to Patrick Henry College, west of DC. And my question is, how do you as a professor integrate your faith and your church specifically with the teaching that you do in classrooms? How do you bring students into the church? Can you share a story of that? Welcome everyone to Meet the Prof. Hey, my name is Shane Hartley and I'm so excited you're here. This is the podcast where we introduce you to Christian professors and we're taking questions from college students and asking them to Christian professors so that we can encourage Christ-centered conversations on the college campus. So you're about to hear part two of my interview with Derek Crews. Derek is a Professor of Management at Texas Women's University, which we learned last week. is not just for women. And I think you're really going to appreciate him and his experience. And if you're a Christian professor, would you consider putting your Christian testimony online? It's really simple and doesn't take long. You can go to meettheprof.com and click on submit your profile and answer some of the questions there. We would love that. If you are also a parent or if you're a college student or just someone who loves the campus and you'd like to find Christian professors, you can go there to meettheprof.com and search by state or campus or name. So well, without any further ado, let's jump in. Here's my interview with Derek Crews. Well, tell us some about your relationship with your students. How much are you able to tell your students about your faith in Christ? Well, it's a little different today than it would have been 10 years ago, 20 years ago, 30 years ago. So when I first started as a professor, I was on campus five days a week, all my classes, I was actually in a classroom. It was a small college. I got to know all of my students very well, at least pretty well anyway. And we only had 1200 students total. And I would see the same students in class over and over and... And back then, was at Alderson Broaddus University in West Virginia, Philippi, West Virginia. And we lived in a faculty neighborhood on campus. So I would walk to class and students would come walking down the street, just going for walks in the evening. They see me out in the yard pulling weeds or whatever and say hi or stop by and chat for a few minutes. I knew my students and had close relationships with them. Over the years, particularly now in Texas working for a state university. My classes have gradually gone more and more online. Even pre-COVID, I was 90 % online and that's where I'm at today. I was 100 % online for a couple of years through COVID, but now I teach seven to eight classes a year, including a couple of voluntary ones in the summer. All but one now are online. I have one class in the fall that's on campus. So I do not have the kind of in-person relationship with students that I had for many years. What I am in a position to do is to interact with students in more of a virtual environment. So that's been a process of trying to figure out what works and how to do that. And sometimes it's... ministering to them, advocating for them through prayer, even though I may not ever have a personal conversation with them. So for example, one of the things that I do is at the beginning of every semester, I print two copies of the roster for each class. And then I have an online discussion forum where they introduce themselves to each other and to me. And I respond to every introduction. and I respond to them by name. And then if they have a nickname, let's say Katherine goes by Katie, because I asked them in the introduction, tell us if you have a nickname. So then I go to my roster and beside her name, I'll write Katie. And then when I'm doing feedback in the grade book, I start it with Katie. Good job on this assignment, not Katherine, but Katie. So that's one way I use the roster, but then the extra copy of the roster I put into my prayer book that I keep in the sunroom where I have my quiet time in the mornings. Mm-hmm. as part of my prayer time, I try to pray for three or four students every day until I have worked my way all the way through my prayer roster. And I don't know most of those students, but I can certainly pray that they will know Jesus, that they will love the Lord with all their heart, soul, and mind. I can pray that God would be gracious and merciful to them, that he would show favor to them, that they would serve him and things along that line. Hmm. And actually that idea came from just a comment in passing from the man who gave me my first shot at teaching a college course as an adjunct and that was at Southeastern Oklahoma State University. And I live 65 miles north of Denton, so we're almost in Oklahoma. So Southeastern is actually closer to me than TWU. Mm-hmm. But I was working in accounting and finance. I felt that God was calling me to make a career change into higher education. I had just finished my MBA and Dr. David Whitlock was the department chair for management at Southeastern Oklahoma. And he hired me to teach an adjunct course. And that got me my foot in the door to get some experience, which then led to a full-time job offer in West Virginia. And David went on to become president of Oklahoma Baptist. for many years and now he retired from there and he's back at Southeastern as a professor again. David had just, I remember he made a comment to me about printing off an extra copy of his roster and praying through them every semester. And that was over 30 years ago, but that stuck with me. And I guess one thing that that also emphasizes is how important just a comment in passing can be. It's true. Does he know that you followed his example this long? That's good question. He and I actually reached out to him, I guess it was last fall. And we're gonna try to get together for coffee and we haven't done it yet, but we're back in contact. Because we didn't have any contact for probably close to 30 years since then. I definitely want to take him out to lunch or buy him a cup of coffee and just tell him what an impact that made on me. Yeah. Derek, do you have any examples of a time that God overcame some of the barriers of online teaching and gave you a glimpse into some of the personal needs of a student and maybe an opportunity to actually minister to a student spiritually? Sure. I guess what comes to mind is it's not unusual for an online student to reach out that is going through some sort of a crisis. Often it's, and they need more time on an assignment and it's often the loss of a loved one. And sometimes they're traveling to another place, sometimes halfway across the country for a funeral. But students will make a comment and you can just feel their grief through their email or their message on the learning management system canvas that we use. can message me on that. And it opens the door for me to not only just say, I'll grant you additional time, but also to let them know that I'm praying for them and their families. And I'll pose questions sometimes like, you know, a student will say, you know, I lost my uncle and after a long battle with cancer and I just can't focus right now. I'm just distraught. Could I have some extra time? And so I'll, you know, I will reach back out to them or reply and of course say, you know, of course you can, I can work with you on some extra time, but also to let them know I'm praying for them, but then to do something a little bit more personal like what's your uncle's name? what was his influence on your life because you clearly were very, very close to them and he must have had an important role in your life growing up. And students just open up. And it's interesting how that, and just something as simple as not just saying you're in my thoughts, but just saying I want to pray for you and your family. And students oftentimes will just, that will open up a spiritual conversation. Wow, I never had a professor pray for me when I was in college. I can imagine that would make an impact. Well, you know, that's again, it goes back to that's why God places us in these roles and whatever it is, whether you're a professor or whether you're a ministry staff with Cru as you are or whether you're working in construction, God has you assigned to an area of influence. Well, Derek, we asked college students to come up with a question that they would like to have answered by a Christian professor. so take a listen to this question from a student named Elijah. Hey there, my name is Elijah. I go to Patrick Henry College, west of DC. And my question is, how do you as a professor integrate your faith and your church specifically with the teaching that you do in classrooms? How do you bring students into the church? Can you share a story of that? Thank you so much, Elijah, for that question. It's a very good question, and it's one that really makes me reflect on how my interactions with students have changed over the years from when I saw them on campus every day to now 90 % of them are online, and I never really meet them in person. So it's somewhat difficult. I have to say, I still haven't quite figured that out, how that works in an online environment. Teaching, I do still teach one class in the fall in person. I try to make sure that when they walk into my office, I have a plaque with some scripture on it, on one wall. I have two crosses on shelves. I have a Bible on my desk. I have a couple of pamphlets, an excerpt from the Language of God by Francis Collins, From Atheist to Believer, I think his name might have a few of those that a student can... can pick up if they want, actually Steve Pogue with Faculty Commons gave those to me. So I thought that was just a great suggestion. But these days it tends to happen more with my graduate assistants because those are the ones that I actually get to know now as opposed to most of my students. So for example, I had one graduate student year before last from Africa and he lived on campus and he was a master's student. And I asked him one day, what are you doing for Christmas? And he said, I'll just be at home alone because I don't have any family here and really haven't made any close friends. So I said, well, why you just come spend the night with us? And the Christmas that year happened to fall, I guess on a Sunday morning. And I said, if you'd like to go to church with us, you're welcome to. So he did, he came up, spent the night, went to church with us. had Christmas afternoon with us and then we, it was a nice warm December day and you know we just went outside and did some farm stuff and fishing and things like that. But it's really I guess something where I will put something out there just to let students know that I am a Christian, to let them know that I do think it's important for Christians to go to church on a regular basis and be involved in their church. And then if they want to pursue it, then they can. And I have a very good friend of mine now that he and I try to get together once every couple, lives about 60 miles away, but we get together once every month or so for coffee or for lunch. And I've had him, and his wife and their five children have been out to our farm. several times for cookouts and fishing. But I met him, he was a graduate student in one of my classes. And it was after the class was over actually. And we even, he went on a study tour that I led to Ireland, an MBA study tour. And I didn't really even get to know him until after he graduated. And that's when our spiritual conversations started. You don't really know what is... coming across to students sometimes. I've had more than once, I've had a student make a comment to me after a class was over, something along the lines of it was really refreshing to have a professor teach this content from a Christian perspective or from a biblical worldview. And then I find myself thinking, what in the world did I say? How did that even come across? But somehow it comes across, right? And then on the last day of class, I asked the students if I could say a prayer for them, going into finals. So, and they always, I've never had students say no. Usually they just nod their head, please, please pray for finals. This is only your in-person classes. You don't do that virtually, right? That's be a little weird. Okay. haven't. Yeah, I mean, I might could try to record it virtually, but I don't know if it would have the same. I just don't know. have to think about that a little bit and see how that might work. But in class, on the last day of class, it's the last thing that I do. I just say, can I say a prayer for you as you go into finals? And they say yes. I say, well, first I say, now I lay me down to study. I pray the Lord I won't go nutty. If I should fail to learn this junk, I pray the Lord I will not flunk. So then they laugh and I say, okay, that was just kind of a funny. Right, exactly. But then I say, now on a more serious note, I would like to say a prayer for you. And if you're familiar with the Bible, then it's from, I tell them that if you're familiar with the Bible, you might know the book of Numbers, and this is Numbers chapter four, if you want to go look it up. And I pray Aaron's prayer for them. The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make his face to shine upon you... And then at the end of that prayer, I say, class, you are loved. And that's it. That's the end of class. Well, so far I haven't gotten in trouble. I'm still waiting for that. No one's complained. Yep, how many years have you done that now? I've done it for some variations of that for probably 20 years. Is that right? Do you think in general that faculty can do a lot more than they give themselves permission to spiritually? Yes, I do. I think sometimes it depends on what kind of university you're at. Sometimes it depends on who your department chair or dean is and their perspective and whether or not the students are going to complain. Sometimes it really, I think, depends on whether you are coming across as proselytizing or whether you are coming across as loving. So when I do the prayer for them, even if they're non-believers, I try to phrase it in a way that, you know, who wants to, who doesn't want a blessing from God, right? Even if you don't believe in God, why would you be opposed to someone offering to bless you, right? So it's never been a problem, but I do think that even in terms of religious displays, and I say it that way because I'm an HR professor, so that's the... The terminology within the profession is religious displays in the workplace. Are they allowed or are they not? And the answer is they are absolutely allowed in your private workspace. Now, if you are working in a, say a front office reception area, that's different. If you are working in an environment like that, there's no legal protection that says you can put a cross up. But there is legal protection in your private workspace, at your desk, in your private office that you can have religious displays. And that's been tried in court. And that's where the law stands on that is that religious displays, whether it's wearing a cross, whether it's having a Bible on your desk, scripture verse on your wall, as long as your private work area, that is absolutely protected speech. So that's the HR professor take on that. Right, and your office, is it because it has a door, you have the boundary for an office that makes that your private workspace? Well, that becomes very situational. It could be though just as something as simple as a cubicle. Doesn't really have to be a private office. It's just your personal work area as opposed to a public space. And I remember one of our staff walked by my office one time and just popped her head in the door and said, say a prayer for me. Just because she saw me reading my Bible. I love that. Yeah. Derek, I've asked you a lot of questions about your role as faculty of teaching. I would love to hear, I'd like to ask you a question about your research. So you have a text, but at least one textbook in HR. And I was wondering if you can foresee opportunities or you have desires to collaborate with other believers, maybe in other fields even. Well, sure, I have two published textbooks with Flatworld. One is an HR textbook, Mastering Human Resource Management, and then the other is Principles of Talent Development, which is a training and development textbook. And I'm the single author on both of those. The HR textbook just came out in a second edition. Talent Development is a first edition that came out last year. But... If all goes well, then about every three years I'll be revising each of those books. I can't, well, two things in response to your question. One is I could see possibly bringing on a co-author as I get closer to semi-retirement. And I might appreciate having someone else that can help with the revisions by bringing on a co-author. But then I'm certainly open to the possibility of another book. I honestly do not know if I have another textbook in me as a single author because each of those books was a little over two years of my life. Let me put it that way. Yeah, I didn't have a break. know, the winter break, spring break, summer break. I didn't have a break for the last five years because of working on those. I had one contract, which was a two book deal. And this past winter break, I had four weeks off for the first time in I guess almost six years where I actually took a break from everything. There's also the possibility of doing something more trade press related. So in this case, something more for people in the HR profession, much shorter book, you know, like a hundred page type book, as opposed to a 700 page textbook. And that's something that I might be able to collaborate with someone and not necessarily in HR, but someone from a different perspective, particularly if it was someone coming from the social sciences. So for example, psychology would be one helpful perspective because that's an area that is very needed right now in the workplace, and particularly mental health counseling type of approach that I'm not really qualified to. to bring that perspective into a book. I think about Dr. Len Lecci. He's one of the professors we've interviewed on this podcast. He's a psychology professor at the University of North Carolina, Wilmington. Yeah, know there are others like him that may be options. or maybe we can connect. Well, so I have some lightning round questions for you as we're coming to an end. so these will be questions for just the first thing that comes to mind. first thing is, what advice would you give to other Christian faculty? I think the thing that comes to mind first there is to not get so busy that you forget that you're there to serve the Lord in your area of influence. And it's real easy to do. I mean, I know I've experienced it myself. Almost an entire semester could go by. You're so busy teaching classes, trying to do your research, trying to get an article published, serving on committees, and all of sudden months have gone by and you find yourself kind of that semester comes to an end or you get a break, maybe in spring break, and the whirlwind stops for a day or two and you think, what am I doing? What have I been doing for the last three months for the Lord? Hmm. That makes sense. Mm-hmm. Well, what is a piece of advice you would give to college freshmen? College freshmen, would say ask for help. There is every place, every university I've been with, there is a lot of help in terms of resources and support for students, whether it's academic support, whether it's emotional support, whether it's spiritual support, whether it's through the university or through organizations that are present. on or near your campus, whether it's a church, whether it's a Cru ministry, Baptist Student Union, things along those lines, just ask. Don't be alone struggling and trying to figure things out all by yourself. Great. What about for graduating college seniors? What advice would you give to a graduating senior from college? Well, the advice that I would, I think, give first for seniors is similar to what I did for freshmen, except a little different. And that's ask for help. But in this case, I would stress professional mentoring. So whatever field you're going into, seek out a mentor that's in that field and has been in it long enough to help you make that transition from academics to practical application. And that's where a lot of students really struggle is it's one thing to learn the theory. It's another thing, let's say in my case, in HR, it's another thing to understand how it really plays out in the real world and how no two days are the same in HR. Every day has its own surprises because you're working with people and people can be surprising, right? But having a professional mentor. And there are organizations in many fields that this is the case in HR. an organization in HR called the Society for Human Resource Management or SHRM and there are chapters in 80 countries and many of those chapters have mentoring programs. Great. Well, lastly, what advice would you give to parents who are sending their kids off to college? Two pieces of advice, one is pray for your student, pray for your child. Because when they're going off to college, in most cases, unless they're going to a very specific Christ-centered college, and there are a few of those, but if they're going to other types of universities, their faith will be challenged. And pray that that would make them their faith stronger and not weaker. But also pray for their academic success, pray for their social success, pray that they would withstand temptation. And that's something where a lot of students get tripped up leaving home and suddenly they have freedoms that they never had and they can experiment in things that they've never done before. and sometimes that can ruin their lives if they're not careful. So pray for them. The other is ask questions when you see them. When they're home on break or home on a weekend, ask questions. Just like any parent should even of any child, whether they're a teenager or, you know, I'm learning even it's good to ask your adult children these questions. But don't just say, how's the semester going? They say, great. And you say, good. Dig in a little bit, right? What's your favorite class? What are you finding challenging right now? If they're living on campus, how's dorm life? But ask really specific questions and just try to be there for them, try to make sure that they know that you're there to support them and they can turn to you with anything no matter what at any time. So helpful. Well, Derek, thank you. Thanks for this time. Well, thank you for the privilege. It's been an honor. Well, isn't Derek great? I just think he's awesome. And I'm so glad we get this time that I got to know him and that you get to know him too. if you're a Christian professor and you're listening to this, consider maybe there's some kind of collaboration where you all could work together. And thank you for taking this time out. If you would please remember to click on subscribe or follow. That helps us get this out to even more. And until next time, we hope this encourages you to have a Christ-centered conversation on your college campus.