Conyers Leaders
T. Laine Scales, Professor of Social Work, received her undergraduate degree from the University of North Carolina and her MSW from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and completed her Ph.D. in Higher Education at the University of Kentucky. After teaching at Palm Beach Atlantic University and Stephen F. Austin State University, she began her Baylor career in 1999 as a faculty member in the School of Social Work. From 2004- 2018 she served as Associate Dean of Graduate Studies and Professional Development in Baylor’s Graduate School and from 2008- 2018 she served the School of Education as Professor of Higher Education. Since 2011 Dr. Scales has co-directed the Baylor in Oxford summer study abroad program. In 2016, Baylor honored Dr. Scales with its highest teaching award, Baylor Master Teacher. Dr. Scales co-founded the Conyers Program in 2010.
Dr. Scales has authored, co-authored, or co-edited ten books and over forty articles and chapters in the areas of faculty development, Christianity and social work,(with an emphasis on early Baptist social workers and Woman’s Missionary Union), and history of Baptist women in higher education, including All That Fits a Woman: Training Southern Baptist Women for Charity and Mission, 1907-1926, (Mercer University Press, 2000), and Doing the Word: Southern Baptists’ Carver School of Church Social Work and its Predecessors, 1907-1997, (with Melody Maxwell, University of Tennessee Press, 2019).
Perry L. Glanzer, Ph.D., is Professor of Educational Foundations and a Resident Scholar with Baylor Institute for Studies of Religion. He earned a Ph.D. from the University of Southern California, M.A. from Baylor University and B.A. from Rice University.
He is the co-author, most recently, of Christ Enlivened Student Affairs: A Guide to Christian Thinking and Practices in the Field (Abilene Christian University Press, 2020) and The Outrageous Idea of the Christian Teacher (Oxford University Press, 2019). Some of his other co-authored books include: The Quest for Purpose: The Collegiate Search for a Meaningful Life (SUNY Press, 2017) and Restoring the Soul of the University: Unifying Christian Higher Education in a Fragmented Age (Intervarsity, 2017); The Idea of a Christian College: A Reexamination for Today’s University (Cascade, 2013), Christianity and Moral Identity in Higher Education (Palgrave-Macmillan, 2009), and Christianity and Scholarship in Higher Education (Jossey-Bass, 2007). He also co-edited Christian Higher Education: A Global Reconnaissance (Eerdmans, 2014) and Taking Captive Every Thought: Forty Years of Christian Scholar’s Review (Abilene Christian University Press, 2011).
In addition, Dr. Glanzer has authored or co-authored over 75 journal articles and book chapters on topics related to moral education, faith-based higher education, and the relationship between religion and education. He is currently the Editor-in-Chief of Christian Scholar's Review.
Doctoral Administrative Fellow
Taylor S. Brown is a doctoral candidate in the Religion Department, focusing on the New Testament. Taylor's research focuses on the intersection of the literary background of Greco-Roman heroic descents to the underworld and the interpretation and reception of 1 Peter 3:19 and 4:6 in relation to the early Christian belief in Christ's descent to the realm of the dead between his death and resurrection. Originally from Tulsa, Oklahoma, Taylor received his B.A. in Sociology (with an Anthropology emphasis) from Oklahoma State University in 2013. Taylor then earned an M.Div and a Th.M. in Biblical Studies from Asbury Theological Seminary in 2017. Prior to coming to Baylor as a doctoral student, Taylor worked in sports and recreational ministry in his hometown of Tulsa. When he is not working on his research or helping plan meetings for the Conyers Scholars, Taylor enjoys spending time with wife, Kate, and chasing around his one-year-old son, Peter.
Associate Dean and Conyers Administrator
Dr. Sara Dolan is the Associate Dean for Professional Development, where she supports graduate student and faculty success. She is a Professor in the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, and she served as the Graduate Program Director for the Clinical Psychology doctoral program (Psy.D.) for 5 years. Her research focuses on neuropsychological factors that impact life functioning in individuals with substance use disorders and trauma. She has received more than $3 million in federal funding for work with military personnel and veterans, mental health service providers, and families of individuals affected by trauma. Dr. Dolan graduated from the University of Iowa with a Ph.D. in psychology. She completed her clinical internship at the Yale University School of Medicine, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship funded by the National institutes for Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism at the Alpert School of Medicine at Brown university. She has been at Baylor since 2007.