Robin Baker began working at George Fox University in 1999, first serving as Provost. In 2007, he became the university’s twelfth president and its 3rd non-Quaker President in a row after Steven and Brandt. Dr. Baker received his degree in history and political science from Grand Canyon University and completed his PhD in history at Texas A&M. He joined the George Fox community filled with a passion for Christ and a genuine love of learning. Baker said in 2007 that “I believe God has called me now to help the George Fox community articulate and construct a vision for the university that is consistent with its past heritage and looks forward to the development of a dynamic Christian institution for the 21st century.”
By the 2023-24 academic school year, the university had seen a boost in enrollment with a total of 4,084 students becoming the largest private college in Oregon. George Fox accomplished this despite low high school graduation rates in Oregon by using data-driven marketing and the promise of community embodied in its Be Known promise. Additionally, under Baker’s leadership, the school has become more diverse. Ethnic minorities account for 28.7% of the student population now. This was thanks in part to the Act Six scholarship program initiated in 2008 which connects local faith-based community affiliates with faith- and social justice-based colleges to equip emerging urban and community leaders to engage the college campus and their communities at home. Also important was the Bridge Scholarship which was a full-ride scholarship offered to select incoming freshmen who are first-generation college students.
The new General Education program called the Cornerstone Core was approved in 2021.
New additions were made to the sports program, the biggest of which was the return of football, announced in 2011 and fully implemented by 2014. This brought in substantial funding as well as attracting new students who came in as a result of recruiting. With expansions made to the Austin Sports Complex, renovations in the Chehalem Aquatic Center, lacrosse was also added as well as Men’s and Women’s swimming teams by 2018.
The first new residence hall built under Baker was completed in August 2015 and is named after former university president Dr. David Brandt and his wife Melva. Brandt Hall houses 149 students and currently functions as primarily a sophomore-inhabited residence. Crisman Crossing, the 220-foot timber bridge that spans across the canyon and connects the east and west sides of campus, was also completed in August 2015. It is the longest clear-span timber truss bridge in the contiguous United States. The bridge leads straight to the new 30,000-square-foot dining hall called Canyon Commons which was completed in the summer of 2016. It seats 900 people and overlooks the natural beauty of Hess Creek Canyon. Directly next to Canyon Commons is the brand new Student Activity Center. It includes basketball courts, an indoor suspended track, and meeting spaces for student government and clubs.
The Crescent, the school newspaper, was published in hard-copy until 2020. Since then, it is published online approximately every three weeks. Once a semester, the Crescent returns to its traditional hard-copy publication. There is a special April Fools Day issue called the Croissant.
Academically, the school has grown and added many new programs. In 2009 the College of Engineering began offering a civil engineering degree, making George Fox the first Christian university on the West Coast to do so. A full-time MBA program was added that year, and in the fall of 2012, a three-year doctor of physical therapy program began. The beginning of the 2014 academic year saw a small part of the freshman class enter as part of the new George Fox Honors Program, a great books program that serves as an alternative general education track. The school brought in Dr. Joseph Clair to direct the program, which journeys through nearly 140 of the most influential books, poems, letters and arguments in human history. As of 2018, over 200 students were part of this program. Beginning in the fall of 2018, undergraduate students were able to pursue yet another degree, biomedical engineering. Examples of recent new graduate programs include the full-time MBA, a three-year Doctor of Physical Therapy program, and a new Master of Social Work degree. In 2017 the George Fox Evangelical Seminary’s name was changed to Portland Seminary to help extend its outreach and its curriculum was expanded.
Career and Academic Planning (formerly the IDEA Center) was established in March 2014. Its purpose is to help students reach success academics and in their future careers. Students are able to schedule one-on-one meetings with their CAP coaches to discuss academic planning, job applications, or whatever else a student may need.
Under President Baker, the school has implemented initiatives to increase diversity and minority enrollment at the school. Implemented in 2008 to foster a more diverse student body, Act Six is a leadership and scholarship program that connects local faith-based community affiliates with faith- and social justice-based colleges to equip emerging urban and community leaders to engage the college campus and their communities at home. The Bridge Scholarship is a full-ride scholarship offered to select incoming freshman who are first-generation college students.
Overall, under President Baker George Fox has experienced a period of exponential growth physically, athletically, and academically.
Fun Fact: In 2018 the GFU “Mama” Bruin bear statue appeared in the middle of the Alumni Plaza near the Stoffer Family stadium.