The intent of TUP is to take a look at the national state of our nation.  The lack of systematic transparency in politics is a focal point of our mission and we earnestly look for and celebrate those who follow the same path as ours.

Keeping that in mind, we proudly congratulate our new friends at Transparent CCU.

Transparent CCU is a site with the intention of keeping a critical and theological eye on my alma mater, Colorado Christian University.  Like myself, the administrators of Transparent CCU are alumni and have taken to heart the changes in the last five years on campus.  I can only speak for my own experience when I say that during my attendance, CCU churned out well rounded graduates, no matter their major.  As a youth ministry major, I went into CCU excited to be given the education from both the left and right, religiously and politically.

The problem started with the firing of a prominent, liberal Biblical Studies professor.  The university claimed it was due to the local Christian community’s outcry of the liberal Christianity that students were being taught.  After this, the long-time president of the school stepped down.  The major turning point for me was the hiring of an extremely unqualified retired U.S. Senator, Bill Armstrong.  Mr. Armstrong came to CCU without a degree.  Just a high school diploma and a career as a vet, business man, and politician.  No experience in education.

With this new president, so came new objectives for the school. These Strategic Objectives have pointed the school into a doctrinal Bible college with little evidence of the education that alumni had experienced.  This new shift has been made clear with the creation of the “Centennial Institute“, a Evangelical, right-winged think-tank.

Along with that, John Andrews, the lead writer at the Centennial Institute, has his own think-tank called “Backbone America“.  Named after his hometown, Andrews’ site claims to be non-partisan, but his writings tell me and others different.  In fact, his bio on the site explicitly says that they support Colorado’s Marriage Act (an anti-gay act), free-market enterprise, and the support of tax limits; it’s a Republican think-tank.  

Transparent CCU is, for lack of a better term, a CCU watchdog.  I congratulate them for their valor and focus on the lack of integrity and the illegitimate education that the CCU administration is pushing on its students.  The changes at CCU are disappointing for many of their alumni.  I look forward to their progress keeping the school accountable.