Legacies of Teaching and Leadership
After decades of faithful service at Lubbock Christian University, Dr. Stacy Patty (’79) and Dr. Byron Rogers (’81) each leave behind legacies defined by teaching excellence, meaningful mentorship, and a deep commitment to student formation. Though their disciplines and paths differed, both shaped generations of students through the classroom, through leadership, and through lives poured out in service to others. As they retire, their impact remains woven into the academic, spiritual, and community life of the university that they have long called home.
Stacy Patty: Faithful Leadership in Ministry, Scholarship, and Honors Education
Dr. Stacy Patty joined the Lubbock Christian University faculty in 1992 and has spent 34 years on campus as a teacher, mentor, advocate, and leader. As an academic, he has served the Alfred and Patricia Smith College of Biblical Studies as a Professor of Religion and Ethics, and as an administrator, he has directed the Honors Program since 2007, overseeing its growth and development as a vital part of LCU’s transformative mission. When the Honors College was formed in 2016, he was named its dean, continuing in that role when it was endowed as the J.E. & L.E. Mabee Foundation Honors College in 2023. For the last five years, he has held a dual appointment as Dean of the Mabee Foundation Honors College and Dean of the J.E. & Eileen Hancock College of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences. Throughout his career, he has taught some 5,000 students, challenging them to think broadly, to ask questions about themselves and about the world God has called them to serve, and to nurture a faith that seeks understanding.
His path to LCU began as a student, graduating in May 1979 before pursuing graduate theological education at Harding Graduate School of Religion in Memphis, where he earned an M.Th. in 1983. He served as a college minister in Hillsboro, Texas, before moving to Carmel, New York, where he ministered with the Putnam County Church of Christ and later earned a Master of Sacred Theology (STM) from Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York in 1988. In 1989, the family moved to Elm Mott, Texas, where he served as a minister while completing doctoral work at Baylor University. He and his wife, Sharolyn, a graduate of Harding University, met in Memphis and married in 1980.
At the university’s annual Employee Appreciation Dinner in May, Patty was recognized for his years of service and retirement, and Provost and Chief Academic Officer Dr. Kent Gallaher announced he will hold the title of Professor Emeritus of Ethics and Religion.
“Dr. Patty has been a faithful and steadfast supporter of his faculty, celebrating their work and encouraging their projects,” said Kenneth Hawley, Associate Provost for Academic Affairs and Honors Faculty. “Ten years ago, when we first got the donation of books from England for the Boethius Center, Stacy enthusiastically offered to help, and it was the Honors College that provided those old and rare volumes their first home here on the LCU campus before they were later relocated to the library. He has also been an innovator with a vision for what is possible for our students, and many years from now, as future generations make the most of experiences and opportunities that are to them the established traditions of LCU, they will be resting in the shade of the trees that Dr. Patty planted and nurtured.”
For Dr. Jeff Cary (’95), Dean of the Smith College of Biblical Studies, Patty’s influence began long before he joined the faculty. “Dr. Patty began his opening lecture by saying that he wanted to introduce us to some of his friends,” Cary said, recalling his time as a student in Patty’s church history course. “He gestured to the books stacked on his desk, all by people long since dead, but whose lives he shared through their writings. He opened my mind to these voices in a unique and lasting way, and today I enjoy the great blessing of teaching new generations of students about those same friends. Dr. Patty has joined their ranks as one of my highly valued friends.”
Patty’s work has been marked by a steady stream of initiatives that have shaped both academic and co-curricular life at LCU. He co-chaired the Scholars Colloquium Committee beginning in 2007, helping bring internationally recognized scholars to campus, including Stanley Jaki and Hans Hillerbrand. In 2009, he founded LCU’s Council on Undergraduate Research, expanding faculty-student collaboration across disciplines, an effort that later contributed to the creation of the Rhodes Family Institute for Undergraduate Research.
In 2011, he helped establish the LCU in Washington program in collaboration with LCU leadership, directing a semester-long internship experience in the nation’s capital. The program quickly gained national recognition, including designation as The Washington Center for Academic Internships Private University of the Year in 2013. He also played a key role in LCU’s 2014 membership in the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities, expanding student opportunities in programs such as the Scholarship & Christianity in Oxford Programme, and later helped develop the Early Medical Admission Program in partnership with Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center.
“Dr. Patty’s influence reaches far and wide,” said Olga Pahom, Associate Dean of the Mabee Foundation Honors College. “He has been a creative visionary who relentlessly works to develop new initiatives and improve existing programs, but he always approaches these endeavors with nurturing attention to the unique needs and gifts of the people involved, with active listening, empathy, and genuine care for others.”
As Patty worked to expand Honors, he also partnered with President L. Timothy Perrin in launching the F.W. Mattox Presidential Scholars Program in 2015, creating a premier scholarship experience that continues to attract some of LCU’s most accomplished students.
Cary Chisholm, M.D. (’04), a member of LCU’s Board of Trustees and a graduate of the Honors Program’s inaugural cohort, reflected on Patty’s impact. “Dr. Patty has left an indelible mark on not only LCU, but on each of the students that have encountered him in class,” he said. “To share time with him is to experience the hands and feet of Jesus, to be reminded of what a life-long servant of Jesus should look like. It has been a pleasure to have him as a mentor, a professor, a colleague, and a friend.”
After more than three decades of service, Dr. Stacy Patty leaves a legacy defined by vision, scholarship, mentorship, and faithful leadership, one that has shaped thousands of students and strengthened the academic life of Lubbock Christian University for generations to come.
Byron Rogers: A Legacy of Teaching, Service, and Creativity
Dr. Byron Rogers, a 1981 graduate of Lubbock Christian University, has spent four decades shaping the university through his passion for science, music, and students. When he completed his Ph.D. in Chemistry at Texas A&M University, he declared that he was finished with organic chemistry. Then former LCU President Steven Lemley (’65) called and invited him to interview for a faculty position. During the interview, Rogers was told the university needed someone to teach organic chemistry. His response: “I would love to!”
That willingness to serve wherever needed became a hallmark of Rogers’ career. Since joining the faculty in 1986 as an Assistant Professor of Chemistry, he has taught courses ranging from General Chemistry to Organic Chemistry and Physical Chemistry, mentored countless undergraduate researchers, and contributed scholarship to publications including the International Journal of Chemical Kineticsand Spectroscopy International Journal. Rogers received the L. R. Wilson, Sr. Teaching Award in 2001 and was selected multiple times as LCU Student Association Faculty of the Month. At the May 2026 commencement, he was again recognized with the L. R. Wilson, Sr. Teaching Award. He also served for 20 years as Chair of the Department of Physical Sciences, helping strengthen programs in chemistry and mathematics at LCU.
“Dr. Byron Rogers is a multi-talented and passionate teacher, compassionate student mentor, and innovative academic leader,” said Dr. Toby Rogers (’95), Dean of the B. Ward Lane College of Science and Health Professions. “He is known for his brilliance, humor, and willingness to serve across the campus, having influenced future scientists and musicians alike.”
Many of the science faculty serving at LCU today were once students of Rogers themselves, including Toby Rogers.
“I was blessed by his brilliance, enthusiasm, encouragement, and Christ-like spirit as a young science student with very little confidence in my ability to be successful in chemistry,” Toby said. “He challenged me and made learning fun.”
Byron was known not only for the rigor and energy of his classroom, but also for the care he showed students personally, often baking cookies and brownies to bring to class. “He cares about his students on and off the chemistry field,” said Jessica (Dahlstrom, ’96) Rogers, Assistant Professor of Chemistry at LCU and a former student of Rogers. “He asks about students’ hobbies and families and music. He finds connections.” Jessica added that she has heard him patiently guide students, push them toward excellence, and walk alongside them through difficult moments. “He has been the best work friend by always supporting new teaching ideas, being willing to learn and change things, and never being boring,” she said.
That same spirit of service continued throughout his final year at LCU. In the 2025-26 academic year, when the need arose for an interim chair of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Rogers stepped in to fill the role while the university conducted a search for new leadership.
Rogers’ influence extended well beyond the sciences. In 2014, he completed a Master of Music Composition from Texas Tech University and began serving as a Lecturer in Music at LCU in addition to his chemistry responsibilities. His original choral works and arrangements have been performed at LCU, Pepperdine University, and Wayland Baptist University, while his work with Master Follies, Best Friends, and university choirs became a defining part of the campus arts community.
“His musical accomplishments as a composer are exemplary,” said Philip Camp, Professor of Music and Director of Choral Activities at LCU. “He’s helped us raise the bar on the level of our music performances and our overall curriculum for our music degree.”
Dr. Laurie (Lawlis, ’82) Doyle, Chair of the Department of Visual and Performing Arts, said Rogers’ passion for music has been evident throughout his life and career. “Why else would a chemist with a Ph.D. go back to school and complete a master’s in music?” Doyle said. “He has become a valued part of the VPA department through his amazing choir arrangements and theory classes for music majors. His passion is obvious in his work, and there is always laughter coming from his classroom.”
At the university’s annual Employee Appreciation Dinner in May, Rogers was recognized for 40 years of service, and Provost and Chief Academic Officer Dr. Kent Gallaher announced he will hold the title of Professor Emeritus of Chemistry. Even in retirement, Rogers will continue investing in students as a faculty member in residence with LCU’s study abroad program this fall in Ávila, Spain.
After 40 years as Professor of Chemistry, Lecturer in Music, mentor, composer, and academic leader, Rogers leaves a legacy defined by excellence, generosity, faith, and a willingness to serve wherever he was needed most. A lifelong learner and educator, he has consistently given graciously of himself and served as a willing witness of Christ to countless students through his passionate and stellar teaching. Lubbock Christian University has been deeply blessed by the legacy he leaves in both science and music.