TULSA — Oral Roberts school
says it's debt-free
Oral Roberts University, which was once tens of millions of dollars in the red after a financial scandal tarnished the Tulsa evangelical school, is finally debt-free, school officials said Wednesday.
The school, known for its 60-foot-high bronze sculpture of praying hands at the entrance to campus, has slowly emerged from a financial scandal two years ago that damaged its reputation and led to the resignation of Oral Roberts' son, Richard, as president.
At the time, the school said it was $55 million in debt after Richard Roberts and his wife, Lindsay, were accused of spending university money on vacations, home remodels and other luxuries - allegations they denied. Morale among students and faculty also hit rock-bottom.
Richard Roberts stepped down in November 2007, and Oklahoma City businessman Mart Green took the reins, rescuing the school with a $70 million pledge. Since then, the university cut its debt from $55 million in 2007 to around $720,000 this past summer, thanks to Green's money and a matching gift campaign that hauled in more than $22 million.
- The Associated PressSurvey's unaffi liated are often young men
HARTFORD, Conn. - The growing number of Americans who don't claim religious affiliation are more likely to be male, younger, living in the West and politically independent, a new report finds.
"American Nones: The Profile of the No Religion Population" takes a deeper look at data collected for the American Religious Identification Survey 2008, which was released earlier this year by Trinity College.
The report identified an estimated 34 million adult "nones" in 2008 - up from 14 million in 1990. Those not affiliated with any religion accounted for 15 percent of U.S. population, up from 8.1 percent in 1990. Sixty percent of "nones" are male, and 40 percent are female; 30 percent are under age 30 and only 5 percentare 70 years or older.
Only a small number of the unaffiliated - 7 percent - are atheists. Groups the study identified as "hard agnostics" and "soft agnostics" accounted for 35 percent of the religiously unaffiliated.
- The Associated PressJudge clears officials in school prayer case
PENSACOLA, Fla. - A prayer offered at a gathering to celebrate a school's new fieldhouse by an athletic director and requested by the school's principal didn't violate a federal court order against praying at school events, a judge has ruled.
The two men had faced up to six months in jail and $5,000 in fines for violating a 2008 settlement agreement of a lawsuit against the Santa Rosa County school district. The agreement prohibits school officials from praying or promoting prayer at school events.
The decision in favor of Pace High School Principal Frank Lay and Athletic Director Robert Freeman was greeted with a roar of approval by their supporters.
U.S. District Judge Casey Rodgers said before announcing her decision that she did not believe the two men intended to violate her order against praying at school-sponsored events. But Rodgers admonished Lay, saying that he had an additional responsibility as the school principal to ensure her order was followed.
- The Associated Press
Religion, Pages 14 on 09/26/2009