Joseph Manga follows a calling to teach

Growing up in Cameroon as the oldest child in a family of five, Dr. Joseph Manga never imagined where his life would take him.

Four different universities for undergraduate, graduate and doctoral work, as well as tutoring and teaching experience, have all been part of the experience. And last fall, it led him to COBA as a tenure-track assistant professor of information systems and management science.

“As we know, many may be the plans in a man’s heart, but the Lord determines the end,” he said. “I began with mathematics, did a little bit of computer science, and then moved on to business. This all worked out because I didn’t just want to be crunching numbers and not know how to interpret them. So, I developed my love for learning from my personal experience. As an introvert, I thought that doing something that would keep me from talking to people would be great. That’s why I’m so passionate about research. That was all my plan. But God’s plan was to send me to love and talk to people.”

Knowing all of that, it still took a chance conversation with a friend that pointed him toward teaching and meeting the needs of young people.

“I vividly remember sometime in 1998 a friend walked up to me and said, ‘I see you as a teacher,’” Manga said. “I didn’t want to hear that because I never wanted to teach, partly because of my personality. But as I applied myself to learning, I realized there is more to teaching than just transferring knowledge. It involves mentoring and discipleship, which are godly assignments that we are called to fulfill. I believe that teaching brings transformation to many when it is done in a godly way. That’s why I’m excited to be part of a family and community that focuses on raising a holistic generation in terms of spiritual academic formation, who will, in turn, move on to serve and transform their world.”

Manga is ready and willing to serve as God leads. “I am passionate to serve, especially in an environment that aligns with one’s beliefs and values,” he said. “When the opportunity opened to be part of a culture and institution that trains godly business leaders in whatever capacity they find themselves, I was glad to jump on it. God opened this door, and I love to follow His lead.”

Gifts and donors leave a legacy to impact generations

Donors are the lifeblood of any university –and individual colleges within the university. Alumni and friends who generously give back to the place that made a mark on their lives enrich the next generation of leaders.

Abilene Christian University is no different. The hard work of the university’s founder and first president, A.B. Barret , established Childers Classical Institute, and he pounded the dirt roads of West Texas via horse and buggy in the winter and spring of 1906 to raise money for his vision of a Christian university. He secured gifts from 195 individuals around Abilene for a grand total of $3,500. Not bad, considering that would now be worth more than $115,000 in 2022 money.

Those generous donors provided for expansion through the years from Childers Classical Institute to the current robust university. Childers started with 25 students in a single building. Today, the university serves more than 5,700 students.

Every gift and every donor made a difference and helped make Barret’s idea of a Christian university in Abilene a reality. As ACU president Dr. Phil Schubert (’91) wrote in the case study for Higher Ground, the university’s current capital campaign, “I believe Barret, who was certainly a man with great vision, would have had difficulty imaging the national university ACU is today.”

Dr. Brad Crisp (’93), dean of the College of Business Administration, has seen first-hand the impact donors make on campus and a specific college.

“Simply put, donors make it all possible,” he said. “At the beginning of my time as dean, I remember a particular week when COBA received gifts from three women who had recently lost a loved one, a husband or a father. Because all three contributions came in the same week, it was hard for me to miss the impact that ACU and COBA had on each of those families.

“I realized that the gifts we receive often flow from experiences and relationships from a long time ago, rather than fundraising being something that drives donors now,” Crisp said. “People often assume that asking for money is scary or off-putting, but I find it’s an honor to talk with people about their passions. I like to find out what motivates them to give, and to help them find opportunities to support the students, faculty, staff and alumni that mean so much to them.”

And now the university’s Higher Ground campaign is once again calling on those people and other friends of the university to push ACU to new heights in its second century of educating students for Christian service and leadership throughout the world. The $250 million campaign is, by far, the largest fundraising initiative ever undertaken by the university. It will transform the university in ways that Barret could never have foreseen.

The university has designated $118 million to “Enhance and Increase Transformational Experiences” and the other $132 million to “Strengthen and Elevate ACU’s Academic Profile.” COBA and the building it has called home for more than 35 years – the Mabee Business Building –are part of the Higher Ground campaign.

Preparing the next generation of students in COBA for the needs and technological advancements in the workforce was at the forefront of the renovations the building has undergone. Students and staff returned for the start of the 2022-23 school year to an updated classroom wing and reimagined learning spaces for students. A more advanced and visible finance lab provides students with industry tools to practice real-life trading with faculty mentors at their sides, and an upgraded digital experience lab adds more room for this growing technology program. And, coming Fall 2023, current and prospective students will be welcomed by a renewed atrium to be named in honor of former dean Bill Petty (’64) and his wife Donna (Guinn ’64).

But it’s not just giving to the physical brick-andmortar spaces that make a difference in the lives of ACU students. Donors also give to scholarship funds, helping attract more students to the university and, in particular, to COBA, thanks to the Nicholson-Upp Endowed Scholarship. Donors also provide their time and expertise to return to campus and share their knowledge with the next generation of business leaders.

And in December, COBA received the largest academic gift in university history, a gift of more than $29 million from the late Dr. Bill and Janie Dukes that will establish the Dr. William P. and Janie B. Dukes Excellence in Finance Endowment. That gift will also support prestigious finance student scholarships, prepare students to attend highly preferred graduate programs, and establish endowed faculty positions in finance. In recognition of this historic gift, the university will launch the Dukes School of Finance in the College of Business Administration in 2023.

“Donations come in many forms, and we would not be able to provide the professors, the facilities or the transformative experiences without them,” said Tim Johnston (’80), assistant dean of COBA. “We are fortunate that our alumni are generous people. But their generosity of time is also critical to our success. Alumni return to campus and share insights that help set students on a different career trajectory. Our alums help students understand what it takes to break into various career fields.

“The day-to-day performance of our alumni provides us with a great reputation of excellent workers,” Johnston said. “That opens the doors to exciting employment opportunities for our graduates.”

Jane Clark, enrollment and student success manager at COBA, said that connection is powerful in shedding light on how donors make a difference in the lives of students, faculty and staff.

“The COBA difference at ACU is built on the foundation of strong connections,” Clark said. “Connections among our students, staff, faculty and alumni. The generosity of our alumni strengthens those relationships through fellowship, experiences and opportunities. A student comes to ACU seeking a business or technology degree, but they graduate with so much more. We want to inspire, equip and connect Christian business and technology professionals … with the vision and service of our past, present and future students. That is so much more than an ACU COBA degree; it is the building of a legacy.”

It’s part of a legacy that began with A.B. Barret’s dream in 1906, a legacy that lives on today.

Swinney Financial Markets Lab opened in Fall 2022 with Bloomberg terminal