Five students honored at HPU's Currie-Strickland Lectures

February 18, 2026 at 5:49 pm Derrick Stuckly

Local News

Pictured from left to right with guest speaker John Litzler (left), are Currie-Strickland Scholars Biak Sang, a senior from Garland; Elsa Leake, a senior from Georgetown; Tori Petersheim, a graduate student from Flower Mound; Cate Gramling, a senior from Rowlett; and David Newman, a junior from Brownwood.

Howard Payne University named five students as Currie-Strickland scholars during the 18th annual Currie-Strickland Distinguished Lectures in Christian Ethics, on Thursday, February 5. The event featured guest lecturer John Litzler, director for public policy at the Christian Life Commission (CLC) and general counsel for Texas Baptists.

Litzler’s lecture was titled “The Modern Challenge of Religious Liberty: Protecting a Baptist Distinction from Extinction.”

Students recognized were Cate Gramling, a senior double-majoring in practical theology and elementary education from Rowlett; David Newman, a junior Christian education major with an emphasis in cross cultural ministry from Brownwood; Elsa Leake, a senior business administration major with a minor in youth ministry from Georgetown; Tori Petersheim, a graduate student in the youth and family ministry program from Flower Mound; and Biak Sang a junior Christian education major with an emphasis in ministry leadership from Garland.

Throughout the week, Litzler shared with several groups including local pastors, local churches, HPU personnel and students from the Topics in Law course in the Guy D. Newman Honors Academy. He also spoke at HPU’s weekly chapel service on February 4.

The event was coordinated by Jordan Villanueva, instructor of Christian Studies and assistant to the president for Hispanic relations.

“Hearing John speak on recovering the historic Baptist distinctive of religious liberty was a wonderful reminder that freedom of conscience is not just a slogan, but a biblical mandate,” said Villanueva. “At HPU, we are committed to forming students who understand that religious liberty is both a gift to the church and a responsibility for every generation. The Currie-Strickland Lectures provided our students with the opportunity to see how this distinctive is at risk for extinction from both sides of the political aisle.”

The Currie-Strickland lecture series is made possible through the generosity of Dr. and Mrs. Gary Elliston and was established to honor the life of Dr. David R. Currie, retired executive director of Texas Baptists Committed; and the memory of Phil Strickland, who dedicated nearly 40 years of ministry to the Baptist General Convention of Texas’ Christian Life Commission.