Dr. Don Long to Retire After 33 Years at Faith
March 11, 2019
After a long career at Faith Baptist Bible College, Dr. Don Long has announced his retirement, effective June 30, 2019, which will conclude his 33-year ministry at Faith. He served 31 years as a faculty member and has spent the last two years in a part-time position.
Dr. Long has held countless roles during his tenure at Faith. He was the chair of the Christian School program for 24 years, taught numerous courses within the department, and led or guided the program through five successful program approval reviews by the Iowa Department of Education.
Dr. Long has been a key contributor to the accreditation of Faith Baptist Bible College and Theological Seminary, often leading the process of documentation and campus-wide preparation for accreditation reviews. He has been Dean of Institutional Effectiveness since 2009, and Director of Institutional Assessment since 1997, and has also served as Title IX Coordinator and Investigator.
Some of the committees Dr. Long has chaired while at Faith include the Teacher Education Committee, Federal Compliance Committee, New Programs Task Force, and Writing Across the Curriculum, to name a few.
There are numerous favorite (if not unusual!) memories that Dr. Long has, especially during his time as chair of the Christian School program and working with student teachers. He recalls one such event: “I was in a first-grade classroom observing a student teacher. It was the end of the day when students have chores. One little boy with his feather duster in hand walked by my table and began dusting my bald head. The student teacher saw that, was mortified, and thought her student teaching grade just became an F and her teaching career had ended at that very moment. Not so. In fact, she was chosen as Student Teacher of the Year!”
Other fond memories center around those times working with the full-time faculty in the Christian School program. “These people were a joy to work with, and the Lord used them to bring me much satisfaction in the work of the ministry at Faith Baptist Bible College,” said Dr. Long. “A special blessing through many of those years was having my wife as an adjunct faculty member on the Christian School program team.”
As a college supervisor of student teachers, Dr. Long’s career touched the lives of students and teachers around the world, and their ministries, in turn, touched his. “As a teacher, I was continually blessed, and challenged, by the students I taught,” said Dr. Long.
Don and his wife, Dee, have two grown sons, Greg and Jeff (both Faith alumni), along with four grandchildren. Dr. Long considers his 33 years at Faith as a blessing and a privilege.
“My career in education began in 1967 as a sixth-grade public school teacher—52 years ago,” said Dr. Long. “God has richly blessed me through this journey, and I am privileged to have been part of God’s program of teaching students directly at various levels and in multiple administrative roles in K-12 and as well as teaching and assisting others at FBBC who teach and educate students of all ages. A related blessing has been that for 47 of those 52 years I have had my educator-wife, Dee, by my side supporting me in Christian school and college education.”