Dr. Sarah Walden Appointed Director of the Baylor Interdisciplinary Core

The Honors College is excited to name Sarah Walden, Ph.D., as the next Director of the Baylor Interdisciplinary Core (BIC), effective June 1. In addition to her administrative role, Walden will continue to serve on the BIC faculty as an associate professor of rhetorical theory and criticism.

A 2003 Baylor graduate, Walden completed her undergraduate degree as both a University Scholars major and BIC student before earning her M.A. and Ph.D. in English from the University of Mississippi. Since returning to Baylor in 2010, she has served in a variety of leadership roles within the Honors College, including associate director of the BIC, course coordinator for BIC 1112, 1313, and 1323. Walden also served as director of the University Scholars program. 

“The BIC program has always been about its faculty, staff, and students, and they are the reason I am so excited to step into this role,” Walden said. “The BIC is about curiosity, empathy, humility, and enthusiasm, and the people who make up this program demonstrate these qualities every day.”

As both a former BIC student and longtime faculty member, Walden said the program continues to shape the way she thinks about education and interdisciplinary learning.

“I remember how vibrant and exciting the BIC felt when I was a student in the program, and I want to be sure that every new cohort feels the same sense of belonging and passion that it instilled in me,” she said. “The program has grown and evolved over the last 30 years, but at its core, we are a group that thinks and cares deeply.”

A scholar of women’s rhetoric and popular culture, Walden is the author of Tasteful Domesticity: Women’s Rhetoric and the American Cookbook, 1796-1940 (University of Pittsburgh Press, 2019). Her more recent research explores maternal rhetoric on social media as well as women’s rhetoric and literary studies. She also anticipates the release of a co-edited volume, Feral: Romantasy and Its Readers, through the University of Iowa Press in 2027.

Walden said interdisciplinary education remains essential because it equips students to approach complex problems with creativity, humility and collaboration.

“To me, interdisciplinary education is all about endless possibilities and creative problem-solving,” Walden said. “The more you know about how to think, and how others think, the more you can approach complex problems with a sense of confidence and wonder.”

“Life is hard, whether that is at work or in politics or relationships,” she continued. “Interdisciplinary education helps you understand and approach problems comprehensively, but also with the understanding that it is okay if you don't know something. You can figure it out if you know what questions to ask.”

Honors College Dean Douglas Henry said Walden’s experience as both a BIC alumna and longtime faculty leader uniquely positions her to lead the program into its next chapter.

“Sarah begins her work as the fifth Director of the BIC at a considerable advantage,” Henry said. “As an alumna of the program, she recalls its powerfully formative role in her collegiate education. As a career faculty member of the BIC, she grasps its history, curriculum, challenges, and possibilities from the inside. I know she'll do great work in celebrating what’s best in the program’s past and strengthening it for a future brimful of Honors College students.”

As she prepares to begin her new role, Walden said she is eager to continue fostering the creativity and innovation that have long defined the BIC.

“The BIC was designed by innovative faculty and staff who wanted to rethink core education in light of real-world challenges,” Walden said. “This spirit drives the BIC, and I cannot wait to hear the ideas that our faculty, staff, and students bring to this next stage of our development as a unit.”

Walden succeeds Darren Middleton, Ph.D., who has served as director of the BIC since 2022.