Troy was not raised in a Christian home, but he learned about God through Vacation Bible School and the influence of his grandmother. As a high school student in Florida, Troy started attending New Smyrna Beach Christian Church at the invitation of his high school girlfriend (now wife!) Valerie. After three weeks, Troy was immersed into Christ.

Calvin Warden was the minister of the church and encouraged Troy’s growth in the faith. In addition to providing opportunities to lead, Calvin encouraged Troy to attend the Florida campus. But Christian college was not a part of Troy’s plans.

After graduating high school, Troy joined the family construction business, building houses in central Florida. When the housing market crumbled in 1988, Troy and Valerie lost everything but their house. They tried several other jobs to meet family needs, but it was the Navy that proved to be the family’s door to a more secure future. Troy spent 20 years serving in the Navy, and through his service he earned a pension and the G.I. Bill that would pay for a college education.

After growing in the faith, Troy became more interested in theological education. He took a couple of extension courses Florida Christian College offered at Christ’s Church at Mandarin in Jacksonville. Valerie encouraged Troy to reconsider attending Florida Christian, pointing out that Florida’s online program was designed for working adults. The LEAD program offered credit for vocational experience, and Troy was able to complete his undergraduate degree from the Florida campus in just two years. He worked for a brief time in church planting and assisted Greg Marksberry in planting Thrive Church in Lake Nona, Florida.

During his time helping with the church plant, representatives from Johnson reached out to Troy about the Strategic Ministry graduate degree being offered through Real Life Christian Church in Orlando. It was a one-year, high-intensity program that included a trip to Israel.

The combined value of this ministry training and hands-on experience prepared Troy to lead a church himself, and today Troy serves as the lead pastor at First Christian Church in Cocoa Beach, Florida. Troy went to the church, his first ministry, in 2020 amid the Covid pandemic and a great deal of uncertainty. But the church is healthy and growing. On his first Sunday, only 20 people showed up for services. Today more than 80 worship together each week.

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In the 2023/2024 academic year, JUFL will be celebrating the inaugural season of women’s softball led by head coach Jimmy Johnson and launching baseball under the direction of head coach Bennie Hichez. It is an exciting time to be part of the JUFL family!

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“I knew I would be required to take some Bible classes as part of the coursework, and that was good, but I wondered how it would benefit my business degree and career goals,” she says. “But our business classes talk about how faith is important in the business world, with a big focus on business ethics and leading with integrity. It’s shaped my perspective that my professional career can also be a ministry.”

Abbi was a stay-at-home mom for 14 years, raising her two daughters who are now 18 and 12.

“I wasn’t sure what it would be like to go back to school, but I felt like God directed me to Johnson,” she says. “I’m looking forward to seeing how I can use this degree for my future.”

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“But now I have a different perspective,” he says. “After two years as a youth minister and eight more as a lead pastor, I knew I needed to grow and learn. I chose Johnson’s Master of Arts in New Testament, and it’s been life-changing. When I chose the spiritual formation concentration, I didn’t know much about the spiritual disciplines. Now my final project is on the power of preaching and practicing these disciplines. I’ve grown in my faith through this program.”

Mark, who serves at (CA), says he’s not only earning good grades during this phase of his education, he’s also approaching the process differently.

“I want to learn things I can pass on to other people,” he says. “In one of our classes, Jody Owens talked about being cisterns instead of ravines—blessing people from the overflow of our own walk with Christ. That’s my goal.”

Mark will graduate from the program in May – and has already been accepted to a doctoral program at Biola University’s Talbot School of Theology.

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Most students who pursue online degrees choose colleges and universities close to home, but Brayden did his research and selected Johnson after 18 months of considering his options.

“I wanted a program that had academic rigor in New Testament and also offered Greek,” he says. “The option for Greek exegesis classes was the selling factor for me.”

Brayden also used his writing skills in the research concentration of the program, completing a 100-page thesis on Romans 8 as his capstone project.

“I liked the freedom to explore topics and texts we found especially interesting,” he says. “Assignments were meaningful but flexible. I also found the professors engaged and accessible even though it was an online program. They all had their own style; some recorded video lectures and others offered Zoom sessions for discussion, but they all used the online platform effectively.”

Brayden’s newest writing project is his book , which released in March.

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“I went through the entire enrollment process with another university only to find out I had to be on campus for classes two or three nights a week,” she says. “I was heartbroken because I didn’t think I’d have the option to finish school. Then I Googled top online schools in Tennessee and found Johnson.”

Tiffany entered Johnson with an associate degree in business and found it easy to apply those credits toward the bachelor’s degree in business administration. When she realized she could earn her MBA with just one additional year of school, she decided to go for it.

“I missed out on an opportunity earlier in my career because I didn’t yet have the associate degree,” she says. “I decided I would never again let a lack of education hold me back. I’m really excited about the 4+1 program.”

Today Tiffany works with the Whirlpool teams who do service calls with customers to organize their training mentors, work processes, and scheduling. This spring she’ll take a step into a management role and begin leading her own team.

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“I did my first semester on campus but quickly realized that wasn’t going to work for me,” she says. “I have a four-year-old daughter who’s not in school yet, so I need to work around her schedule as well as my job.”

Chania pivoted to complete much of her coursework online, including her Bible classes and arts and sciences core classes. She returns to campus for her in-person psychology classes as her schedule allows.

“I felt like I was torn between working, being a mom, and going to school,” she says. “This approach means I don’t have to choose, plus online classes are usually just seven weeks long so I can make progress more quickly.”

After she completes her bachelor’s degree in psychology, Chania hopes to earn her master’s degree and open a nonprofit organization for other students who are also parents.

“I see the needs of these students now,” she says. “I want to create a resource center where moms from different colleges and universities can build friendships and also receive help like free childcare and free tutoring. I want to provide resources for a variety of smaller problems that can become larger issues when these parents don’t have help.”

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In February 2018 the ˝ńČŐłÔąĎ community embarked on a challenging journey. We christened that adventure the “Uncommon Community Campaign,” but the experience has proven to be far more than a fundraising effort. The financial goal of $24.5 million is the largest in school history.

The more significant objectives were a) acknowledging that the sense of community already present among Johnson’s students, faculty, staff, alumni, and friends was deeply spiritual and uncommon and b) building spaces that would foster the continued growth of our students on both campuses.

These objectives have been met almost from day one. You have likely seen pictures of students, faculty, and staff enjoying the fellowship the Graham Center and ball fields have provided on the Tennessee campus as well as the conversations over meals made possible by the Commons on the Florida campus. I only wish you could come to these campuses in person to experience the community for yourself. Pictures do not do justice to what happens in real life at these facilities!

As we approached the mid-point of the campaign and COVID cast its uncertain shadow, we thought it prudent to extend the projected length of the campaign by a year, from February 2023 to February 2024. Oh, we of little faith!

As it happens, through the faithful and generous giving of our partners and God’s abundant blessing, we are happy to report the Uncommon Community financial goal was surpassed this winter.

As of February 15, we have received $24,928,155! That is $428,155 OVER our financial goal! THANK YOU!

And in true ˝ńČŐłÔąĎ fashion, we are NOT FINISHED YET!

The trustees believe it was by God’s providence that the end date of the campaign was changed to February 2024. During this campaign, we raised money not only for the construction of these new buildings but also for the Royal Fund and Florida Fund, which support the general operations of the University. But we have not stressed scholarship funds except for one appeal.

The most urgent need the University has is recruiting students. The most urgent need most prospective students have is financial aid.

Inflation is eating away at the affordability of a college education. Even though we do all we can to keep costs low, and although our tuition is rising at a rate lower than inflation, it IS rising. The only way we can meet this need for financial aid is by raising funds for immediate scholarships.

For the remainder of the Uncommon Community campaign, the primary focus of our fundraising effort will be raising funds for scholarships to be used immediately for recruiting students.

The new goal for Uncommon Community through February 2024 is $28,000,000! The primary focus for the additional funds is providing scholarship funds over and above the $3 million in scholarships we already provide annually. These resources will be used to recruit new students over the next two academic years.

Would you prayerfully consider what God may enable you to do in this worthy cause? Click here to make a gift!

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Ten years later, the team is playing at the NAIA level, on new courts, with players from around the world. While the current program has been the realization of one dream, another dream has just begun: the expansion of tennis into the surrounding community.

In spring of 2022, the United States Tennis Association (USTA) approached Coach Hale with a grant proposal to start a community tennis program in South Knoxville.

The initial programs began in June of 2022 and offered tennis classes for kids and adults of all ages. The kids’ programming taught players as young as age four through high school. Hale then offered two classes for adult beginners, eventually splitting players into an intermediate class. When he launched the programs, there was some concern about interest since there had been a very minimal tennis presence in South Knoxville, but surprisingly Hale had to add a second adult class after the first filled up within days.

In total, Coach Hale and his assistant coaches operated clinics for 18 weeks with 112 participants.
Maggie Yoakum, a local parent, said, “The Johnson USTA program has been a huge blessing to my kids. They loved getting outside, learning the new game of tennis, making new friends, and working with the staff. The staff was kind, helpful, and patient! I’m so grateful for this program and my sons are excited to start back in the spring.”

In addition to providing an opportunity to spread the love of tennis, the classes also provided hands-on coaching experience for Johnson student-athletes. Many players want to get into coaching after they graduate from Johnson, and working with young children and adults is a different skill set. The players worked with our coaching staff to develop practice plans and learn teaching techniques as well as bond with members of the community. Both the children and adults taking the classes enjoyed receiving feedback and encouragement from the player “experts.” And after spending 18 weeks together, our tennis community is stronger than ever.

Sara Rawlinson, a local teacher and community member, said, “Last summer, I had the opportunity to attend a beginner-level tennis camp at ˝ńČŐłÔąĎ. Coach Hale and his amazing staff created an environment where I felt encouraged and supported as they patiently taught me the foundations of tennis. I look forward to the next tennis camp opportunity where I can continue to learn the game!”

We are excited to bring our second year of USTA community programming this upcoming spring and summer and to see Johnson’s mission spread into the community through the sport of tennis.

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