Dr. Paul Maurer, President of Montreat College, was recently featured on the national podcast Common Sense with Dr. Ben Carson, where the two leaders discussed the vital intersection of faith, education, and leadership in today’s world. Throughout the conversation, Dr. Maurer reflected on Montreat’s transformation over the past decade.
“The most important thing we’ve done is clarify our identity as a Christ-centered institution,” Maurer emphasized. “A lot of schools started as faith-based institutions but have walked away from that, including Harvard and Yale. Combining an understanding God’s goodness, supremacy, and sovereignty with the Christian liberal arts is the best education available to humanity.”
In addition to highlighting Montreat’s strategic vision and its distinctive Christian mission, Carson asked Maurer about the college’s growing reputation as a national leader in the area of cybersecurity.
“Part of the value proposition is that we do it differently than state or secular universities because we have ethics and character built into every element of how we do it,” Maurer said. “Cybersecurity is principally a human solution. If you don’t have people of ethics and character or cyber leaders and operators, your technology doesn’t matter very much.”
In an era when many once-revered institutions are losing the trust of the public, Christian colleges stand out as places of conviction, clarity, and courage. As more families grow skeptical of prestige for prestige’s sake, they are turning their attention to schools that offer more than just a degree—places where truth is pursued, character is formed, and purpose is championed. Christian higher education doesn’t shy away from life’s biggest questions—it leans into them, equipping students not just with skills, but with wisdom.
“The greatest institutions in the country today in higher education are distinctly and unapologetically faith-based institutions,” Maurer said. “We educate students how to think critically. If you don’t have at least one Christian college as a finalist for what you’re looking at, you’re missing a potentially life-changing opportunity.”
The full interview is available below and podcast platforms under Common Sense with Dr. Ben Carson.