Below is the text of the email I sent out on July 20 to everyone on our class roster:

Good morning!

I hope you all are doing well and that you’ve had a good summer so far. I just looked over our class roster again, and I wanted to say how excited and grateful I am to have each of you in FFE this fall.

I’m sending this email because students often reach out about ways to prepare and/or get ahead, so I wanted to send everyone as much information as I could (a link to required textbooks and resources can also be found below). I hope this information will be helpful, but even more than the resources linked below, I want you to know my heart for this coming semester. In my view, the ultimate goal for this course is not simply learning to write well or to improve our research abilities (though Lord-willing we will do both of those things); instead, my ultimate hope is that we would become better thinkers and better communicators to the glory of God and for the good of others. 

Even though the semester has not yet started, I am praying that the Father would give us all a desire to learn how to read, research, write, and think well, not simply for our own benefit but so that Christ may be magnified and so that others may come to worship our Triune God. Moreover, I want to reiterate that the skills and habits we develop in this class will prepare us to handle God’s Word well in future classes and in our future vocations—whatever those may be. Learning and mastering these skills will enable us to serve those around us in more ways than we can imagine—ways we will discuss more soon.

As to information about the class, below is a link to a class webpage I have created that includes links to the required textbooks as well as additional resources. Some of you may have also heard that there are grammar exercises that can be completed prior to the semester to lighten your workload in the fall. As of last fall, though, the website I had used for the last 7 or 8 years shut down (it was an outstanding resource 🥲), so we had to pivot away from that resource. We will likely invest ourselves even more fully in two of the textbooks we will be using in place of these assignments; specifically, we will work carefully through the Style book and the Bluebook linked at the page below. You may not yet have these books if you are getting them through Slingshot, which is completely fine, as you are not required to work on anything prior to the semester.

Even though no one is required to complete any work prior to the semester, if you desire to get ahead, my recommendation would be to begin reading and taking notes on the Confronting Injustice book linked at the website below (you will write a book review on this book during the first part of the semester). I know most of you will get this book from Slingshot along with your other books, but Confronting Injustice is a book I would recommend owning and not just renting. If you purchase it before the semester (was half off on Amazon recently), you could likely have it permanently at a cost cheaper than keeping the one from Slingshot. Note that I have also included two sample book reviews of another book on the course webpage if you are curious what is expected for the book review, but at this point I would just encourage you to read and take notes on the book.

Back to textbooks: I know that one or two of you have opted out of the Slingshot rental program that will cover all the textbooks and course materials, but for those who will choose to purchase their books from other vendors, I wanted to provide links to what we will be using. All the details on textbooks can be found on the following class webpage:

https://joshuajstyles.com/foundations-for-excellence-fall-2025/

I will upload additional information to this webpage (including the syllabus and class recordings) throughout the semester, so be sure to bookmark the link. My hope is that it will be helpful to have most of the information you need in one place without having to log in to Blackboard.

Encouragement  

Finally, I also want you to know that I am with you and for you as you seek to work hard this coming semester. As you may have heard, this class will require a lot of work and will push you and stretch you in many ways; indeed, the workload in this class is greater than in many other courses. But despite the workload, I believe that all of you can do very well in the course, and I will help you however I can. 

Most importantly, I am praying we all remember why we are doing what we are doing in this course. It’s true that you must learn and retain all that you are taught in this course in order to move on to upper-level courses and to succeed in those courses once you get there. But as important as this course is for succeeding in your studies at North Greenville, I want to remind you again of your primary reason for working hard in this class (and in all your classes). As mentioned above (and as we will reiterate this fall), this class is NOT just about writing research papers; rather, what you will learn in this class will help you as you seek to make Jesus known to the ends of the earth and as you work to love and care for those around you, not only in the coming months but for the rest of your lives.

As to our lives, we must remember that they are short and that time passes quickly. Consider Paul’s words in Ephesians 5:

 “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:15-16).

And as we prepare for this coming semester, I also pray the LORD will also encourage and strengthen our hearts with these words from 2 Timothy 4:

1 I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: 2 preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. 3 For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, 4 and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. 5 As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.

6 For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8 Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.

Finally, I encourage you again to remember the One for whom you will be working in this class and in all your classes:

“And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him” (Colossians 3:17).

I look forward to seeing you all in a few short weeks. In the meantime, if you have any questions at all, please do not hesitate to contact me (text, email, or call). I desire to be as accessible to you as possible, both over the summer and during the semester, so please never feel like you are bothering me. If you have questions or simply need encouragement, please reach out. It’s my privilege to speak with you and help you however I can. My phone number is 828.273.5689 (most students text me as that tends to be the easiest way to get in touch, but again you are welcome to call or email as well!).

One last thing: Please reply to this email and let me know (1) that you received it and (2) that you could view the information on the class webpage. I want to make sure I have your correct email addresses since I pulled most of them from student portal.

I look forward to our class together this coming fall!

Prof Styles

 Also, if you want to learn more about me or my family (and seem some pictures of my wife and daughters 😀), see the following page of my website:

https://joshuajstyles.com/about/

Have a blessed Lord’s Day!

Prof Styles