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South Hamilton , MA— Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary is currently developing an extension site in Jacksonville, Florida, and will begin offering classes in February 2006, pending final approval by accrediting agencies.
An evangelical, multi-denominational Protestant graduate school, Gordon-Conwell has campuses in South Hamilton and Boston, Massachusetts, and Charlotte, North Carolina. With more than 2,000 students, it is the fifth largest seminary in North America.
The new program in Jacksonville will be an extension site of the Charlotte, North Carolina, campus, and students will be admitted through that campus. The Florida Department of Education has already granted the necessary exemption, and application is in process with other accrediting bodies.
Charlotte Dean Dr. Sidney L. Bradley will also serve as Dean of the Jacksonville extension site. Jacksonville resident Kent D. Gilbert has been named Assistant to the Dean and will manage operations for the Florida program. Gilbert served for 28 years with Young Life, including 11 years as Metro and Regional Director in Jacksonville, and most recently was associated with Champion Golf Events.
Students can pursue either the Master of Arts (MA) degree, or the Master of Divinity (M.Div.) degree, and two courses will be offered in February: Foundations of Leadership in Ministry and Church History. These will be available on weekends and occasional one-week intensives. The February courses will be offered if a minimum of 30 students enroll and take at least six courses a year. Students can also take up to one-third of the required courses for either degree through Semlink, the seminary’s distance education program.
The new theological education program in Jacksonville began at the impetus of an exploratory committee of Jacksonville alumni/ae pastors and other church leaders led by Dr. Robert Morris, Senior Pastor of First Presbyterian Church. The church leaders approached the seminary some months ago about providing courses in their region and have subsequently raised substantial funds and pledges to operate the new extension site. Trustees approved the program at the May Board meeting.
“We are excited about expanding our program to Florida, and are very grateful to our friends in Jacksonville for their enormous efforts to bring Gordon-Conwell to their city,” says seminary President Dr. Walter C. Kaiser, Jr. “We look forward to working closely with them to develop a strong accredited program of theological education for their region.”
About Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary
Gordon-Conwell offers degrees at the Masters and Doctoral levels and has gained an international reputation for leading faculty in the areas of Biblical Studies, Ministry and Theology. The seminary is known for its classical education and rigorous academic standards that include biblical language requirements in many of the degree programs. Students on the three campuses represent 107 denominations and 48 foreign countries.
Seminary President is Dr. Walter C. Kaiser, Jr., a recognized Old Testament scholar and author. Board chairman is Richard A. Armstrong of Wheaton, Illinois. Also numbering among the trustees are evangelical leaders such as international evangelist Rev. Billy Graham, nationally recognized Christian teacher Anne Graham Lotz, and President of Prison Fellowship Charles W. Colson.
HistoryGordon-Conwell was founded in 1969 in South Hamilton, Massachusetts, through the merger of Philadelphia’s Conwell School of Theology and Gordon Divinity School of Boston. Architects of this merger included Rev. Billy Graham; Dr. Harold John Ockenga, long-time pastor of Boston’s historic Park Street Church; and philanthropist J. Howard Pew.
In 1976, the seminary added a second campus, the Gordon-Conwell Center for Urban Ministerial Education (CUME) in Boston’s inner city. Serving nearly 400 students, this campus provides theological education specifically designed for pastors and Christian leaders serving Hispanic, African-American, Caribbean and Asian populations in urban settings.
The Charlotte, North Carolina campus, founded to serve students in the Southeast, opened in 1992 with 44 students and now serves more than 500 from throughout the U.S. and Canada. Gordon-Conwell—Charlotte also offers a Doctor of Ministry degree for Korean students, with classes taught both in Seoul, Korea, and at the Charlotte campus.
For Admissions information, please contact Tim Myrick, Director of Enrollment Management, at 704 - 940 - 5810. Applications will be accepted in Jacksonville by early September.
Attention Media: For further information on this or other news, please contact Anne Doll, Director of Communications, at (978) 646-4141.
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