Here is just a sampling of how the membership of the CCCU is using non-traditional forms to advance the cause of Christ-centered higher education. For more information, go to each institutions home page listed at the end of each section.
Abilene Christian University, Abilene, TX
Online enrollment for unique masters programs grows
ACU offers six master's degrees as well as two certificates online that are designed for working adults. The online degrees allow ACU to reach students who cannot come to campus for classes.
The Texas University began with delivery of two master's degrees in the fall of 2006, the Master of Arts in Conflict Resolution and Reconciliation and the Master of Education in Leadership of Learning. Online enrollment has grown from 66 students that first fall in the two degrees to 260 this fall in the six degrees. All of the degrees include courses in conflict resolution and all courses integrate aspects of the Christian faith.
Two of the degrees have a mandatory one-week residency. Courses are generally seven weeks long, and a student takes one course at a time six times a year. Instructional designers with expertise in online pedagogy work with faculty members to develop courses that engage the students with the material as well as with other members of the class. The courses are media rich, often containing video or audio vignettes written by the professor and professionally acted and recorded.
For more:
www.onlineacu.com Azusa Pacific University, Azusa, CA
Degree completion programs growing and thriving
Azusa Pacific University offers more than 140 courses online and currently has a major academic initiative to develop additional high quality, fully accredited online programs. At APU, we value quality higher education and seek to extend it to those who cannot attend our campuses for a multitude of reasons. Online study makes available colleges and universities that may otherwise be out of the question.
Our vision, mission, and values assure that all our programs, including those online, provide a learning community that facilitates the development of skills and competencies needed in todays working world while providing intellectual and personal growth.
Community building is not just lip service at APU; rather it comes directly from one of the universitys core institutional values, which is to develop and live in community. This means that APUs online programs are committed to interaction between faculty and students, and among fellow students.
For example, APUs Online Master of Arts in Educational Technology program is designed to produce 21st century leaders equipped to bring technology into K-University teaching communities. Students are placed in learning communities of 15, and together they follow a sequenced, integrated course plan. While learning takes place anytime, anywhere, and is immediately applicable to ones work environment, students are never without their professor or fellow colleagues in the learning process.
The Bachelor of Science in Organizational Leadership (BSOL) Online Program is for working professionals who want to develop the skills needed to be an agent of change in the 21st century workplace. This program is specifically designed for the adult learner. Perhaps the most distinctive element of this program is reality-based learning, or the process of integrating textbook theory with our students work and life experience. It is practical in its design, and gives students the tools to evaluate and enhance their lives personally and professionally.
APU has specifically and purposefully designed the BSOL Online Program so that students can experience the same level of quality curriculum and experienced instructional delivery that is enjoyed in the on-ground face-to-face BSOL Program. Whether due to professional/personal conflicts or geographic location, students can accomplish their degree goals through the identical curriculum and cohort model that has been so successful in the traditional BSOL Program. The BSOL Online Program emphasizes the enhancement of communication, research, cognitive, leadership, and interpersonal skills, just as the on-ground face-to-face program does.
For more:
www.apu.edu/start/prospective/degreecompletion/ Bethel University, St. Paul, MN
Educational Doctorate program growing rapidly
The Graduate School of Bethel University, based in St. Paul, Minn., offers a doctorate in Educational Administration to develop and advance leaders in public and private education. The unique program prepares graduates for superintendent and/or principal licensure or the option to receive a post-secondary teaching certificate. Courses are conducted primarily online and the program takes three years to complete.
Following launch in 2005, the Ed.D. program at Bethel has grown rapidly and now has 90 students enrolled from 15 states and two countries.
Programmatically speaking, the Ed.D. program integrates faith and leadership best practices so that participants have a personal conversation between their faith and the principles of school leadership. The result is school or school system administrators who are public intellectuals with high ideals and ethics.
Students learn in a cohort, a group of students who progress through the program together. Learners online work includes assignments they complete on their own time with due dates every two weeks. A two-week residency each July allows for face-to-face classroom interaction with instructors and cohort members. This flexible educational model makes graduate education possible with lifes other demands.
For more:
http://gs.bethel.edu/doctorate/education Biola University, La Mirada, CA
BOLD provides opportunities for integrative biblical and professional education
Biolas adult degree completion program, BOLD, was founded in 1991 and designed to be an opportunity for non-traditional students to earn a degree in an accelerated manner. Since then, BOLD has opened six additional education centers to make the Biola experience more convenient and accessible to adult students desiring to complete a degree from a national Christian university.
The BOLD program caters to the non-traditional student, such as an adult who works full time and is married, rather than a student who recently graduated from high school.
A lot of students are trying to finish something they started. Its just the incomplete piece of their life. God is leading them to prepare for whats next and they feel like a piece of that is completing their education, said Sara Mouw, director of BOLD program and education centers.
A student must have at least three years work experience after high school to be a potential BOLD student. When BOLD began, most enrolled students were in their forties. Although, the general population of students has become younger, there is still the occasional exception, such as Geraldine Telford who graduated in May of 2007 at age 72.
BOLD is a unique program because of the biblical integration, which is rare for degree completion programs.
The program is designed for students to finish in 18-24 months and they must have 27 units of general education completed prior to taking Bible courses and 50 units to be accepted into a major.
BOLD is looking forward and hopes to move to a hybrid model of online and in-class courses to give students even more flexibility. Most classes are offered in the evening or on Saturdays. Currently, Biola offers two baccalaureate degrees through the BOLD program, one in organizational leadership and one in psychology.
The six education centers are located in La Mirada, Chino, Inglewood, Orange County, San Diego County and Thousand Oaks.
For more:
www.biola.edu/academics/professional-studies/bold/
Covenant College: Lookout Mountain, GA
Adult program helps non-traditional students on Quest
Covenant College Quest, established in 1984, is a Christian outreach to working adults who never finished college, offering them a chance to earn a bachelors degree in as little as 18 months.
Quest is very different from the experience of a typical 18-year-old entering college for the first time. With a rigorous curriculum arranged in a nontraditional format and schedule, busy working adults can finish their bachelor's degrees more quickly. Once they enter the program and meet certain requirements, they receive a laptop computer with the latest versions of Microsoft® Vista and Office. Taught by distinguished Christian faculty and local businessmen and women, classes are held once a week in four locations: Chattanooga, Dalton, Rome, and Atlanta. Each small group starts together, studies together, and graduates together. All courses and breaks are laid out in advance without the need to re-register each time.
As the college of the Presbyterian Church in America, Covenant has begun working with local churches to identify potential leaders from within the denomination who are strong candidates for a degree through Quest.
Even though Hope scholarship money and employer reimbursements have made it easier than ever for most Georgians and Tennesseans to pay for college, Quest has partnered with a number of regional media companies to award $5,000 scholarships to new students.
Quest composes nearly half of Covenants incoming class, with around 150 students starting the program each year. Many of those students continue into successful graduate programs and earn masters degrees.
Quest is open to working adults age 23 and older who have approximately five years of work experience and at least some prior college experience. This could be any combination of transferable coursework, military training, or CLEP exams. Graduates are awarded a bachelors degree in organizational management.
For more:
www.covenant.edu/academics/adult_degree
Greenville College, Greenville, IL
Three programs provide innovative partnerships with other campuses
Greenville College is offering three new partnership programs in Teacher Education on the Lincoln Christian College campus: UTEP, MAT and MAE. The Undergraduate Teacher Education Partnership (UTEP) program is a unique opportunity for students who want to become certified to teach in Illinois by completing their bachelors degree from Greenville College in elementary education. GCs UTEP program on LCCs campus is a four-year program beginning in the fall 2008. The first two years of the program are completed through LCC and the last two years completed through Greenville College. Lincoln Christian College students can complete their bachelors degree in Teacher Education with Greenville College while staying on the LCC campus.
The Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) program is designed for students that already have a bachelors degree in any field and are interested in a career change to education. Along with receiving a Master of Arts degree, the program prepares students to receive their teaching certification in the state of Illinois. MAT courses begin spring 2009 and will be offered evenings once a week.
The Master of Arts in Education (MAE) program is designed for current teachers that would like to receive a masters degree in teacher leadership or special education. Earning a MAE increases your current knowledge in the field of education as well as your earning potential. The MAE program begins in the summer 2009. Courses are offered in a summer format to accommodate teachers schedules.
For more:
www.greenville.edu/content/view/800/214/ Huntington University, Huntington, IN
Huntington's EXCEL program to offer new majors
The Huntington University EXCEL program for adults is offering two new bachelors degree programs and soon will offer two more.
Our experience and conversations with potential students, mayors, elected officials, chief executive officers, plant managers, and human resource professionals suggested that there is a need in the marketplace for degrees of business administration, human resource management, accounting and organizational leadership with a focus on non-profit management, said Perry Collins, director of the EXCEL program. For that reason, the degrees are being added to the EXCEL Program for Adults.
The EXCEL program has grown from an initial enrollment of 15 students in 1993 to a current enrollment of 145.
The organizational management majorthe first and only major of the EXCEL program since its inceptionwas replaced by organizational leadership in the fall of 2006. Students in the midst of the organizational management program may finish with that major, or they may transition to the organizational leadership program.
Our initial adult degree offering in organizational management was designed to meet the needs of as broad a population in order to start a successful program, Collins said. The strategy worked, and EXCEL is well-established. We are now in a position to serve an even larger population by providing more specialized majors.
For details, see
www.huntington.edu/news/0607/EXCEL-new-majors.htm Nyack College, Nyack, NY
Adult Degree Completion Program and Online Courses at Nyack College
At Nyack College, the School of Business and Leadership was established this yearthe result of merging the School of Business with the School of Adult and Distance Education. Dr. Anita Underwood is dean.
The Adult Degree Completion Program (ADCP) is for individuals with a minimum of 60 college credits. Graduates receive the Bachelor of Science in Organizational Management. The program, which was launched nearly 20 years ago, is a cohort-based structure designed to help working adults complete the degree in 14 months with the goal of enhancing educational credentials and improving management competencies.
In addition to the Rockland County, NY campus, ADCP classes are held in Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, Albany and Washington, D.C. Students must commit to one night per week for 14 months. Each class is offered once a week from 6:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m. Courses are offered one at a time in sequential 4 or 6-week modules.
A graduate level program, Master of Organizational Leadership (MSOL) is also offered at the School of Business and Leadership. This 12-month program is for those who want to strengthen their leadership capabilities in non-profit, faith-based, business or community organizations.
The MSOL offers ten courses and three integrated research session (33 credits or intense study) that integrates theoretical and practical knowledge. A values-based leadership model provides a framework for students as they refine critical thinking and applied research skills.
Undergraduate and graduate level online courses are offered at Nyack College and at its seminary, Alliance Theological Seminary. A sample of online courses that have been offered can be found at
www.nyack.edu/content/OnlineCourses.
Oklahoma Baptist University, Oklahoma City, OK
MTI offers flexibility in ministry training
The Ministry Training Institute (MTI) delivers college-level courses in a number of Christian ministry areas including Bible, theology, Christian education and ministry skills. Classes usually meet one night a week in local Baptist associations and churches. They can be taken for college credit or audited. MTI teachers are graduates of Baptist seminaries, selected by the MTI director and the dean of OBU's Joe L. Ingram School of Christian Service. OBU faculty and staff design the courses and select the textbooks.
MTI students are adults -- at least 23 years old -- interested or involved in Christian ministry. Some are Bible study teachers, children's program directors, youth ministers or pastor roles. Others are lay people who want to know more about the Bible, Christian counseling or other ministry topics.
MTI study plans offered include:
- Bible Teacher's Certificate
- Children's Ministry Certificate
- Outreach Ministry Certificate
- Diploma in Christian Studies
- Associate of Arts in Christian Studies
- Bachelor of Arts in Christian Studies
- Bachelor of Arts in Christian Studies (second degree)
OBU currently operates 28 MTI administrative centers, with additional instructional centers, in seven states: Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Indiana, Colorado, Montana and Washington.
For more:
www.okbu.edu/academics/scs/mti/index.html Southwest Baptist University, Bolivar, MO
Campuses share space to pursue new opportunities
Students at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary now have the opportunity to pursue a Masters in Business Administration on the Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Kansas City, Mo. Students at Midwestern Seminary have the option of completing the Master of Divinity or doctorate simultaneously with the MBA from Southwest Baptist University. Prospective students in the Kansas City area who are interested in the MBA only also may enroll in courses taught at the seminary in Kansas City and through online courses taught at SBU in Bolivar, Mo.
For More:
www.sbuniv.edu/news/artman/publish/CampusNews/SBU_Partners_with_Midwestern_to_offer_classes_for_MBA_in_Kansas_City.shtml In addition, Southwest Baptist University's Springfield campus has been the home of St. John's College of Nursing and Health Sciences since 1996. In 1984, SBU offered the first courses for the Bachelor of Science in nursing degree program. About 75% of the program's ASN graduates choose to work for St. John's Hospital; graduates also go on to career opportunities as traveling nurses, school nurses, or in the mission field.
For More:
www.sbuniv.edu/news/artman/publish/Nursing/Ten_Years_of_Preparing_Students_to_be_Competent_Caring_Nurses.shtml
Whitworth University, Spokane, WA
Upside-down option helps students finish degree
Our continuing studies program, targeting working adults returning to complete their bachelors degrees, has doubled its enrollment in the past 10 years. Two of the main drivers of that growth have been our evening teacher certification program and our upside-down degree option within our liberal studies program.
Teacher certification: The evening teacher certification program allows adults who work full time to complete their teacher certification in an accelerated evening and Saturday format. Students accepted into this program can earn a bachelor of arts in elementary education with their Washington State teacher certification, while those currently holding a college degree can complete the requirements for certification only. Post-baccalaureate students can enroll in the 500 level of designated courses and apply credits as electives toward a master's degree if accepted to a Whitworth Graduate Studies in Education program.
Our students come from a variety of backgrounds. Paraprofessional educators, parents who had put their education on hold to raise their families, military personnel, nurses, and even physicians who want to launch a new career in teaching, all take part. The rural areas surrounding Spokane are suffering from a teacher shortage, particularly in the fields of special education, math, science, and English as a second language. Whitworth draws students from across the region with our ESL and special education endorsement programs in the evening, and is looking at adding certification programs in areas such as math. In Spokane, where the labor market for teachers is tight, our graduates have a high rate of employment.
Students say they prefer the accelerated format because it allows them to complete their certification in two or three years while allowing them to continue working. Whitworth also works with students' schedules when arranging their required field experience, which distinguishes our program from others in the community that is less flexible. Students also develop a strong sense of camaraderie with other students in their cohort of 20 or fewer students that work collaboratively through each of the courses in sequence.
"Upside-down" program: Washington community-college transfer students may transfer into our bachelor of liberal-studies degree program in one of two ways: with an A.A. degree or with an A.A.S. degree. The upside-down aspect refers to the fact that students with an A.A.S. degree have completed their major area of study (in gerontology, for example) at the community college and can now complete general-education and upper-division requirements necessary for a four-year bachelor's degree without having to start all over again. Students entering Whitworth via the upside-down program transfer in with 60-64 semester credits and are granted junior standing.
From a big-picture perspective, our growth in continuing studies owes partly to the transitions going on in the American work force as a whole. Single moms are looking to get back into the working world or advance their existing careers; older working adults are looking at ways to re-career or gain additional education in their fields to keep up with a changing and increasingly competitive labor market. As the baby boomers age, continuing studies departments also have a larger pool to draw from of adults interested in changing or advancing their careers.
For more:
www.whitworth.edu/Academic/Department/AdultDegree/Index.asp www.whitworth.edu/Academic/Department/AdultDegree/BachelorLiberalStudies.htm