Small Bible College Ends Academic Courses

[Effective June 30, 2018]

 

“PORTLAND – For more than three and a half decades, a small Bible college in Northeast Portland has provided academic courses and programs at a decidedly low cost.

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But things are changing for North Portland Bible College at 4905 N. Vancouver Avenue. As of last month, the college is no longer offering instruction and programs for credits, nor is it enrolling new students. But it will continue hosting non-credit workshops, seminars, and personal enrichment classes in what college President Earnestine Cellestine describes as a “new season of missional outreach into our community.”

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“As you know, NPBC has been offering a quality Christian educational experience to students since 1982,” wrote Dr. Cellestine in a recent letter to friends of the school. “The NPBC Board of Directors has recognized that significant changes have occurred in the educational environment, and so too have the needs and opportunities for students.

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“The Board has given much thought and prayer to what it this means for the future. It has recently concluded that, with new opportunities now existing all around us, it is time to bring NPBC’s credit-bearing instruction and programs to a close.

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Students who have been enrolled in recent academic programs will be able to complete their required courses with the next two years, through a plan being developed under the guidance of the Oregon Higher Education Coordinating Committee. Some of those courses may be offered by another Portland-area school that will allow transfer of all NPBC credits earned to date.

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“We believe God brought NPBC into existence 36 years ago for a very specific purpose,” Cellestine concluded in a thank-you to school supporters. “The college has met the educational needs of hundreds of students since that time, and His Kingdom has been enriched by each of them.”

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 (Reprinted with permission of Christian News Northwest (John Fortmeyer) August 23, 2018).