Cairn University is a Christian university in Langhorne, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1913, the university has six schools: Divinity, Liberal Arts and Sciences, Business, Education, Music, and Social Work. All students take a minimum of 30 semester hours of Bible.
History
Philadelphia Bible University - Philadelphia Biblical University Choir performs at Immanuel Bible Church in Howell NJ.
Origins (1913â€"1951)
On July 8, 1913, W. W. Rugh founded the Bible Institute of Philadelphia as an extension of the National Bible Institute of New York. After teaching public school in his earlier days, Rugh spent several years walking a circuit to teach Bible classes throughout eastern Pennsylvania and New Jersey. This led him to establish an institution where the Scriptures could be taught on a daily basis.
Around the same time, C. I. Scofield and William L. Pettingill, leading Bible teachers of their day, were holding a large conference in the Philadelphia area. Encouraged by numerous requests to establish a permanent school to continue teaching, the two men co-founded Philadelphia School of the Bible on October 1, 1914. Scofield, known internationally for his Bible teaching and his work on the Scofield Reference Bible, became the first president of PSOB and Pettingill was the first dean.
On October 8, 1921, Rugh's school became independent of the New York school and changed its name to Bible Institute of Pennsylvania (BIOPA).
Both BIOPA and PSOB focused on training lay people in the Scriptures for service in the church and their communities. No degrees were conferred.
The Merger & Accreditation (1951â€"1979)
In 1951, the two schools merged to become Philadelphia Bible Institute (PBI), located at the YWCA Building at 1800 Arch St. At the time of the merger, William A. Mierop from BIOPA was appointed president and Clarence E. Mason, Jr. from PSOB, academic dean. PBI offered a three-year Bible diploma. By 1958, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania granted the institute approval to offer a four-year program leading to the Bachelor of Science in Bible degree, and then changed its name to Philadelphia College of Bible. In 1967, the school received regional accreditation from the Middle States Association, becoming one of the first Bible colleges accredited by MSA.
During the 1970s, PCB continued to develop its academic offerings and was authorized to grant two additional degrees, the Bachelor of Music and the Bachelor of Social Work.
Students were required to take 55 credit hours of Bible, doctrine, and "Bible college distinctives" courses.
Since the merger, the school has had five presidents: William A. Mierop, 1951 to 1956; Charles C. Ryrie, 1958 to 1962; Douglas B. MacCorkle, 1963 to 1977; and W. Sherrill Babb, 1979 to 2007. Todd J. Williams became the university's fifth president January 1, 2008.
Relocation & Expansion (1979â€"2012)
W. Sherrill Babb's appointment as president coincided with a relocation from Center City, Philadelphia to a new campus in Langhorne Manor. Under his leadership, in 2000, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania granted the college approval to become a university and the institution changed its name to Philadelphia Biblical University. During Dr. Babb's presidency, the number of degrees offered increased from three to eleven; six Graduate programs were implemented; four extension campuses established; and student enrollment, faculty, and facility space more than doubled.
In 2007, a new core curriculum was introduced. It included changes to the educational approach of the institution. In the new core curriculum, students earned 36 credits of specified Bible and theology requirements in combination with a comprehensive arts and sciences and professional curriculum.
On January 1, 2008, former President W. Sherrill Babb became the university's first chancellor and former Provost Dr. Todd J. Williams was elevated as the University's fifth president.
Under the leadership of Dr. Williams, the university has continued to expand its academic offerings. A Master of Business Administration degree was approved by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in 2010 and professional minors in Education, Music, Social Work, and Business were added in 2011. There has also been significant growth in co-curricular programs like the Arts Initiative, which is focused on strengthening the University's involvement with the fine arts, and the Center for University Studies.
In October 2011, as part of an effort to reduce the time and costs required for undergraduates to finish their studies, the Board of Trustees voted to allow students the option to pursue a B.S. in Bible degree, a professional degree (B.S. in Business Administration, B.S. in Education, Bachelor of Social Work, Bachelor of Music), or both Bible and professional degrees concurrently. Prior to this decision, all undergraduate students were required to earn a B.S. in Bible. Students who wanted to earn a second professional degree in an area other than Bible or ministry had to earn over 150 credit hours, which often took four and a half or five years to complete. The October 2011 Board decision also reduced the minimum of 36 credits in Bible and Theology in the core curriculum to 30 credits.
Name change and continued growth (2012â€"present)
On Wednesday April 18, 2012, Dr. Williams announced to the student body during chapel that he and the Board of Trustees were considering changing the name of the school to Cairn University. The name, it was explained, adopts the concept of memorials and trail markers, "Bearing witness [to God's faithfulness] and pointing the way." The announcement and the proposed new name garnered mixed responses from alumni, students, faculty, and the public. By June 8, 2012, the university had filed official document(s) with the Department of Education of the State of Pennsylvania to change its name to Cairn University (see Cairn). The request was approved one month later, and on July 16, 2012, the school went public as Cairn University.
The university continues to develop new programs and partnerships. In January 2013, Cairn launched five new Bachelor of Arts degree programs in English, History, Music, Liberal Arts, and Psychology in fall 2012, and a Master of Arts degree in Religion.
The institution celebrated its Centennial, beginning May 2013 through May 2014.
In 2017, Cairn launched new programs in Computer Science, Criminal Justice, Graphic Design, Information Systems, Mathematics, Pre-art Therapy, Studio Art, and Community Arts.
Athletics
Cairn University student-athletes compete in twelve sports as the Highlanders. Formerly the "Crimson Eagles," students, faculty, and staff voted to change the mascot in conjunction with the 2012 university name change.
The athletic program is affiliated with the Colonial States Athletic Conference, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA). Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, golf, soccer and volleyball; while women's sports include basketball, cross country, soccer, softball, tennis and volleyball.
In 2014 the men's Cross Country team won the Colonial States Athletic Conference Championship. This was the school's first NCAA conference championship in its 100 year history. In 2015, the men's Cross Country team repeated this feat. Also, in 2016 the cross country team won the championship again.
The men's soccer program has won seven NCCAA Division II National Championships (1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1996).
Students also participate in intramural sports such as flag football, indoor soccer, basketball, and ultimate frisbee.
Notable alumni
- Cruz Cordero â€" Founding member of Christian hip-hop pioneers The Cross Movement
- Robert C. Gage â€" Christian author, pastor of the First Baptist Church in the City of New York. Gage received his bachelor of science degree from Cairn in 1964.
- Allen C. Guelzo â€" Henry R. Luce III Professor of the Civil War Era at Gettysburg College
- Emmanuel Lambert, Jr. - Christian hip-hop artist
- Duane Litfin â€" Past president of Wheaton College
- Willie Richardson (pastor) - Founder and pastor of Christian Stronghold Church in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Rachel Saint â€" missionary in Ecuador to the Waodani people
- Martin Ssempa â€" Ugandan pastor, received a graduate degree in 1996 and an honorary doctorate in 2006.
- Glenn Kelley â€" Glenn Kelley is the CEO of Connectivity Engineer - and was the Network Architect & Operations Director of the Web Empowered Church Vinehosting division which he purchased from Christian Technology Ministries Intl in Feb 2013. He joined Christian Technology Ministries Intl. after leaving Kidz-IDz as the CTO of their US operations.
Notable faculty
- J. Dwight Pentecost â€" Taught in the institution from 1948â€"55; taught at Dallas Theological Seminary; died on April 28, 2014. He wrote a number of volumes including Things to Come and The Words and Works of Christ.
- Charles Caldwell Ryrie â€" Taught at Philadelphia College of Bible and served as President. He became a dean at Dallas Theological Seminary afterwards. He has authored Dispensationalism Today and Basic Theology.
References
External links
- Official website
- Official athletics website