Clarks Summit University Announces Closure

 Clarks Summit University in Pennsylvania announced on July 1, 2024 that it will be closing.

The institution was founded as Baptist Bible College and Seminary in 1932 in Johnson City, New York. It moved to Pennsylvania in 1968 and changed its name to Clarks Summit University in 2015.

You can read more in "Grief, gratitude at Clarks Summit University as school announces closure," posted by West Virginia's public radio affiliate WVIA.

If you are interested in recent trends for closures, mergers, and acquisitions access College Closures since 2009 in the index at the right of any College History Garden page. There are separate tabs for non-profit closures, for-profit closures, and one for mergers and acquisitions. Each tab includes basic information for the institutions, i.e., Carnegie Classification, sector, accrediting agency, and the IPEDS unitid.

Faith Baptist Bible College Celebrates Centennial

Faith Baptist Bible College & Theological Seminary is celebrating the centennial of its founding this year. 

The centennial web page includes planned events, a timeline, names of presidents, and several historic photographs.

The institution was founded as Omaha Bible Institute in 1921 and is now located in Ankeny, Iowa.

Omaha Bible Institute changed its name to Omaha Baptist Bible Institute in 1953 and was affiliated with the General Association of Regular Baptist Churches. 

The institution changed its name to Omaha Baptist Bible College in 1960 and moved to Ankeny in 1967 as Faith Baptist Bible College.

A Window Into The Breach: Fascinating Timeline Created at Columbia Theological Seminary

C. Benton Kline, Jr. Special Collections created a fascinating timeline, "A Window Into The Breach," looking at racism and the institution of slavery in the 19th century as it relates to the history of Columbia Theological Seminary. Many of the slides focus on the earliest and largest donations that the seminary received prior to emancipation, as well as events and individuals who did much to shape the life of the institution. The timeline was created using open-source Knight Lab TimelineJS.

Columbia Theological Seminary was founded in 1828 in Lexington, Georgia. The seminary was moved to Columbia, South Carolina in 1830. It then moved to its current location in Decatur, GA in 1927.

University of Redlands and San Francisco Theological Seminary Reach Agreement

The University of Redlands in Redlands, CA and San Francisco Theological Seminary located in San Anselmo, CA announced on February 25, 2019 that they have entered into a partnership that will serve as a foundation for a new Graduate School of Theology.

You can read more on the seminary's Pathways to Possibility webpage that includes a statement from Rev. Dr. Jim McDonald, President and Professor of Faith & Public Life, along with .pdfs of several partnership documents and a F.A.Q. section.

Other reporting on the agreement can be found at:

• Yet Another Seminary Merges by Greg Toppo for Inside Higher Ed on February 26, 2019
• San Francisco Theological Seminary, University of Redlands to begin ‘permanent partnership’ for Presbyterian Mission on February 25, 2019
• San Francisco Theological Seminary reaches “agreement in principle” to become part of University of Redlands by Leslie Scanlon for Presbyterian Outlook on February 25, 2019

If you are interested in recent trends for closures, mergers,and acquisitions access College Closures since 2009 in the index at the right of any College History Garden page. There are separate tabs for non-profit closures, for-profit closures, and one for mergers and acquisitions. Each tab includes basic information for the institutions, i.e., Carnegie Classification, sector, accrediting agency, and the IPEDS unitid.

Baptist Theological Seminary Announces Closure in 2019

The Trustees of Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond announced on November 13, 2018 that it will be closing at the end of the academic year in June 2019.







Baptist News Global posted an excellent article by Bob Allen, "Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond to close in 2019."

Allen provides a brief history of the institution since its founding in 1991 and places the seminary's decision within the context of pressures faced by other seminaries.

The Richmond Times-Dispatch published an article almost six years ago on January 19, 2013, "Private K-12 school to buy seminary property in North Richmond," as the seminary worked to reduce fixed costs.

If you are interested in recent trends for closures, mergers,and acquisitions access College Closures since 2009 in the index at the right of any College History Garden page. There are separate tabs for non-profit closures, for-profit closures, and one for mergers and acquisitions. Each tab includes basic information for the institutions, i.e., Carnegie Classification, sector, accrediting agency, and the IPEDS unitid.

Centennial of Theological College, The Catholic University of America's Seminary

The Archivist's Nook blog of The Catholic University of America offers an interesting post, "Theological College--First 100 Years," by Shane MacDonald.  MacDonald provides a brief historical sketch of the early history of the institution's seminary.  The seminary, founded in 1917, was initially known as Sulpician Seminary.  The name changed to Theological College in the 1940s. 

The CUA web site includes information on the centennial and there is an excellent short YouTube video, "The History of TC," with many historical images.

Andover Newton Theological School plans to sell campus and merge

The Boston Globe reported on November 12, 2015 that the Andover Newton Theological School is planning to sell campus property and seek a merger or consolidation with another institution.  Andover Theological Seminary was founded in 1807 and was closely associated with New England Congregationalism.  Newton Theological Institution was a Baptist seminary founded in 1825.  The two institutions merged in 1965.  Andover Newton currently offers Master of Divinity, Master of Arts and Doctor of Ministry degrees.