College History

On February 14, 1936, Rev. John G. Mitchell called a meeting of Portland-area ministers and Christian businessmen to discuss an idea that consumed his thinking. The Pacific Northwest, he was convinced, needed a school that would faithfully instruct men and women in the truths of God's Word. Other men at this meeting shared Dr. Mitchell's vision, and subsequently Multnomah School of the Bible came into existence. Classes began the following October in a former mortuary with forty-nine students and a half-dozen faculty.

In the spring of 1939, Multnomah granted diplomas to thirty-one students-its first graduating class. The original campus was located adjacent to the site of the present Lloyd Center Shopping Mall in northeast Portland.

In the early 1950s, the administration and trustee board realized Multnomah's growing student body would require expanded facilities.

In 1952 after much prayer, the board decided to purchase the former seventeen-acre campus of Oregon State School for the Blind, located at the corner of northeast 86th Avenue and Glisan Street. It became the present location for the college and seminary. The school has fostered many ministries and businesses in its sixty-seven-year history, including a graduate program, which has become its second division, Multnomah Biblical Seminary.

In 1989, Multnomah created International Renewal Ministries, a ministry that serves as a catalyst for racial reconciliation and denominational unity in the body of Christ. Multnomah has contributed to the betterment of the Northwest by creating multiple ministries such as Christian Supply, Multnomah Press, and Mission Portland Networking.

Multnomah Bible College

In 1994, the college's name changed from "Multnomah School of the Bible" to "Multnomah Bible College." Its graduates receive more Bible and theology training than any other college in the country. Seventy-five percent of graduates apply this life-changing education in the business community, while 25 percent choose full-time ministry. The college's current enrollment is approximately 600 students per semester. Multnomah has cooperative agreements with Portland Community College and Mount Hood Community College to offer a Mission Aviation Program.

Multnomah Biblical Seminary

Since 1947, Multnomah has offered the Graduate Certificate in Bible, adding the master of arts in biblical studies and the master of sacred ministry degrees in the late 1970s. Multnomah Biblical Seminary (formerly Multnomah Graduate School of Ministry) launched its innovative master of divinity program in 1987.

In 1996, the seminary received accreditation through the Association of Theological Schools, the recognized accrediting association of theological schools and seminaries in the United States and Canada. The seminary offers flexible scheduling, ministry internships, biblical research, and advanced status for Bible college graduates. Students come from twenty-five states and nine countries including Canada, Japan, Korea, the Philippines, and South Africa.