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by Dale Grauman

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Multnomah Considers Adopting a University Title

The title "University" may cover both college and seminary, but the institutions will keep their distinct identities.
--Dale Grauman, photo

Multnomah Bible College and Biblical Seminary might become "Multnomah University" pending a decision by the school's board of trustees. If approved, the name change could happen by the end of the 2007-2008 academic year.

According to Academic Dean Wayne Strickland, removing the word "Bible" from MBC's diplomas should benefit graduates on the mission field and those seeking work in public schools. He added that some graduates trying to get into closed countries have requested custom degrees without the word "Bible" written on them.

Multnomah qualifies as a university in Oregon because it offers graduate programs. "We already look like a duck, so why not call ourselves a duck?" Dr. Strickland said.

Dr. Strickland said that the college and seminary will remain distinct entities, but that both would fall under the corporate name "Multnomah University."

Dr. Pat Blewett, dean of the Bible college at Columbia International University in South Carolina, has been involved with two Bible colleges that have made similar decisions.

He saw Columbia Bible College become CIU in 1994 and Grace College of the Bible in Omaha, Neb., become Grace University in 1995.

Dr. Blewett said that the chief reason for the change in both cases was to assist alumni in international service. "[In] countries that have limited access and are what I would call 'anti-Christian,' the term 'Bible' is like a red flag in terms of [our graduates'] access for visas," he said. Dr. Strickland believes that Multnomah's student handbook, mission, curriculum and tuition will remain unaffected by the name change. "We're not changing who we are," Dr. Strickland said. "We will not cease being a Bible college."

"Where I've been, it hasn't changed our purpose or our mission," Dr. Blewett said. "In one sense, the change actually helped to focus our mission statement even clearer because of the fear that maybe we're shifting who we are by doing a name change."

Some Multnomah students are leery of the proposed switch. "I think it would give a different emphasis on who Multnomah is to Christians and the world," junior Eric Faris said. "It almost looks like we're trying to hide that we are a Bible college."

Dr. Donald Brake, dean of the seminary, declined to comment on the change.

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