MILL VALLEY, Calif. (BP)–Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary has received approval from its primary accrediting body to offer a full master of divinity degree program at the seminary’s Pacific Northwest Campus in Vancouver, Wash. In addition, the seminary was granted preliminary approval to offer two new degree programs designed to help meet current leadership needs in local churches.
Seminary officials were notified of the approvals in a letter from the Commission on Accrediting of the Association of Theological Schools.
Earlier this year, the commission had asked the seminary to offer only two-thirds of the master of divinity and half of the master of arts in Christian education degree programs at the Pacific Northwest Campus until it received the commission’s approval to offer the full programs. Approval from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, another of the seminary’s accrediting bodies, to offer all of the courses on site for both degrees had been granted.
“This latest affirmation from the ATS Commission on Accrediting points to the dedication of the entire seminary family and the many Baptist leaders in the Northwest who know the strategic value of regional campus education for the churches of tomorrow,” said seminary President William O. Crews. “We continue to move forward with an aggressive program of theological education that is connected to the future of churches in the West and helps Southern Baptist congregations be a vital part of God’s work in the world.”
To help offer the full slate of master of divinity courses, the seminary is adding additional library and computer resources at the Vancouver campus. In addition, seminary faculty member Kon Yang is moving there to teach full time.
Yang, assistant professor teaching in the areas of Hebrew, Old Testament studies and spiritual formation, was elected to the faculty in 1997 and has been serving also as dean of students since 1993. Yang has been an adjunct professor at Golden Gate since 1991. He earned his doctor of philosophy and master of divinity degrees from Golden Gate Seminary and a bachelor of music in church music at Westminster Choir College, Princeton, N.J.
Prior to his service at the seminary, he was pastor of Fairfield Korean Baptist Church, Suisun City, Calif., from 1991-93, youth minister at Concord Korean Baptist Church, Martinez, Calif., 1987-91, and choir director/youth minister at Berendo Street Baptist Church, Los Angeles, 1983-87.
Yang’s wife, the former Patricia Jane Putnam, has served as an assistant in the seminary’s Bill and Pat Dixon School of Church Music for the past several years and has taught in the school as an adjunct instructor.
Seminary officials are still developing plans for submitting a “substantive change application” to ATS that allows the seminary to offer the full master of divinity program at the school’s Arizona Regional Campus in Phoenix in the near future.
The commission also granted approval for Golden Gate Seminary to fully offer its new master of arts in theological studies at three of its campuses: the residential campus in Mill Valley, Calif., the Southern California campus in Brea, and the Northwest campus. Half of the course requirements for the new degree may be offered at the seminary’s Arizona campus in Phoenix and the Rocky Mountain Campus in Denver.
“We are finding more and more people who desire extensive theological education to better their ability to minister in local churches without the intent to serve in that way vocationally,” Crews noted. “This new theological degree is designed for lay leaders who need the blend of excellence in biblical studies and flexibility in curriculum choices in order to serve even more effectively in their local congregations.”
Students will be able to tailor the program to their individual needs by taking a full third of the required hours for graduation as elective courses in the area or areas that most interest them. The degree can be completed in two years as a full-time student and it includes a supervised ministry component.
Through the course of the degree, students learn to: study and interpret the Bible with a view toward personal and community application; study Christian theology and its practical implications for life and ministry; grow in their relationship with God; effectively lead and serve in their church or other ministry setting; equip others for effective ministry.
Approval was also given to begin offering a master of arts in worship leadership at the Mill Valley campus. During a scheduled March 1999 visit, the ATS commission’s visiting team will determine whether enough resources are in place to offer half of the worship leadership degree on the seminary’s regional campuses.
The master of arts in worship leadership degree is the centerpiece of a restructuring within the seminary’s Bill and Pat Dixon School of Church Music to connect more fully with the training needs of local churches in the western United States and to strengthen the financial base of the music school.
The worship leadership degree offers skill training in music, worship leadership, worship philosophy and theology, and church ministry.
“This will take the student from the desk to the church,” said Gary McCoy, professor of church music and director of the Dixon school. “We will enlarge (students’) vision for worship as they are exposed to various styles and resources and leadership skills.”
According to a recent survey by the music school staff, 75 percent of the California Southern Baptist churches contacted about the new degree expressed support for such an emphasis on worship.
Calling the degree “unique to Golden Gate,” McCoy said a strong emphasis on a practicum in worship design and implementation will allow students to combine “strong generalized ministry skills” with the specialized craft of worship and music. Half of the 50 credit hours necessary for the degree are taken from a general studies core, while the other half is taken from a professional studies core in worship and church music.
