On September 23, a special chapel event was held in his honor, with Dr. Cook’s long-time friend, Bud Schaeffer, making a surprise guest appearance.

Dr. Cook: a missionary to Taiwan for 16 years, to Multnomah Seminarian graduate, to chairman of Multnomah’s Intercultural Studies department for 23 years.

In 2003, Dr. Cook retired. However, he continues counseling, teaching weekend seminars, and speaking at various churches with Mrs. Cook.

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Multnomah University has responded to students' academic and holistic needs with new programs designed to support students during their time at school. These tutoring, counseling, and wellness programs have been in formation over the past two years.

The academic support center, under Dean of Student Services Matt Rygg, has hired five tutors to provide instruction on Bible/theology, math, and writing. Rygg supervises the program and Professor Domani Pothen devotes time outside of teaching to coach the five tutors. Rygg said he wants to expand the academic services to include study skills and test-taking seminars.

Multnomah Student Services has restructured its department to better provide counseling and medical care for students. Corinne Hauser, manager of the counseling center, is focusing on helping students develop spiritually. One of the events she has planned to accomplish this is a body image small group for women students.

Academic and Holistic Goals for Students

• To challenge students academically and support them well
• To increase student retention and graduation rates
• To become more proactive in student growth and spiritual formation

"It was really a stewardship issue that we find a way to support students academically," Matt Rygg said. "The Academic Support Center has been created to support students as an institution."

"There's a great privilege that God has entrusted to us: to walk with people while they are preparing for ministry during one of the most formative times of their lives," Dean of Spiritual Formation and Wellness Karen Fancher said. "And we're really honored and excited to do so and we want to give them the support that we can."

Questions?

For more information about the Student Health and Wellness programs, please contact Karen Fancher, Dean of Spiritual Formation and Wellness at 503.251.5312 or kfancher@multnomah.edu.

For more information about the Academic Support Center, please contact Matt Rygg, Dean of Student Services at 503.251.5314 or mrygg@multnomah.edu.

Both endorsements are designed to enable teachers to work strategically in high-needs areas by giving teachers the latest in instructional content and methodology in working with students at risk and children whose first language is not English.

Classes for the Reading Specialist and ESOL endorsements are held late afternoons and evenings to enable those currently working to attend.

Three Benefits for Teachers to Add Endorsements

1. Endorsements provide new opportunities for teachers to expand their ability to serve students.
2. A teacher's status as a valuable asset within a school is enhanced with specialized endorsements.
3. Endorsements fill a high-demand area within schools through teachers who are well-prepared to serve those students.

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"Multnomah believes that its mission is to prepare Christians to impact their world in both church-related and marketplace ministries," Dr. Debi Miller, director of Teacher Education at Multnomah University said. "Schools of all kinds-public and private-are filled with students who struggle to read, who struggle with understanding the basic concepts being taught through language. Whether these are native English speakers who struggle with literacy, or 'English as a second language' speakers learning English for the first time, we want to further equip teachers to open the world of learning for these students."

"At Multnomah we want to prepare teachers who think critically, act compassionately, and work strategically to address these needs as part of their calling to love God and love people. That is why we added these endorsement programs to our Teacher Education program," Dr. Miller said.

More Information

Information nights are being held from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m. on October 14 and 28, and November 4 and 18 where you can learn more about these endorsement programs.

For more information about Multnomah University's two teacher endorsements or the Teacher Education Program, contact Debi Miller at 503.251.6439 or dmiller@multnomah.edu.

Three Reasons for a Multnomah Presence in the Reno-Tahoe Area

1. No other academic institution in the region offers accredited Bible education.

2. Christians in the area will have a way to be trained for ministry in their community, or wherever God calls them to serve.

3. Multnomah can expand into a new region, broadening the scope of its ministry and continuing a 72-year heritage of high-quality biblical education.

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"Our goal in the Reno-Tahoe area is to offer accredited, biblical education," Dr. Daniel Lockwood, president of Multnomah University said. "We will start with adult education courses, as Meadows does currently, and transition into accredited coursework. Eventually, we hope to offer a graduate certificate there as well."

More Info

Visit Multnomah University's official blog and read Dr. Lockwood's latest post featuring the rest of the Reno-Tahoe story.

For more information on Multnomah University's new Reno-Tahoe location, please contact Kristin Kendall at procom@multnomah.edu or 503.251.6452.

Three Reasons for the Multnomah University Name

1. "University" will more accurately reflect Multnomah's developing institutional structure. Some of the graduate-level programs do not fit a seminary curriculum, such as the brand new Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) and MA in TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages). There are other master-level programs in Multnomah's long-term strategic plan that fit this category, as well.

2. Missionary graduates who want to serve in closed countries face immigration challenges. Multnomah University is not only a more neutral name; it is also more clearly collegiate, as "college" means high school in many international contexts.

3. Multnomah students graduating from professional disciplines such as the Teacher Education and MAT programs will have more employment opportunities after graduation. Because these programs require special certifications, the "university" title will better communicate the high-credibility of their degrees to potential employers.

Three Things the University Name Does Not Imply

1. Multnomah's mission to "educate, equip, and enrich Christians for leadership in their church, community, and world," will not change.

2. Multnomah's Bible and theology core required for every Multnomah student, which has a new 64-credit double-major option, will not be eliminated.

3. Multnomah's two divisions, Multnomah Bible College and Multnomah Biblical Seminary will not be replaced. Both divisions will continue to exist under the institutional name of Multnomah University.

Comments from Dr. Daniel R. Lockwood, President of Multnomah University

"I, along with the faculty and board of trustees, was motivated by key strategic reasons to pursue university status," Dr. Lockwood, president of Multnomah Bible College and Biblical Seminary said. "As Multnomah continues to broaden its scope of worldwide impact, this will only enhance the mission and goals of the institution, with absolutely no abandonment or compromise of the biblical foundation on which the school was built."

"The name change does not signal a transition from a Bible college to a Christian liberal arts college," Dr. Lockwood said. "We wholeheartedly remain a Bible college. As such we embrace three fundamental values: a solid core of Bible and theology for every student, a campus-wide emphasis on spiritual life, and a sustained Christian ministry experience concurrent with one's academic learning. These three values will continue to be upheld by Multnomah University."

Questions?

For more information regarding Multnomah University, please contact:

Robert Leary
Director of Promotions & Communications
rleary@multnomah.edu
503.251.6451

Student-centered, Ministry-motivated

"Over the years, we have received numerous requests from students intending to serve overseas as career missionaries," said Dr. Daniel R. Lockwood, president of Multnomah Bible College and Biblical Seminary. "Some encountered immigration obstacles in entering certain countries if officials learned they were graduates of a Bible college or a seminary." It was also found that in some countries, the word ‘college' refers to high-school level education, while ‘university' is widely recognized as a term for baccalaureate-level education.

Last fall, this need for unfettered student placement intensified when the college began planning our new teacher education program," Dr. Lockwood said. Several Christian educators with public school experience pointed out that our graduates could face severe employment obstacles with the name ‘Bible' on their diplomas. "All of us consider this program, which certifies qualified men and women to teach at the elementary level in the public school, to be a mission-fulfilling and ministry-enhancing program. The faculty sought to remove any unnecessary obstacle to our students' vocational goals."

Future Strategic Planning

"With our four seminary masters programs, we qualify with the State of Oregon to become a university," said Dr. Lockwood. "However, some of our planned graduate-level programs do not fit a seminary curriculum. Our Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) degree, scheduled to begin this January, is a case in point; and other master-level programs (e.g., TESOL and Humanitarian Studies) are in our long-term strategic plan. Faculty and trustees anticipate a day where a future Multnomah Graduate School division would become necessary. An appropriate name like Multnomah University would more accurately reflect our developing institutional structure."

What it Doesn't Mean

Dr. Lockwood and the board are quick to point out several things the name change will not mean. First, it does not signal a change in Multnomah's mission. "We will still remain committed to ‘educating, equipping, and enriching Christians for leadership in their church, community, and world,'" Dr. Lockwood said. The name change will not eliminate the Bible and theology core required for every Multnomah student.

Furthermore, university status will not eliminate the two divisions of Multnomah: Multnomah Bible College and Multnomah Biblical Seminary. Both divisions will continue to exist under the umbrella name of Multnomah University.

Finally, the name change will not begin a transition from a Bible college to a Christian liberal arts college. A Bible college possesses three fundamental values

1. A solid, required core of Bible and theology for every student
2. A strong, campus-wide emphasis on the spiritual life
3. Sustained Christian ministry experience concurrent with one's academic learning

"These three values will continue to characterize Multnomah Bible College and Biblical Seminary," Dr. Lockwood said.

For more information regarding Multnomah's university status, please consult the official "Multnomah University Blog at http://blogs.multnomah.edu/university. You may also contact Robert Leary at rleary@multnomah.edu or 503.251.6451.