September is always an exhilarating time around Crandall University, but there is an extra buzz in the air this year as the first students in an exciting new partnership have arrived! Because of the shared desire to disciple students and equip Christian leaders, Acadia Divinity College and Crandall University are providing students with the opportunity of earning two degrees simultaneously! The addition of the Acadia Bachelor of Theology (B.Th.) to a student’s Crandall degree provides them with an incredible foundation that will prepare them for many different possibilities of study and ministry. Some will undoubtedly go on to take a Master of Divinity in preparation for vocational ministry, but no matter where they go or what they do, graduates will have a foundation for life that is second to none!
The students that are part of this partnership will be involved in church and community service throughout the four years of their studies, and will even travel together on an international mission trip. They will take extra courses in aspects of practical church leadership, theology and Biblical studies. The combination of rigorous academics and continual involvement in ministry will prepare these students for a life of serving God in a wide variety of ways!
The first class of the B.Th. Partnership contains 13 students from a wide variety of places and life backgrounds. However, they are united in the fact that they all are passionate about growing in their faith and learning how and where they should be serving God! As director of this exciting new partnership, Dale Stairs stated “I firmly believe the very gates of Hell shudder with the launch of the Crandall-Acadia B.Th. Almost every major revival or spiritual awakening in the Church’s history started with a group of young adults who decided to devote themselves to prayer and serving God – I can’t wait to see the incredible things that God will do through this group of dedicated young leaders!”
Submitted by Rev. Dale O. Stairs
Before becoming the first director of the Crandall-Acadia B.Th. Partnership, Dale served with the Youth and Family Ministries Department of the Convention of Atlantic Baptist Churches, and as a pastor who worked primarily with youth.
