John Witherspoon College

John Witherspoon College is a non-denominational Christian liberal arts[2] college in Rapid City, South Dakota. The college was founded in 2012[3] and named after the pastor, scholar and American Founding Father John Witherspoon. The college was created to serve both a local need for Christian higher education in the Black Hills and the broader interest for classic liberal-arts education in America.[4]

John Witherspoon College
MottoFides Quaerens Intellectum
TypePrivate
Established2007 (2007)[1]
AffiliationNon-denominational
Academic staff
8
Location
Rapid City, South Dakota
CampusUrban
Websitewww.jwc.edu

History

In 2004, the Black Hills Bible Institute was founded by members of South Canyon Baptist Church in Rapid City, South Dakota. Its chief instigator was Dr. C. Richard Wells, a member of the founding faculty of Beeson Divinity School, former President of Criswell College, and the Pastor of South Canyon Baptist Church from 2004 to 2009. The purpose of the institute was to offer affordable, academic theological training in the Black Hills to students, including those transferred from other conforming Christian colleges.[5] In 2009, Dr. Wells accepted an offer to be the Dean of Chapel at Union University in Jackson, Tennessee and in 2011 returned to Rapid City to restructure the Black Hills Bible Institute into John Witherspoon College, where he was president until 2019.[6][7][8]

On August 21, 2012, John Witherspoon College began its first classes. The Inaugural Convocation took place on the campus on September 6 with city mayor Sam Kooiker as the keynote speaker. US Senator John Thune was the keynote speaker of the annual ScholarShare Banquet the following spring.[9]

For the tax year of 2012, the college had an income of about $255,000.[1]

Accreditation

In fall 2014, the college announced that it had applicant status with the Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools (TRACS), a Christian accrediting body recognized by the US Department of Education. The college achieved accredited status in April 2017.

Campus

John Witherspoon College previously co-located with the BigHorn Canyon Community Church and later with the RealLife Church of the Nazarene. In August 2023, the campus was relocated to 640 East St. Patrick St., Rapid City SD 57701. This move expanded the college's ability to host events and administer its programs without sharing the location with another entity.

Cultural events

John Witherspoon College has hosted various events, including bringing performers such as Michael Card[10] and Ballet Magnificat![11] to perform in Rapid City. It has also hosted the Visio Dei conference for pastors and ministers and other events to support community involvement and improvement.

References
  1. John Witherspoon College Black Hills Biblical Institute NonProfit Lookup
  2. "Liberal Arts? Are You Kidding? Archived 2015-04-09 at the Wayback Machine" John Witherspoon College
  3. "Christian college plans to open doors next fall". Rapid City Journal. September 19, 2011. Retrieved 13 June 2012.
  4. "Christian college takes nontraditional approach". Rapid City Journal. March 21, 2012. Retrieved 13 June 2012.
  5. "Academic Policies Archived 2015-04-09 at the Wayback Machine" John Witherspoon College. Quote: "John Witherspoon will accept students from a Bible college accredited by The Association for Biblical Higher Education (ABHE), or from colleges accredited by the Transnational Association of Colleges and Schools (TRACS)"
  6. admin. "Press Release: JWC Announces Election of New President, Dr.Ronald Lewis". John Witherspoon College. Retrieved 2019-03-15.
  7. "New College To Open In Rapid City Next Fall". Keloland.com, South Dakota News and Weather. AP. 20 September 2011. Archived from the original on 2015-06-15. Retrieved 30 April 2015.
  8. "Union installs 3, welcomes 18 new faculty". Union University News. 29 August 2012. Retrieved 3 May 2015.
  9. "Thune featured speaker at local Christian school". johnthune.com. John thune: Unitesd States Senator. Retrieved 3 May 2015.
  10. "See Michael Card Live". klmp.com. KLMP. Retrieved 4 May 2015.
  11. "Ballet Magnificat! performs "Deliver Us"". rapidcitychamber.com. Rapid City Chamber of Commerce. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 4 May 2015.

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