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MB schools report encouraging growth, exciting developments


Columbia Bible College
Abbotsford, B.C.

“Learning to live well” is the theme chosen for the 2002–2003 year at Columbia Bible College. It is based on Jeremiah 6:16: “This is what the LORD says: ‘Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls.’” “Ancient” does not mean old and irrelevant. It means “timeless”. CBC is careful and strategic in its choice to remain a Bible college, believing leaders for church and culture need to be anchored in the Scriptures, mentored in an authentic relationship with Jesus, and filled with a passion for impacting their cities and communities for Christ. The College is concerned with equipping students to live well – not simply vocational preparation.

Enrollment

CBC began the fall with a record enrollment of 530 students. At the end of September, 120 students spent a weekend in Vancouver’s inner city and were deeply impacted by their encounter with poverty and darkness. Chapels are rich with a variety of arts as the campus community worships and learns together.

Enrollment by Geography

Fall 2001   Fall 2002 B.C. 354 364 Alberta 34 34 Saskatchewan 18 20 Manitoba 17 16 Ontario 13 18 Other Canada 2 2 US 24 27 International 37 49

 

Enrollment by Denomination

Fall 2001   Fall 2002 Mennonite Brethren 37% 35% Mennonite Church 10% 9% Other 53% 56%

 
Program

The new Worship Arts major is in place. This program includes training in worship leading, imagination, song writing, drama, visual arts, light and sound design.

The College is also in the process of implementing a redesigned Missions major. It includes a strong focus on spiritual formation, experience based learning and cross-cultural skills. The third year will be an internship in the student’s area of focus – some will intern with a church planting team; some will intern in an international missions setting; and others will intern with an inner-city mission.

Discussions are in process around a Church Planting track.

Staff

Recent people changes have been significant. The college welcomed Chris Dyck as the new Outdoor Recreation Leadership director; Cynthia Friesen as interim director of the English as a Second Language program; Patrick Wright in maintenance; and Lori Tompkins as campus nurse. Searches are under way for a registrar; a faculty position with focus on missions or social sciences or Bible; a director of service learning; an admissions counsellor; and a director of development.

Facilities

CBC’s “Building on Strengths” campaign to raise $2.5 million for a new Student Centre is well under way. Over the last decade, CBC has been upgrading the campus in phases. The College holds to a “funds before facility” approach. The present facility was constructed in the early 1950s – with additions and renovations over the next two decades.

Mentoring

A mentoring approach has been built into the design of how each student is educated at CBC. The goal is to have available to each student a mentoring relationship for personal spiritual growth and direction.

 – Paul Wartman, President

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Mennonite Educational Institute
Abbotsford, B.C.

The Mennonite Educational Institute is entering its 59th year of providing Christian education in B.C.’s Fraser Valley. From its simple beginnings with 44 students to its current enrollment of 1545 students in three schools, the growth of this organization has been amazing and humbling. Over the years, MEI has experienced God’s faithful guidance as the Board and staff have sought to prepare young people to “strive for His excellence in all things so that they can contribute positively to God’s Kingdom and society as faithful disciples of Christ”. Today, 15 Mennonite and Mennonite Brethren churches are continuing to pursue the vision by being supporting congregations.

One year ago, MEI Chilliwack was welcomed as a satellite campus to the group of MEI Schools. This school currently has 150 students enrolled in kindergarten to grade 9 and operates out of the Chilliwack Alliance Church. MEI has entered into a purchase agreement for 23 acres in that community in order to meet the goal of building a new school there within 5–7 years. MEI Chilliwack operates under the leadership of Phil Hills and has a full-time equivalent (FTE) of 9.4 teachers, plus numerous teacher-aides to assist with the special-needs students.

Several new teachers were added to MEI’s staff for the 2002–03 school year: Joanne Bandstra, Barb Brown, Stephanie Fox, Aileen Mobach and Melissa Rogers in the secondary school; Lora Bartel, Tracy Campbell, Nicole Christen, Jaqueline Dueck and Joel Nickel in the elementary school; and Julie Maarhuis at MEI Chilliwack. MEI also said goodbye to Les Klassen, who retired after teaching at MEI for 32 years. The 45.63 FTE teachers in the secondary school, 25.64 FTE teachers in the elementary school and 9.4 FTE teachers in Chilliwack bring MEI’s teaching staff to 80.67 FTEs. The total workforce at all three schools consists of 95 full and part-time teachers and 53 full and part-time support staff.

The combined enrollment at all three schools remains stable at 1545 students, the same number as at the beginning of the 2001–02 school year. This number includes 34 international students from five countries who attend MEI Secondary School.

Students from the 15 supporting Mennonite and Mennonite Brethren churches constitute the largest percentage of the school’s enrollment – almost 60%. At the Annual General Meeting in September, Greendale MB Church (Chilliwack) was welcomed as MEI’s newest supporting church. Greendale is the first of several churches that MEI hopes to see form the nucleus of a supporting church community in Chilliwack.

An exciting improvement this year is in MEI Secondary’s Marketing program. In the past, the Marketing class has operated a lunch service where food items were purchased from community food services and made available to secondary students. This year, that program has been expanded to include a cafeteria food service operated by two experienced caterers, who will provide students with a nutritious lunch each day. To prepare for this program, the Secondary kitchen was renovated for the first time since it was built over 20 years ago, and the student store was expanded.

Construction on the newest addition to MEI Schools (MEI Middle School) is scheduled to begin in July 2003, with an anticipated completion date of August 2004. It is planned that this 58,000-square-foot facility will be built on the west side of the secondary school and will include three classroom pods (with five classrooms each) for grades 6, 7 and 8; a double gymnasium; a library; a computer lab; and an explorations centre for science, home economics, tech education, art and languages. The school will also feature a multi-purpose centre for drama, choir and band. At capacity, the MEI Middle School will accommodate 480 children and will provide a comfortable transition for students moving from the elementary to the secondary school.

When the middle school is operational, MEI Elementary will function as a K–5 school. In anticipation of this, an addition was made to the facility this past summer, providing a music room and storage area on the lower level and two additional classrooms on the second floor.

Three years ago, the MEI community developed a strategic plan to help direct the rapid growth and development that has occurred in the last five years. In addition to the construction of a middle school, the plan calls for a 1500-seat performing arts auditorium to be built at the Abbotsford campus, an expanded applied skills program, and a school in the third world. These initiatives are to be completed during the next 8–10 years. MEI’s recently appointed Director of Development, Brad Bartsch, and his staff will be actively inviting people to become partners in the capital campaign for these projects.

MEI is currently working with a private foundation to develop a school in the Donetsk region of the Ukraine. Much work has already been done to establish a school for children of the city of Makaevka. A major donor has purchased a school and surrounding land in that city and has invested almost $200,000 in renovating the building. This first phase, developing a youth rehabilitation centre for young people who might otherwise be living on the street, is now nearing completion. In the second phase, a school and trades-training centre will be developed to help these young people move into the community with skills enabling them to be self-sufficient. MEI has been asked to coordinate this phase of the development, and it is hoped that the school will be operational within a year or two. This is an exciting opportunity for MEI to share its expertise with a country that has strong roots in the MEI supporting community and is in need of much economic and professional assistance.

 – MEI news release

MEI Chemistry class

MEI Middle School (artist’s rendering)

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Mennonite Brethren Biblical Seminary
Fresno, Calif.  •  Langley, B.C.

Enrollment

Enrollment at MBBS has increased significantly during the past two years. This semester, the Fresno campus had an especially strong increase. Enrollment is as follows:
 

MBBS (Fresno) Fall 2002   Fall 2001   Fall 2000 Credit Students 175 145 131    Full-time 75        Part-time 100     Audit Students 50     Total 225     Full-Time Equivalent (12 units = 1 FTE) 100.92 82 68.67 MBBS (Langley) Fall 2002   Fall 2001   Fall 2000 Credit Students 51 47 36    Full-time 23        Part-time 28     Audit Students 0     Total 51     Full-Time Equivalent (12 units = 1 FTE) 30.46 37.95 27 MBBS (Winnipeg) Fall 2002   Fall 2001   Fall 2000 Credit Students 5 0 7 Audit Students 0     Total 5     Full-Time Equivalent (12 units = 1 FTE) 1.25 0 1.25 Total (all locations) 231 192 174 Total FTE 133 120 97

 
There are 59 Mennonite Brethren students in Fresno (35% of the student body there), 39 at MBBS–Acts (76%) and 5 in Winnipeg (100%). The total number of MB students (103) is up from 83 in Fall 2001 and 66 in Fall 2000. The total number of new students is 77, up from 62 in 2001 and 38 in 2000.

Personnel

MBBS has two new faculty members. Ron Toews moved from Calgary, where he was senior pastor of Dalhousie Community Church, to Abbotsford, B.C. with his wife and three of their four children. Ron teaches Leadership Studies at MBBS–ACTS. In June, Ron was part of an international team that taught, preached and built relationships with churches, government and medical communities in Congo. Ron taught a course on peacemaking and reconciliation in Kinshasa.

Doug Berg and his wife Lil moved to Abbotsford in August. Doug is the new Associate Dean of MBBS at ACTS. In addition to his administrative role at MBBS–ACTS, Doug will be part of the MBBS team that is providing leadership for the “Hearing the Call” initiative that focuses on calling young people into ministry. Doug is also completing a Ph.D. thesis on leadership at the University of Saskatoon.

On September 1, John Neufeld became Project Director of the “Hearing the Call” project. (See MB Herald, Sept. 13)

Other new staff include Rick Cox, Director of Public Relations, Fresno; Matthew Geddert, Webmaster, “Hearing the Call”, Fresno; and Devora Siegel, promoted to Assistant to the Director of Public Relations, Fresno.

Program

MBBS has introduced a new Masters degree in Intercultural Mission. This is a two-year (60 unit) degree in which the biblical, theological and practical ministries courses are focused on local and global mission. The program was designed in consultation with MBMS International. This degree will provide excellent preparation for intercultural ministry and will also serve those with mission experience who want to strengthen their practical experience with solid biblical, theological and missiological studies. The first students in the new degree all have cross-cultural mission experience.

Theme

The theme for this school year comes from Revelation 7:9: “After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb.” The Student Leadership Team would like to see a celebration of the cultural and personal differences, including strengths and weaknesses, at MBBS in light of the campus community’s unity as members of the body of Christ.

Additional Activities

The annual Hartland Retreat went as planned Sept. 13–15, with approximately 138 students attending. President Henry and Elvira Schmidt spoke on Saturday morning, while professor Jim Westgate spoke on Sunday morning. Several students have initiated informal times of prayer in the Warkentin Prayer Chapel on the Fresno campus. Shahna Duerksen has undertaken the task of planning and continuing the Mission Under Discussion (M.U.D. Café) on the Fresno campus in the absence of David Eagle, who graduated last May.

 – Rick Cox, Director of Public Relations

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Mennonite Brethren Collegiate Institute
Winnipeg, Man.

Change seems to be the operative word at MBCI this year. Included are changes to the lunch hour (one lunch hour for all students instead of staggered times) and lunch rooms (the old Concord College dining hall is now being used by students bringing lunches); and working relationships with Family Life Network (exploring the possibilities of teaching a course using FLN’s equipment and expertise) and with Masterworks Dance Studio (20 students are enrolled in a course there). Chapels have been coordinated into all-school 45-minute chapels instead of the shorter chapels of previous years.

The Grade 7 Choir under the direction of Elizabeth Bergen sings at the opening program.

Upgrading facilities has also been a priority. Jubilee Place, the concert hall, has had its carpets replaced, its house lighting upgraded and its stage extended. The gym has been improved with state-of-the-art bleachers, replacing the ones built in the 1960s and 1970s.

Staff changes include vice-principal John Bock leaving for another teaching position; Paul Doerksen taking a two-year leave to pursue doctoral studies and Henry Fast retiring. Two new teachers have joined the staff: Darryl Peters and Janaya Koberstein, both alumni of MBCI. Anny Tielman has also joined the staff as a learning assistant.

Enrollment is down slightly this year due to the decision to limit class sizes to a maximum of 25 in most cases. Optimum number of students is 550. Enrollment is as follows:

Grade   Total   Male   Female 7 68 42 26 8 79 44 35 S1 96 44 52 S2 110 54 56 S3 99 47 52 S4 96 46 50 TOTAL 548 277 271

 
Of these, 190 are from Mennonite Brethren homes.

 – Wilf Regier

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Bethany College
Hepburn, Sask.

Bethany College kicked off its 76th year with an Opening Celebration on Sunday, Sept. 22. Parents and other family members, as well as supporters and friends of the College, showed their appreciation as students, faculty and staff were introduced. Together, students and guests lifted their voices in a praise and worship time. Dave Pauls, who joined the Bethany staff on Sept. 1,

Bethany sports camps

shared the moving story of how the Lord provided him a 20-year career in the business world and then led him out of that and into his current position as Director of Advancement at Bethany.

Bethany’s attractive and functional campus is proving to be an excellent location for rental groups during the summer. In fact, the summer of 2002 saw twice as many groups using Bethany’s campus as in 2001. Volleyball players from Ontario, in Saskatoon for a tournament, were amazed at the terrific gymnasium and food. Also, Mennonite Central Committee held its bi-national convention at Bethany in June with guests from all over North America. Event organizers praised the Bethany staff and facility.

Bethany’s sports camps were expanded this year to two weeks of volleyball and one week of basketball. Athletic Director Lisa Braun was pleased that attendance grew by 70%.

Bethany’s February 2003 missions trips are taking shape for this year under the leadership of Trever Godard. The YMI ACTION trip with freshman students will provide an exciting opportunity to assist Mennonite Brethren churches in Calgary and Edmonton. The junior class will be travelling to several First Nations reserves in northern Saskatchewan along with recording artist Jonathan Maracle (and band). The senior class is anticipating serving with Church Partnership Evangelism and Discipleship and MBMS International’s Team 2000 in Thailand.

Randy Klassen joined Bethany’s faculty this summer and will be working part-time while he completes his dissertation. He is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Calgary. For the past nine years, he served as associate pastor of worship ministries in Coaldale (Alta.) MB Church.

Academically, several new developments have begun this fall. Bethany and West Portal Church in Saskatoon have partnered together in leadership development, with West Portal senior pastor Dwayne Barkman teaching several courses in church ministry. These courses are taught in Saskatoon in order to make them more available for church leaders. Bethany is beginning Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages training this year, with the goal of offering a TESOL Certificate in the near future. This is an exciting opportunity for people to become involved in building relationships in cross-cultural settings. Camp ministry training is being taught in partnership with Redberry Bible Camp this fall at the camp in order to provide on-site experience. These developments continue Bethany’s strategy of training people for ministry by people in ministry.

Bethany’s mission continues to be nurturing disciples and training leaders for ministry. The College has nine interns currently serving in churches, camps and missions assignments.

Enrollment For Fall 2002

Class Freshmen 73 Juniors 41 Seniors 19 B.A. Seniors 14 TOTAL 147 Gender Female 71 Male 76 Geographical Representation B.C 27 Alberta 29 Saskatchewan 48 Manitoba 39 Ontario 2 US 2 Denomination Mennonite Brethren 86 Other Mennonite 23 Other Denominations 38 Location On Campus 133 Off Campus 14

 

 – Bethany news release

Doug Heidebrecht teaching

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Canadian Mennonite University
Winnipeg, Man.

Overall enrollment at Canadian Mennonite University grew this fall, with a significant rise in its one-year School of Discipleship (SOD) program. SOD enrollment increased by 60%, CMU main campus enrollment dipped by about 5%, and Menno Simons College – CMU’s downtown campus – saw a 16% increase. The combined enrollment of CMU main campus and Menno Simons College courses represents a growth of 2% over last year.

The School of Discipleship – a one-year program of international travel, study and mentorship – added a South Africa site to its two existing sites in Guatemala. There are 99 students registered in SOD this year, compared to 61 last year. “This is school on the road,” says SOD director Wally Schmidt. “Students stay in everything from church basements to construction sites in Guatemala. If they aren’t homesick by the time we’re done, we haven’t done our job.” Schmidt adds that his ongoing request is for prayers of safety for students and leaders as they travel.

School of Discipleship 2002

Menno Simons College (MSC) – the CMU college that offers courses in conjunction with the University of Winnipeg – saw enrollment rise to 1,236 full course equivalents, for a total of 353 full-time equivalents. “Our courses in International Development Studies and Conflict Resolution/Transformation have been extremely popular,” says MSC president Dean Peachey. He adds that one in 10 University of Winnipeg students are taking at least one course through Menno Simons College.

CMU’s main campus enrollment includes 311 full-time students and 69 part-time students, representing a drop in full-time, but a rise in part-time registration over last year. The numbers also reflect a higher number of returning students than in previous years.

About two dozen students registered as part of the Winnipeg Theological Consortium seminary program, similar to last year’s level.

CMU welcomed four new faculty members for its 2002 fall semester: Tim Rogalsky teaching Mathematics, Karl Koop teaching Anabaptist/Mennonite Studies, Pamela Leach teaching Political Studies, and Chris Huebner teaching in Theology and Ethics. At MSC, Lois Edmund began teaching Conflict Resolution Studies.

Events

Sept. 21–22 was the first CMU homecoming weekend, attracting alumni and their families from as far as way as Ontario, British Columbia and Colorado. Many alumni took part in decade reunions, including those who graduated in 1992, 1982, and so on stretching back as far as 1952. Both CMBC and MBBC had decade reunions for the class of 1952. Every one of the 13 alumni of CMBC’s class of 1952 was present or represented by a spouse. A 50th anniversary booklet containing alumni biographies was distributed, and each alumnus was presented with a gift from CMU during a ceremony with the presidents and alumni coordinator Christine Ens.

That weekend also included a family festival with children’s entertainment such as clowns, magicians and live musical performances; a youth concert with local musician Jon Buller; and a coffeehouse with CMBC alumni group House of Doc and MBBC alumnus John Janzen.

CMU’s opening program on Sept. 22 featured performances by CMU choirs and musical ensembles. Concord president John Unger gave the opening address in which he described the “compelling vision” that drives CMU. “We are a Christian university, serving the larger church and broader community, but anchored in and nourished by a particular faith tradition,” he said. Unger then described the ways in which that purpose is fleshed out in CMU’s various programs. (The full text is available on CMU’s website: www.cmu.ca.)

The 24th annual J.J. Thiessen lectures were held Oct. 22–23, with Sean Freyne of Northern Ireland, speaking on the topic of “Jesus, Jews and Galilee.” Freyne focused on the importance of understanding the social and religious world of first-century Palestine to put the ministry of Jesus in context.

More than 350 people attended CMU’s annual fundraising banquet Oct. 19, which featured CMU music groups as well as testimonies from nine students who reported on their practicum ministry experience.

The next CMU lecture event was the premiere of the John and Margaret Friesen Lectures in Anabaptist/Mennonite Studies. Abraham Friesen of the University of California, Santa Barbara, presented three lectures Nov. 12–13 on Russian Mennonites and World War I.

Just prior to that, CMU and the National Film Board presented the premiere Winnipeg screening of The Pacifist Who Went to War, the story of two Mennonite brothers, one who participated in World War II and the other who was a conscientious objector. The screening was on Nov. 7 in the CMU Chapel.

CMU is continuing its Christmas concert tradition, inviting the community to enjoy a series of mini-concerts by CMU choral and instrumental groups, along with Christmas refreshments, on Nov. 30 at the CMU campus.

In January, CMU is hosting a worship conference with resource leader John Bell of the Iona Community in Scotland. Refreshing Winds II, to be held January 16–19, 2003, will focus on providing teaching and resources to worship leaders from across Canada.

 – Kevin Heinrichs

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Last modified November 30, 2002.

© 2002 Mennonite Brethren Herald.
Published by the Canadian Conference of MB Churches.
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