HU announces collaboration with Evangelical Seminary

Huntington University has announced a year-long collaboration with Evangelical Seminary of Myerstown, Pennsylvania. The goal of the collaboration is to determine if the needs of both institutions can be better met by integrating the faculty, staff and students of Evangelical Seminary into Huntington University.

“Huntington University is excited about the opportunity to intentionally engage in a year of collaborative conversations as to a more clearly defined shared future with Evangelical Seminary. We are blessed to have had many graduates pursue advanced degrees there, as well as the honor of having three graduates serve as the seminary’s president,” stated Dr. Sherilyn Emberton, president of Huntington University.

Huntington University has a historically strong relationship with Evangelical Seminary with many United Brethren in Christ denominational pastors having received advanced degrees from the seminary. As Huntington University continues to explore avenues of growth for its graduate and professional programs, the inclusion of Evangelical Seminary could play a significant role in those ongoing efforts.

Evangelical Seminary, located in south-central Pennsylvania, was founded as the Evangelical Congregational School of Theology in 1953. While originally organized to prepare men for ministry, the seminary now welcomes both male and female faculty and students from many evangelical backgrounds and denominations.

Over the years Evangelical has expanded programs and teaching sites within the nearby cities of Lancaster and Harrisburg. Although the original courses only applied to pastoral ministry within a local congregational setting, the scope of programs now offered include pastoral ministry, leadership, practical ministry, marriage and family therapy, spiritual formation, missions, and academic studies.

“As an alumnus of both institutions, and as a United Brethren minister, I cannot imagine a better alignment of academic ministries than that which is being forged between Huntington University and Evangelical Seminary,” said Dr. Anthony Blair, Evangelical Seminary’s president. “What excites me most, however, is imagining how we can together serve the Church more fully and more creatively than either organization could do alone. I look forward to what God has in store for this collaboration.”

Evangelical is accredited by The Commission on Higher Education of the Middle States Association of Schools and Colleges (MSA), Commission on Accrediting of The Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada (ATS) and the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE).

Evangelical Seminary is one of the few faith-based institutions in the United States that have obtained the highly respected COAMFTE accreditation.