Boise Bible College (BBC) is a

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Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

Bible college A Bible college, sometimes referred to as a Bible institute or theological institute, is an evangelical Christian or Restoration Movement Christian institution of higher education which prepares students for Christian ministry with theological educ ...

Boise, Idaho Boise (, , ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho and is the county seat of Ada County. On the Boise River in southwestern Idaho, it is east of the Oregon border and north of the Nevada border. The downtown are ...

History

BBC was founded in 1945 as a ministry of First Church of Christ in Boise, and housed in the basement of the church building at the corner of 18th and Eastman Streets. Orin Hardenbrook served as its first president. Kenneth Beckman, minister of First Church of Christ and a member of the college faculty, became president of the college in 1949. He served in this capacity (while still preaching and teaching) until 1973. Even after stepping down as president and later retiring from preaching, Beckman continued to teach an introductory theology course taken by most first-year students until 2009. In 1995 he was awarded the first honorary doctorate granted by BBC. In 1974 Boise Bible College separated organizationally from its founding church, becoming an independent institution. J. Richard Ewing was appointed president, the first man to serve in that capacity on a full-time basis. Ewing made it his mission to strengthen the college's faculty and curriculum, and he guided BBC through the process of receiving accreditation through the American Association of Bible Colleges (now called the

Association for Biblical Higher Education The Association for Biblical Higher Education (ABHE), formerly The Accrediting Association of Bible Colleges (AABC) is an evangelical Christian organization of bible colleges in the United States and Canada. It is a member of the International Co ...

) in 1988. Dr. Charles Crane became president in 1990. His tenure was marked by a tripling in enrollment and substantial improvements in the college's financial stability and campus facilities. Dr. Crane retired on June 30, 2007. Terry Stine became the college president in 2007. Stine previously served at BBC's missions professor and is the longtime Director of Ninos de Mexico located in Mexico City. He and his team helped the college become debt free. In 2017, Dr. Derek Voorhees became the new college president. Dr. Voorhees has been at the college since 2011 teaching classes in New Testament and Spiritual Formation.

Religious affiliation

Boise Bible College is affiliated with congregations of the

Christian churches and churches of Christ The group of churches known as the Christian Churches and Churches of Christ is a fellowship of congregations within the Restoration Movement (also known as the Stone-Campbell Movement and the Reformation of the 19th Century) that have no forma ...

, which are a part of the

Restoration Movement The Restoration Movement (also known as the American Restoration Movement or the Stone–Campbell Movement, and pejoratively as Campbellism) is a Christian movement that began on the United States frontier during the Second Great Awakening (179 ...

. Because these churches have no denominational structure or hierarchy, BBC operates independently as a non-denominational college. Approximately two-thirds of BBC's student body and the vast majority of its support come from Independent Christian Churches and Churches of Christ, but the college admits students from all Christian denominations.

Academics

Boise Bible College offers degrees in Christian Ministry, Education, and Psychology. There are two and four-year degrees offered in these areas. The

(ABHE) has accredited Boise Bible College for the last 31 years.

Campus

The campus of Boise Bible College is located in Garden City, a small town which is nearly surrounded by the western suburbs of Boise. It is a site situated in a residential neighborhood. Two buildings date to the construction of campus in 1974. One is the Multipurpose Building (MPB), housing a gymnasium, cafeteria, student lounges, and music facilities. The other is a small dormitory which also contains the Head Resident's apartment and at one time housed the chapel and three classrooms. (A twin to this dorm was demolished in 2006 to make way for a larger dormitory.) Two new buildings were added to campus in the early 1990s. An Administration Building opened in 1993; prior to this time all college offices were located in the lower level of one of the dormitories. The Library/Classroom Building was completed in 1995, which allowed the library to move from its cramped quarters in the MPB into a modern facility and provided needed classroom space for the growing student body and expanding programs of the college. To accommodate growth, several construction projects began in the mid-2000s. The first phase of a new residence hall was opened for the Fall 2006 semester; the remaining phases (additional dormitory wing) are planned for the near future. A wing was also added to the Library/Classroom Building. This addition, including a new chapel, two auditorium-style lecture halls, and additional classroom space opened for the Spring 2007 semester. In 2015, phase two of the construction project i.e. the Student Center opened and was completed.

Student body

BBC currently enrolls between 125 students. Approximately 1/3 of these students come from the Boise metro area, and another 1/3 from western

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

. Most of the remaining 1/3 come from elsewhere within the

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (sometimes Cascadia, or simply abbreviated as PNW) is a geographic region in western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though ...

and the western United States, with a few students from other regions of the U.S. and from overseas. International students have come from

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China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. About half the students live on campus (varying from year to year).

References

External links

Official website
{{authority control Association for Biblical Higher Education Seminaries and theological colleges in Idaho Universities and colleges affiliated with the Christian churches and churches of Christ Educational institutions established in 1945 Bible colleges Education in Boise, Idaho Buildings and structures in Boise, Idaho 1945 establishments in Idaho