Cascade College was a private, four-year, liberal arts college associated with the

Churches of Christ The Churches of Christ is a loose association of autonomous Christian congregations based on the ''sola scriptura'' doctrine. Their practices are based on Bible texts and draw on the early Christian church as described in the New Testament. T ...

. Located in

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...

, United States, it was a branch campus of

Oklahoma Christian University Oklahoma Christian University (OC) is a private Christian university in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. It was founded in 1950 by members of the Churches of Christ. History Oklahoma Christian University, originally named Central Christian College, w ...

. Its mission was to emphasize spiritual growth and career preparation. Because of Cascade's ongoing financial problems, Oklahoma Christian University closed Cascade at the end of the 2009 academic year.

History

Cascade had been founded as Columbia Christian College in 1956. For several years, Columbia had serious financial difficulties. Partially as a consequence, its regional accreditation was revoked. The school's board sought help from other colleges affiliated with Churches of Christ. Oklahoma Christian University agreed to fund the college as a branch campus. The newly renamed Cascade College opened in Fall 1994 after its acceptance as a branch by Oklahoma Christian University, with 143 students attending the first semester. As a branch campus of Oklahoma Christian, Cascade College was accredited by The Higher Learning Commission of the

North Central Association of Colleges and Schools The North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (NCA), also known as the North Central Association, was a membership organization, consisting of colleges, universities, and schools in 19 U.S. states engaged in educational accreditation. It w ...

and was authorized by the State of Oregon to offer and confer academic degrees. In October 2008, plans were announced to close Cascade, because of financial difficulties, at the end of the 2009 academic year.

Academics

The college operated on a semester calendar. It offered degree programs in pre-nursing,

religion Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, ...

business Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or Trade, buying and selling Product (business), products (such as goods and Service (economics), services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for pr ...

, marketing, English, interdisciplinary studies, elementary education, biology, communications and

psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries betwe ...

. Cascade College also offered international study programs through its parent institution that created opportunities for students to experience other cultures.

Student life

Cascade College had a variety of activities, including service clubs (Delta Sigma Rho, Kingsmen Service Club ((AKA Kappa Sigma Chi)), Lambda Chi Omega, Phi Alpha Sigma, Phi Phi Phi, Alpha Kappa Sigma (a/k/a AXE established in 1997/98 school year)), SIFE, drama club (Grease Paint), psychology club (Psi Beta Sigma), diversity club (Naked Souls), instrumental groups, The Nature Society, Witness, campus ministry, academic clubs (Alpha Chi & Summit Society), theater (Visions/Second Story) and choir opportunities.

Athletics

The Cascade athletic teams were called the Thunderbirds. The college was a member of the

National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) established in 1940, is a college athletics association for colleges and universities in North America. Most colleges and universities in the NAIA offer athletic scholarships to its stu ...

(NAIA), primarily competing in the

Cascade Collegiate Conference The Cascade Collegiate Conference (or Cascade Conference) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). Member schools are located in the Northwestern United States. The conferen ...

(CCC) from 1997–98 to 2008–09. The mascot was the Thunderbird. Cascade competed in nine intercollegiate varsity sports: Men's sports included basketball, cross country, soccer and track & field; while women's sports included basketball, cross country, soccer, track & field and volleyball.

Campus

The 11-acre historic Cascade College campus was purchased from

and Cascade Inc. by

Columbia Christian Schools Columbia Christian School, known as Columbia Christian or CCS, is a private Christian school in Portland, Oregon, United States. The school is affiliated with the Churches of Christ. History In September 1947, Columbia Christian School, known ...

in 2012 after a "campaign to save the campus for Christian education" in Portland. Warner Pacific College, another

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: * Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States * Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...

area

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 ...

liberal arts Liberal arts education (from Latin "free" and "art or principled practice") is the traditional academic course in Western higher education. ''Liberal arts'' takes the term ''art'' in the sense of a learned skill rather than specifically the ...

college, and former partner with Cascade College, houses several continuing education classrooms and a computer lab.

Mission statement

The mission statement was as follows: "Cascade College is a higher learning community which transforms lives for Christian faith, leadership, and service."

Controversies

Many questioned the decision to close the college in light of several multimillion-dollar projects which Oklahoma Christian had undertaken in recent years, including the erection of a clock tower estimated to cost $30 million.

References

External links

Information about the College on Oklahoma Christian University's website

Official website

Official athletics website
{{authority control Universities and colleges affiliated with the Churches of Christ Universities and colleges in Portland, Oregon Defunct Christian universities and colleges Defunct private universities and colleges in Oregon Educational institutions disestablished in 2009 1956 establishments in Oregon 2009 disestablishments in Oregon