Ohio Christian University (OCU) is a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...

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 ...

college in

Circleville, Ohio Circleville is a city in and the county seat of Pickaway County, Ohio, United States, set along the Scioto River, 25 miles (40 km) south of Columbus. The population was 13,927 at the 2020 census. The city is best-known today as the host of t ...

. It is denominationally affiliated with the Churches of Christ in Christian Union.

History

The school was founded in 1948 as Mount of Praise Bible College, which met at the Mount of Praise Campground, where the Churches of Christ in Christian Union held annual revivalist

camp meeting The camp meeting is a form of Protestant Christian religious service originating in England and Scotland as an evangelical event in association with the communion season. It was held for worship, preaching and communion on the American frontier d ...

s. The primary objective of the

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 ...

was to train ministers for the Churches of Christ in Christian Union denomination. It later became Circleville Bible College. In 2006, the college changed its name to Ohio Christian University and received

regional accreditation Higher education accreditation in the United States is a peer review process by which the validity of degrees and credits awarded by higher education institutions is assured. It is coordinated by accreditation commissions made up of member ins ...

. The university was granted an exception to

Title IX Title IX is the most commonly used name for the federal civil rights law in the United States that was enacted as part (Title IX) of the Education Amendments of 1972. It prohibits sex-based discrimination in any school or any other educat ...

in 2016 which allows it to legally discriminate against LGBT students for religious reasons.

Presidents

Campus

The university sits on the outskirts of

. Classes are located in the Maxwell Center, Johnson Hall, and the Robert W. Plaster Free Enterprise Center. Students reside as freshmen in York Hall and Moore Hall. From there, they may choose to live in New Hall for women and New 2 Hall for men, or a selection of on-campus townhouses. Since 2008, Maxwell Center has expanded by adding the science and logistics center and a student development center. File:OCU1.JPG, Entrance Sign File:OCU3.JPG, Randolph Graham Administrative Center File:OCU4.JPG, Floyd and Gladys Detty Chapel File:OCU9.JPG, Maxwell Center File:OCU Ministry & Performing Arts Center.jpg, Ministry & Performing Arts Center

Academics

The school offers the

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

, Associate of Arts, and

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

in professional fields of study. It also offers an Adult and Online Degree Program. Ohio Christian University's Adult and Online Degree Programs offer associate, bachelor's, and master's degrees.

Accreditation

The university is

accredited Accreditation is the independent, third-party evaluation of a conformity assessment body (such as certification body, inspection body or laboratory) against recognised standards, conveying formal demonstration of its impartiality and competence to ...

by the

Higher Learning Commission The Higher Learning Commission (HLC) is an institutional accreditor in the United States. It has historically accredited post-secondary education institutions in the central United States: Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa ...

. It is also accredited by 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 ...

and recognized by the Churches of Christ in Christian Union,

Primitive Methodist Church The Primitive Methodist Church is a Methodist Christian denomination with the holiness movement. It began in England in the early 19th century, with the influence of American evangelist Lorenzo Dow (1777–1834). In the United States, the Primit ...

Evangelical Church Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual exper ...

, and

Evangelical Methodist Church The Evangelical Methodist Church (EMC) is a Christian denomination in the Wesleyan-Holiness tradition headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. The denomination reported 399 churches in the United States, Mexico, Burma/Myanmar, Canada, Philippines ...

for ministerial training.

Student life

The Student Involvement Council (SIC) offers activities throughout the school year. A popular activity is midnight breakfast, an event scheduled at the beginning of final examinations week, catered by favorite staff and faculty. Chapel is housed in the Ministry & Performing Arts Center and is offered twice weekly (usually Tuesday and Thursday). Students come to worship with a live student band and hear a message by the chaplain or special guest. There is a required number of times that every student must attend while enrolled at Ohio Christian. Hickman Student Center houses dining facilities, the office of Student Development, the department of psychology, and several classrooms. In addition, there is a full Christian bookstore, a coffee shop, and an arcade.

Athletics

The Ohio Christian athletic teams are called the Trailblazers. The university is 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

River States Conference The River States Conference (RSC), formerly known as the Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (KIAC), is a List of college athletic conferences in the United States, college athletic conference affiliated with the National Association of I ...

(RSC; formerly known as the Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (KIAC) until after the 2015–16 school year) since the 2015–16 academic year. They are also a member of the

National Christian College Athletic Association The National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) is an association of Christian universities, colleges, and Bible colleges in the United States and Canada whose mission is "the promotion and enhancement of intercollegiate athletic co ...

(NCCAA), primarily competing as an independent in the Midwest Region of the Division I level. Ohio Christian competes in 19 intercollegiate varsity sports: Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, tennis and track & field (indoor and outdoor); while women's sports include basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, softball, tennis, track & field (indoor and outdoor) and volleyball; and co-ed sports include disc golf and eSports.

Notable alumni

* Jaron Crane, member of the

Idaho House of Representatives The Idaho House of Representatives is the lower chamber of the Idaho State Legislature. It consists of 70 representatives elected to two-year terms. The state is divided into 35 districts, each of which elects two representatives to separate se ...

John C. Maxwell John Calvin Maxwell (born February 20, 1947) is an American author, speaker, and pastor who has written many books, primarily focusing on leadership. Titles include ''The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership'' and ''The 21 Indispensable Qualities of ...

, author and leadership coach * Stan Toler, former general superintendent of the

Church of the Nazarene The Church of the Nazarene is an evangelical Christian denomination that emerged in North America from the 19th-century Wesleyan-Holiness movement within Methodism. It is headquartered in Lenexa within Johnson County, Kansas. With its members co ...

References

External links

Official website

Official athletics website
{{authority control Private universities and colleges in Ohio Christian universities and colleges affiliated with the Churches of Christ in Christian Union Circleville, Ohio Educational institutions established in 1948 Education in Pickaway County, Ohio Buildings and structures in Pickaway County, Ohio Evangelicalism in Ohio 1948 establishments in Ohio