CHAPTER ONE

GENERAL INFORMATION             1

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HISTORY

Johnson Bible College was founded as the School of the Evangelists on May 12, 1893, by Ashley S. Johnson, a native of East Tennessee and an evangelist, teacher, and author. The College, an outgrowth of Mr. Johnson's Correspondence Bible College started in 1886, was designed to satisfy what the founder considered the one great need of the cause of Christ, namely, the need for more laborers for the fields which were white unto harvest but going to waste. A complementary objective in the establishing of the school was to provide an education for worthy young men who were not able to pay for it.  From its founding until 1941, the College included an Academy for students who had not completed their high school requirements.

In the founding of the institution that has borne his name since 1909, Ashley Johnson was greatly influenced by Alexander Campbell, the founder of Bethany College. They both desired to combine the family, preparatory school, college, and church in one system of education. Even the design of the Old Main Building contributed to this idea of educating the total person for it housed the dormitory, dining room, classrooms, chapel, and library.

Showing the mark of Campbell's influence, Johnson also made the Bible the central study in the curriculum. At the same time the College offered a substantial number of courses in the arts and sciences, such as English, zoology, literature (Livy, Horace, Dante, Milton), astronomy, sociology, geology, economics, European history, and psychology. Johnson Bible College has always required a solid core of general education courses as necessary for an educated ministry.

Ashley Johnson and his wife, Emma Elizabeth, were essentially a team. Under their direction, the College and Academy grew and prospered from a combined enrollment of 42 students in 1894 to 132 in 1925. A high of 188 was reached in 1910. The students came from many states and a number of foreign countries. The progress was briefly set back in 1905 when the main building burned and during the 1918‑19 period of World War I.

The reputation of the College was enhanced by the worldwide renown of Dr. Johnson as an author. Between 1881 and 1903, at least twenty books came from his pen. One of them, The Great Controversy, sold 100,000 copies.

Mrs. Johnson outlived her husband by two years and served as president during that time. The couple dedicated their lives to the development of the College. Not having children, they gave and bequeathed all their possessions to the school. The students, faculty, alumni, and supporters were their family.

In 1927 Alva Ross Brown, a brilliant young graduate of Johnson and the University of Michigan, succeeded to the presidency of the College. At 22, he was reputed to have been the youngest college president in America at the time. His fourteen years of faithful service were greatly complicated by the Great Depression. The growing debt of the College became a heavy burden on his heart and probably contributed to his early death. At the same time, the enrollment held steady, the academic standards were raised, the quality of the faculty was strengthened, and the number of graduates increased.

Robert Monroe Bell, former Johnson teacher and established professor of economics at the University of Tennessee, became the fourth president of the College in 1941. The Academy was dropped that year, and Johnson became coeducational a few years later. The school was brought out of debt and placed on a firm financial footing. During Dr. Bell's twenty-seven years of service, the enrollment steadily increased, the academic program was improved, new buildings (Bell Hall, Myrtle Hall, Alumni Memorial Chapel, and Glass Memorial Library) were constructed, and the reputation of the College was expanded by his influential writings.

In 1969 David L. Eubanks, a native of Maryville, Tennessee, was called to the presidency. A graduate of Johnson and the University of Tennessee, Dr. Eubanks had been a member of the Johnson faculty for eleven years. Under his leadership, the College has continued to develop within the context of its historic mission and purpose. The enrollment has grown (over 500 for the first time in 1997, 850 in 2003 and 922 in 2005), the faculty and staff have been increased, regional and national accreditation have been achieved, undergraduate program offerings have been expanded, and graduate, distance learning, and degree completion programs have been added. The physical plant was greatly improved by the construction of the Global Education Technology Building, Phillips-Welshimer Building, Alva Ross Brown Hall for men, Emma Johnson Hall for women, Eubanks Activities Center, married student housing, faculty housing, the enlargement of Glass Memorial Library, and other additions.  Computers have been provided for all faculty members and the infrastructure has been added allowing for campus-wide computer accessibility.  A new men’s residence hall and a new woman’s residence hall, housing a total of 576 students, was completed in 2000-2001.  A new Counseling Center was completed and occupied Fall Semester, 2004.

Johnson Bible College graduates have served, and are serving, faithfully as preachers, youth ministers, missionaries, counselors, Bible college presidents and faculty members, ministers of music, church secretaries, and in other areas of specialized Christian service all over the United States and throughout the world. Many of them have also made important contributions to mankind as doctors, lawyers, statesmen, public school teachers, and business executives. Wherever they have gone, for the most part, they have shown the marks of personal commitment to Christ and faithfulness to the Word of God.                                                TOP

VISION

At Johnson Bible College, our vision is to bring glory to God and hope to the world by preparing promising students for excellence in Christian ministry through an affordable, community-oriented, Christ-centered education.

CORE VALUES

As a private, coeducational institution of higher learning, Johnson Bible College holds to the following core values:

The lordship of Christ and the authority of Scripture
The centrality of ministry and the priority of preaching
The necessity of faith, the efficacy of prayer, and the value of work
The importance of affordability and the worth of a nurturing community
The imperative of a Christian lifestyle and the virtue of academic discipline
The validity of the Restoration Plea and the significance of the JBC heritage

PURPOSE

Johnson Bible College is a private, coeducational institution of higher learning offering associate, bachelor’s, and master’s degrees.  The purpose of Johnson Bible College is to educate students for specialized Christian ministries with emphasis on the preaching ministry.  A secondary purpose is to provide programs in Christian leadership and community service.   

Because Christian ministry requires that students have a Christian worldview, understanding themselves as well as the Word of God and the world of people, the College stresses holistic education including spiritual, intellectual, professional, social, and physical development.

Spiritual development includes (1) a Christian worldview; (2) a personal devotional life; (3) Christ-like living; (4) a sense of worldwide New Testament evangelism; (5) a commitment to service in the local church; (6) an appreciation for the Restoration Movement, especially the plea for Christian unity; (7) a commitment to Biblical, moral, and ethical values; (8) an appreciation for the College's historic commitment to faith, prayer, and work; and (9) a continuing commitment to spiritual growth.

Intellectual development includes (1) a thorough knowledge of the Bible; (2) an adequate general education including the ability to think critically, and to write and speak effectively; (3) a working knowledge of the fundamentals of a specialized ministry, or a thorough knowledge of a specialized ministry when double majors are undertaken; (4) good study habits; and (5) a continuing commitment to educational growth.

Professional development includes (1) competence in one or more specialized Christian ministries; (2) good work habits; and (3) continuing commitment to professional development.

Social development includes (1) the cultivation of social graces and interpersonal skills; (2) a sense of personal responsibility as a Christian in the community; (3) a commitment to healthy family relationships; and (4) a continuing commitment to social growth.

Physical development includes (1) appreciation for personal health; (2) healthful living habits; and (3) continuing commitment to physical health.

To Accomplish Its Purpose, the College:

q       employs faculty of genuine loyalty to the Word of God, unquestioned character and consecration, and high academic standing;

q       provides adequate administration, business management, financial resources, facilities, academic support services, and student development services;

q       offers curriculums of appropriate scope and sequence;

q       enrolls students with the potential to succeed in the College's educational program and in Christian service;

q       makes every reasonable effort to aid those of limited financial means; and

q       maintains graduation requirements which predict success in a ministry.                                                                              TOP

PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION

Johnson Bible College offers a curriculum of Biblical, general, and professional studies as well as supporting programs designed to educate students for specialized Christian ministries, Christian service, and lifelong learning.

As the inspired record of God’s revelation of Himself culminating in Jesus Christ, the Bible provides the core curriculum for a Bible college education. It offers a sufficient guide for right living and reveals God’s plan for the ministry of the church and for the redemption of people. Scripture provides the lens through which Christians view the world.

Johnson Bible College presupposes that people can apprehended and learn the truths of the Scripture, that the arts and sciences have enormous value, and that the tools for ministry come not only by way of spiritual gifts but also by way of learning and refining personal skills.

Students need accessibility to education that comes from variety in teaching styles and flexibility in delivery systems. Johnson Bible College believes that both traditional programs and nontraditional programs can equally benefit students.  Johnson Bible College offers a course of study to place students on the path of Christian maturity and ongoing ministry.

STATEMENT OF FAITH

The College is aware of the potentially controversial nature of creeds and has no intention of adding to an already divided church.  The essence of our belief is in the old saying, “no creed but Christ.”  Therefore, any person who holds to the Lordship of Jesus and meets the other admission requirements is welcome at Johnson Bible College.  Yet, in order to understand the nature of the College, you should know that every trustee, administrator, and teacher holds the following items to be true:

1.         There is one true God of the Old and New Testaments.

2.         All the scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are inspired, and if one believes and obeys Jesus Christ, such faith and obedience will bring the remission of sins and eternal redemption hereafter.

3.         Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, born of the Virgin Mary, without the interposition of man, and He is in the all-inclusive and all-exclusive sense, our Savior, Prophet, Priest and King.

4.         Jesus died on the cross for the whole human race and for all ages, and His blood cleanses from all sins, on the conditions laid down in the New Testament. 

5.         Jesus was buried in the grave, and He came from the grave alive in the body in which He was buried, triumphant over death and the grave.

6.         Jesus gave the Great Commission to the Apostles (Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:14-16; Luke 23:45-47; John 20:22-23; Acts 1:8) to embrace all nations and all ages to the end of time.

7.         Jesus Christ sent the Holy Spirit down from Heaven to the Apostles through whom the Gospel was unfolded, and men and women are saved according to the conditions laid down and on record in the book of Acts.

8.         Faith, repentance, confession of faith in Jesus and baptism (immersion) and prayer are for the remission of past sins, and faith, repentance and confession of sins and prayer are for the remission of the erring Christian’s sins (Acts 8:22).

9.         The basis of the Restoration Plea handed down to us by the fathers and the basis of the union of Christendom are found in the New Testament.

10.     Jesus Christ will come at the end of the world and will judge all men and all ages according to that which is written in the Sacred Scriptures.                                                                                                                                                                       TOP

REPUTATION AND ACCREDITATION

Johnson Bible College is the second oldest continuing Bible college in the United States. It is the oldest Bible college of the Christian Churches/ Churches of Christ, among whom most of the graduates serve, and from whom most of the students and financial support come.

The College is legally authorized and chartered by the State of Tennessee and approved by the Tennessee Higher Education Commission to operate as a degree-granting educational institution. Graduates are accepted in the leading seminaries of the nation and are sought by several of them.

Johnson Bible College is accredited professionally by the Commission on Accreditation of the Association for Biblical Higher Education (ABHE) (formerly the Accrediting Association of Bible Colleges) and by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award associate, bachelor's and master's level degrees.   Both are recognized by the United States Office of Education and the Council of Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA).  The Teacher Education Program is approved by the Tennessee State Board of Education. 

JBC is also a member of the Tennessee College Association, the Tennessee Independent Colleges and Universities Association, and the Tennessee Conference of Graduate Schools.  The curriculum is approved by the Tennessee Higher Education Commission (the State  Approving Agency) for the training of veterans.