Laidlaw College

Laidlaw College
Te Wānanga Amorangi
Type Theological school
Established 1922
Affiliation Christian evangelical
Principal Dr Roshan Allpress
Academic staff
 See www.laidlaw.ac.nz/staff
Location Auckland (Henderson and Manukau), Christchurch, New Zealand
Campus Henderson, Manukau, Christchurch
Website www.laidlaw.ac.nz

Laidlaw College is the largest theological college in New Zealand. The college offers tertiary courses in biblical, theological, historical and pastoral studies, as well as professional degrees in teaching and counselling. Laidlaw has around 1200 students and offers programmes at Diploma, Bachelors and Masters levels, as well as doctoral supervision. It is the highest ranked non-University research institute in New Zealand.[1]

History

The college began in 1922 as the Bible Training Institute (BTI) under the leadership of Rev. Joseph Kemp, a Baptist preacher and pastor of the Auckland Baptist Tabernacle. In 1972 the Institute was renamed the Bible College of New Zealand. It has since grown to become one of the largest tertiary theological institutions in the South Pacific.[2]

In June 2008, BCNZ announced it had acquired MASTERS Institute, a school of education for training primary school teachers. In August 2008, the enlarged college was renamed Laidlaw College in honour of Robert Laidlaw, a founding trustee and longstanding President of the College.[3]

Along with the transition to a new name in August 2008, College programmes underwent a process of simplification and strengthening. All degree students at Laidlaw now study a core set of courses designed to ground students in the biblical story and bring them into "thoughtful dialogue with different perspectives" to prepare for "effective engagement with society."[4] These courses are:

  • Biblical Theology – learning the big story
  • Ways of Knowing – laying down the core skills of thinking well
  • Formation – building a faith of the heart and of the mind
  • Worldview and Ways of Life – beginning to grapple with the big ideas

See also

References

  1. ↑ PBRF Performance Based Research Fund
  2. ↑ Laidlaw College website: About Laidlaw College, accessed 30 March 2009
  3. ↑ Head of School, School of Education, job listing, MyJobSpace. Accessed 4 August 2008.
  4. ↑ Laidlaw College website: Laidlaw College, accessed 30 March 2009

Coordinates: 36°51′34″S 174°38′06″E / 36.85944°S 174.63500°E / -36.85944; 174.63500 (Laidlaw College Auckland Campus)

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.