Transitioning From a Theological College to a Christian University in East African Context: A Multi-Case Study

ABSTRACT TRANSITIONING FROM A THEOLOGICAL COLLEGE TO A CHRISITIAN UNIVERSITY IN EAST AFRICAN CONTEXT: A MULTI-CASE STUDY Semeon Mulatu, Ph.D. The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 2012 Chair: Dr. Hal K. Pettegrew This dissertation analyzed and described transitions from a theological or Bible college to a Christian liberal arts college or university in East African context. The research was specially driven by the desire to find out the reasons for such transitions, the challenges of the transition process and how such transitions affect the mission of the institutions, the theological training programs, and the relationship of the institutions with their founding or sponsoring churches. The methodology employed in this study was qualitative, multi-case study research method. The institutes that were selected for this study were five Protestant evangelical higher educational institutions in Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, and Democratic Republic of Congo that have transitioned or are transitioning from a theological college to Christian university. The researcher traveled to each of the five institutions included in this study and did interviews with the leaders on-site in one-to-one interviews. The data for this research was collected from multiple sources. These resources include the interviews, documents, reports, printed materials, and field notes of the researcher. This helped the researcher to provide a thick description of each institution's transition. The findings of this researcher display the reasons the selected institutions transitioned to Christian universities, the challenges they faced, and how such transitions affected the mission of the institutions, their theology programs and their relationship to the sponsoring churches. The research then offered a summary and analysis of the data according to the research questions of this study. The implications of this research could help leaders of theological colleges or seminaries that are transitioning or considering to transition to universities to understand the potential challenges they may face due to the transition, the possible impacts of the transition on their overall mission, their relationship with churches, and their theology program. Key Words: Education, Christian Education, Higher Education, Theology, Transitions

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

Year dc:date.issued

2012

Author dc:creator

• Mulatu, Semeon

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Pettegrew, Hal K.

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/10392/3957

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:repository.sbts.edu:10392/3957