MACU Enrollment Up for Fourteenth Straight Year

Mid-America Christian University (MACU) President John Fozard announced that student enrollment at the institution had increased again for the fourteenth straight year. Fall enrollment for 2012 stands at 2,424 total students which is up an impressive 18% from the preceding year.

According to President Fozard, “This dynamic growth is a response to the university’s commitments to providing both an extraordinary Christian liberal arts education to our residential and daytime students in Oklahoma City, Okla., and to our increased outreach to adult learners at home and around the world.”

In 2008, Mid-America began an aggressive initiative to make college education affordable and accessible to adult learners from all walks and stages of life.

University Provost Kathaleen Reid-Martinez explains the importance of this initiative. “In these challenging economic times, men and women are looking for a door of opportunity to improve their knowledge base and skill sets that will impact their earning potential and ability to better provide for their families. At MACU, we’ve opened that door of opportunity to the busy working adult. If they are motivated to learn—there’s a way to learn without having to put on hold personal and professional lives.”

The university’s growth is also due in part to an aggressive Learning Partnerships initiative with churches and corporations, among others.

For example, the university has established more than a dozen Church Partnerships through its affiliation with the Church of God (Anderson, IN). Church Partnerships led by program director Pastor Michael J. Thigpen and championed by pastors such as Bishop Timothy J. Clarke, of the First Church of God, Columbus, Ohio, provide answers to many of the challenges adults face when they desire to return to school.

Through the partnership, students pursue their degrees online and able to stay engaged in their jobs and continue to develop as leaders within their home churches. In return, the church provides a continuous source of encouragement and community for the students.

The university is also pleased to be engaged in a growing number of Corporate Partnerships within Oklahoma City.  These corporations promote MACU to their employees and if they choose to attend the university, pay a significant portion of the employee’s tuition. One corporate president is so pleased with the result of a MACU education that his company pays the full tuition of those who choose to attend MACU, online or in the classroom.
 
By every indication, the Mid-America multi-front approach to meeting educational needs appears to be working. In the fall of 2008, the university had 909 students. The 2,424 fall enrollment reflects a 176% increase since 2008.

“What is also especially encouraging to us is the increase in the number of students pursuing ministries degrees,” said President Fozard.

This year, over 460 men and women are engaged in ministry-related degrees!  In fact, when you also include the first class of 25 Honduran pastors who will be earning certificates in ministry this fall through the Mid-America Thomas School of International Studies, just over 20% of MACU students are engaged in ministry-related programs.

“The vision of MACU is Preparing People to do Greater Things for God and His Kingdom, and it’s thrilling to see men and women embrace the calling of Christ on their lives. These people represent the next generation of leaders for the Church of God, as well as other Christian churches, at home and abroad,” said President Fozard.

As a result of growing numbers, Mid-America is breaking ground October 10, 2012, on the main campus in Oklahoma City for a new 37,000-square-foot-educational facility.

Mid-America Christian University (MACU) offers a Christian liberal arts education through two dynamic colleges. The College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) offers undergraduate degrees to traditional residential and daytime commuting students at the main campus in Oklahoma City. The College of Adult and Graduate Studies (CAGS) makes college education affordable and accessible to busy working adults and graduate students. Programs are offered online, at the main campus, and through the north OKC location. Visit www.MACU.edu for additional information.