Pensacola Christian College is an Independent Baptistcollege in Pensacola, Florida. In 1974, Dr. Arlin Horton founded the college to fulfill the need that he saw in higher education with a religious viewpoint. After about thirty years, the school's population has grown to about 5,000 students, representing every state in the Union and over 60 foreign countries.
After 24 years of training pastors, the school decided to expand its offerings of undergraduateBible study to include seminary. Pensacola Theological Seminary was founded in 1998.
The school is also a great proponent of Christian education; their in-house publisher, A Beka Book, (named after Dr. Horton's wife, Beka), provides K-12 curriculum that is widely used by Christian schools and home schooling families. Last year more than 3,500 delegates attended practical clinics and seminars sponsored by the college. The Principals Clinic provides administrators and teachers with valuable materials, methods, and principles for starting and building a Christian school. They also hold a Summer Seminar that provides faculty and administrators with an in-depth orientation into the operations of a Christian school.
Pensacola Christian College's statement of purpose is:
Pensacola Christian College was founded with the purpose of training young men and women for a life of service to JesusChrist.
Pensacola Christian College's mission statement is:
The mission of Pensacola Christian College is to glorify God through the ministry of education from a Biblical perspective and through ministries that edify and reach out to all people.
Generally, the objective of Pensacola Christian College is to make their graduates academically and intellectually competent, able to serve God, and able to evangelize for the Christian faith. In so doing, they stress teaching the Bible using accurate messages with correct theology, teaching all subjects from a Biblical perspective, preparing students adequately for work in their desired field and graduate studies, and providing them with experienced spiritual leaders who will help them increase their faith in Jesus Christ.
Pensacola offers over 60 programs of study and has proven itself to be an institution of higher learning with a quality education. Graduates from PCC work for companies such as Ernst & Young, Coca-Cola, Microsoft, Merck, as well as several other notable companies. The graduates of the nursing program there are well sought after and are rated in the top 10 in nursing programs in the state of Florida.
The Authorized Version (KJV) is the best English translation of the Scriptures
God is a trinity (God the Father, son, and the Holy Spirit)
Jesus Christ, the Second Person of the Trinity, became the physical manifestation of the Godhead to mankind. He was born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, performed miracles, and atoned for sins through His shed blood and His bodily resurrection.
The Holy Spirit is the Third Person of the Trinity, the Agent of conviction, regeneration, indwelling, baptism, sanctification, and illumination of all who are born into God's family through Jesus Christ.
God created the universe in six literal days.
Man was created in the image of God but chose to sin. Hence, all persons inherit a depraved nature and are lost sinners in need of salvation.
Salvation is a free gift of God for “whosoever will”; it is by grace, through faith, plus nothing, and believers are eternally secure. Salvation is received only by personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and His finished work.
Both the saved and lost will be resurrected: those that are saved unto the resurrection of eternal life in heaven and those that are lost unto the resurrection of eternal damnation in a literal lake of fire.
The body of Christ is united in spiritual unity and God has ordained the local church for the perpetuation of His truth and work in the world.
Two ordinances of the local church are baptism by immersion and a regular observance of the Lord's Supper by believers.
The imminent, pre-Tribulation return of Jesus Christ for all believers. This Rapture of the saints will be followed by a seven year period of Tribulation, after which Christ will return in glory to judge the world and set up His millennial reign on earth.
PCC has its complete Articles of Faith (http://www.pcci.edu/GeneralInfo/ArticlesOfFaith.html) posted on its website.
Pensacola Christian College is among many Christian Colleges known for a strong stance on moral issues and a high standard of conduct. Rules at PCC are similar to those of BJU, and are presented up front before a student registers for classes.
Students may not:
Skip any service for any reason, whether chapel or Campus Church.
Leave campus without signing out
Siblings of the opposite sex should not interact in unchaperoned areas to abstain from the "appearance of evil."
Have physical contact with the opposite sex
Interact with opposite sex in an unchaperoned area.
Use stairways or elevators of the opposite sex
Listen to jazz, rock, new age music, or CCM.
Leave campus alone (women under 23)
Stay up past 11:00 (students under 23)
Watch DVDs in their dorm room.
Stay overnight with parents or relatives in town.
Wear Abercrombie and Fitch(due to its magazines).
Live off campus in certain parts of town
Drive near the beach that is designated for the opposite sex
Go to a public beach.
No local calls over 30 minutes.
No extra studying during exams after light-out.
You may not put up a picture of unmarried people in physical contact unless they are "little kids." (these are sold in the bookstore).
You may not open your window.
You may not adjust your thermostat.
You may not go to a public library.
You may not go onto the campus of any other college in the Pensacola area.
Writing or distributing unauthorized literature is prohibited.
A PCC alumnus, along with several current students, ran an unofficial newspaper called the Student Voice from 1996 to 2003, protesting the rules imposed by the college. The publication saw the rules as a form of legalism and asserted that the rules prevented the college from attaining its objectives. In response, the president of PCC, Dr. Horton, issued this response (http://www.pensacolachristiancollege.com/archive/svhorton.txt) reminding students that they agreed to follow the rules when they came, and that they are not forced to attend the school.
Nearly all students know of Dr. Howell, even though only few outside of the Business and Computer Science majors take any of his classes. Dr. Howell has a reputation for being a strict teacher -- one who holds a high standard and expects students to live up to it. He also believes that students who take his classes should receive the best education that he can offer them. Students who have had him as a teacher know that he only leads by example, and spends a great amount of time in his work.
Merrick J. Stemen has a masters degree in Software Engineering from the University of West Florida and has taught undergraduate computer science courses at Pensacola Christian College in Florida since 1988. His areas of expertise include network programming, programming languages, and computer graphics programming. He has been influential in the Water (http://www.watercode.com) community, and has written documentation for them.
Dr. Cummings, who teaches classes on business law and taxation, holds a master's degree from Stanford University and a juris doctorate from Santa Clara University. He stresses discipline and gives precise directions for students to follow, and his attention to detail has helped his students prepare for work in law and business.
In September 2004, Hurricane Ivan made landfall in Pensacola. Because of adequate early warning systems, most of Pensacola was evacuated. PCC students stayed on campus in various buildings that were designed to withstand hurricare force winds. PCC sustained very little damage during the storm. After the hurricane, many students volunteered to clean up the campus and surrounding areas in the community, which had sustained quite a bit more damage. Dr. Horton's home was destroyed during Ivan, and he now lives on campus.
