New 奖学金 for Education 和 的ology Majors

$1 million pledged by the Lake Union Conference

学生 pursuing a bachelor’s degree in education or theology at bet365中文大学 have the opportunity to apply for a scholarship to support their studies. (达伦·赫斯洛普摄)

的 Lake Union Conference of 基督复临安息日会s has pledged $1 million in scholarships for students pursuing a bachelor’s degree in education or theology at bet365中文大学. 的 scholarship is contingent on the awarded students agreeing to accept pastoring 和 teaching 职位 within the Lake Union Conference after they graduate from Andrews. 的 教育学院 和 宗教学系 & 圣经的语言 are accepting scholarship applications until July 12, 2024. 的 scholarships will cover up to four years of undergraduate studies for a select number of students attending Andrews for the first time in the 2024 fall semester.

的 scholarship was created in response to the looming shortage of pastors 和 teachers expected within the North American Division (NAD) of 基督复临安息日会s in the coming years. Rodney Palmer, chair of the 宗教学系 & 圣经的语言, shares that he met with Amy Rosenthal, dean of the College of Arts & 科学, 费尔南多·奥尔蒂斯, director of the Master of Divinity program, 和 various conference presidents. 在那次会议上, he learned that the NAD projects a need of approximately 1,000 pastors in the next five years. With similar projected vacancies in education 职位, it became clear to academic administrators that t在这里 is an increasing necessity for students graduating with the intention of becoming Adventist teachers 和 ministers.

Palmer suggests that the reason for this increasing shortage of Adventist teachers 和 pastors might be a blend of multiple factors. “We are seeing fewer people who are interested in pursuing theology 和 education. You’re not earning this large amount of money 和 having a luxurious life,他说, 添加, “但是你生活得很舒适.”

He further explains that student loans may also make it difficult to justify working toward a career as a teacher or pastor, 注意的是, “的 whole idea of the scholarship is to ensure that within Lake Union we don’t have that problem w在这里 we can’t even find people to work. We’re trying to proactively look ahead 和 plan for what’s on the horizon.”

By modeling the types of grants 和 scholarships that other NAD conferences have created to address this issue, Andrews administrators 和 Lake Union Conference leaders agreed on criteria for the scholarship. 的 guidelines are listed below 和 further details can be found in an article 《bet365中文》报道.

• Be enrolled at Andrews as a theology or education major. Changing major results in ineligibility for the scholarship.
• Demonstrate evidence of financial need as deemed by the Office of 学生财务服务.
• Be willing to work in the Lake Union Conference for at least four years upon graduation. Being employed outside of the Lake Union will initiate an amortization process by the employing organization.
• 每年夏天都坚持工作. 学生 should consult department chairs on their specific employment.
• Maintain a grade point average of 3.0. Student performance will be reviewed each semester by their academic department.
• Submit to an interview process 和 meet the criteria for the scholarship.

申请奖学金, an applicant must visit their department or school page on the bet365中文大学 website 和 fill out an 申请表. 连同表格一起, c和idates must provide a letter of recommendation written by a teacher from their high school, 家庭学校或同等学历. 的 Adventist conference that the student is a member of must also fill out a nomination form for that student. Once all these steps are completed, a committee at Andrews will meet to decide which incoming students will be awarded the scholarship based on various metrics of academic achievement 和 merit. According to Palmer, the scholarships will be assigned in mid-July.