Clarks Summit University is a
private Baptist
Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compe ...
Bible college
A Bible college, sometimes referred to as a Bible institute or theological institute, is an evangelical Christian or Restoration Movement Christian institution of higher education which prepares students for Christian ministry with theological ed ...
in
Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania
Clarks Summit is a borough in Lackawanna County, northwest of Scranton in Northeastern Pennsylvania. The population was 5,108 at the 2020 census. It is also the northern terminus of the Pennsylvania Turnpike Northeast Extension, I-476.
Histor ...
. It offers on-campus and online degrees at the undergraduate and graduate levels. These include a high-school dual enrollment option, as well as associate, bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees. Baptist Bible Seminary offers master's and doctoral degrees in remote, on-campus and web-enhanced options.
History
The school was founded as the Baptist Bible Seminary in 1932 in
Johnson City, New York
Johnson City is a village in Broome County, New York, United States. The population was 15,174 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Binghamton Metropolitan Statistical Area.
The village of Johnson City is in the town of Union and is a part of t ...
.
For its first 36 years, the college used the facilities of First Baptist Church in Johnson City. Additional buildings were purchased or built to accommodate the growing student body.
Steady growth of enrollment by the 1960s prompted school leaders to search for a new location. In 1968, a site in Clarks Summit was found with the help of Gov.
William Scranton
William Warren Scranton (July 19, 1917 – July 28, 2013) was an American Republican Party politician and diplomat. Scranton served as the 38th Governor of Pennsylvania from 1963 to 1967, and as United States Ambassador to the United Nations fr ...
.
The school received its accreditation from the
Association for Biblical Higher Education in 1968 and received approval to grant degrees from the
Pennsylvania Department of Education in 1969. These developments, along with the offering of associates of arts degrees, led the school to change its name again in 1971, becoming the Baptist Bible College of Pennsylvania.
The separate Baptist Bible Seminary was spun off in 1972, taking on the original name of the college from its foundation in 1934. Graduate studies began in 1989.
The name was changed to the current Clarks Summit University in 2016.
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]
Campus
Clarks Summit University is located on a suburban campus. The site includes 17 major buildings, athletic facilities, and a 4.5-acre lake.
Huckaby Gymnasium in the Phelps Student Center hosts home basketball and volleyball contests
Academics
The university has more than 80 programs including associate, bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees. All students who earn a bachelor's degree earn a major in Biblical Studies as well as their chosen career major. Clarks Summit University is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education and the Association of Biblical Higher Education. Its education programs are approved by the Pennsylvania Department of Education.
Athletics
The Clarks Summit University Defenders field teams in several sports.
Men's teams include soccer, basketball, golf, cross-country, tennis, volleyball and baseball.
Women's teams include basketball, cross-country, soccer, softball, tennis, and volleyball.
Clarks Summit University is affiliated with both the National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges ...
(NCAA) Division III
In sport, the Third Division, also called Division 3, Division Three, or Division III, is often the third-highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below.
Association football
*Belgian Thir ...
, and the Colonial States Athletic Conference
The Colonial States Athletic Conference (CSAC) is an NCAA Division III collegiate athletic conference in the Mid-Atlantic United States. There are currently nine full member institutions as of 2018. The conference's membership, as with most Mid ...
.
Athletic history includes 75 National Christian College Athletic Association
The National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) is an association of Christian universities, colleges, and Bible colleges in the United States and Canada whose mission is "the promotion and enhancement of intercollegiate athletic ...
(NCCAA) Division II East Regional Championships in seven sports and 23 NCCAA Division II National Championships in six sports. Defender teams have appeared in three NCAA Division III national tournaments.
Clarks Summit University has had 2 individual National Collegiate Wrestling Association (NCWA) champions in wrestling. There is currently no wrestling at any level at the school.
The Clarks Summit University Defenders colors are royal blue, silver, and black.
The Lady Defender basketball team earned a spot in the NCAA DIII playoffs after winning the Colonial States Athletic Conference championship in 2022.
Notable alumni
* Syracuse University basketball chaplain William Payne
* Brian Higgins, field expert in public safety and former police chief, Bergen County, NJ
* Founder and executive director of Grace Relations Dr. Charles Ware
* Counseling expert and author Robert Kellemen, founder of RPM Ministries
* Pastor and Author John Elton Pletcher
* General surgeon who earned the International Surgical Volunteerism Award, Dr. Bruce Steffes
* Award-winning producer Amy Brodrick
* Ron Clark Academy Language Arts Teacher Korey Collins
* Chaplain Colonel James May
References
External links
*
Official athletics website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clarks Summit University
Educational institutions established in 1932
Universities and colleges in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania
Private universities and colleges in Pennsylvania
1932 establishments in Pennsylvania
Colonial States Athletic Conference schools
Former United East Conference schools