August 14th signified a historic moment, with the ceremonial signing of the memorandum of agreement between the Pentecostal Theological Seminary and the Charles Harrison Mason Theological Seminary. The announcement of this event may have come by surprise to many; however, it was a necessary movement in efforts to secure the future of CHMTS and our students, due to recent events within the Interdenominational Theological Center (ITC).
On April 17, 2023, the Interdenominational Theological Center issued a press release announcing that their Board of Trustees have declared that the school had reached a state of financial exigency [1, 2] . According to the press release, “Financial exigency is a term used by institutions to indicate a state of significant financial crisis that requires immediate and significant corrective action to ensure the sustainability of the institution.” Although they indicated that ITC was not closing, they would be forced to take immediate action to sustain the institution. Those measures would include suspending courses and not allowing enrollment for the Master’s programs in Fall 2023.
This sudden announcement created a significant challenge for our current CHMTS students. They would have to decide to make one of the following decisions: 1) pause their academic progress for 12-18 months in hopes that the exigency would get resolved, 2) agree to a proposed teach-out plan developed by ITC with an alternative seminary that contracted with the ITC (these partner institutions were not HBCUs), or 3) find another seminary to attend on their own. ITC presented these options near the end of their spring semester, so they did not have much time to decide.
As the Presiding Bishop became aware of this situation, he asked the Education Commissioner to develop an exploratory committee that could identify options to keep our students from having any interruption of their educational pursuits. This committee included: Bishop Chadwick Carlton, the Commissioner of the Education Commission, Bishop John Mark Richardson, Bishop David Daniels, Bishop Matthew Brown, Bishop Antoine Shaw, and Dr. Monica Clayton. Over the next several weeks, this team worked tirelessly to research and vet potential options and negotiate concessions that would benefit those who desired to continue their education there. The committee also communicated with the Chairman of the CHMTS Board of Trustees, as the committee deemed appropriate.
The committee’s objective was to find a partner institution that would allow the preservation of the CHMTS name and identity, align with our theological values, and support our efforts to become an accredited seminary. Upon review of several seminaries and universities, both HBCUs and non-HBCUs, the Pentecostal Theological Seminary agreed to all of the committee’s requests and offered the best opportunity for CHMTS students. Additionally, students would obtain a high-quality theological education for nearly half the cost of ITC, with additional scholarships also offered. Considering these concessions, the committee unanimously voted to pursue this collaboration. The committee presented its findings and recommendations to the Presiding Bishop and General Board. After the post-presentation remarks, they also found this collaboration to be favorable, and it was approved by a majority vote. Subsequently, an emergency meeting with the CHMTS Board of Trustees was held to discuss the committee’s intention to move forward with the PTS partnership, considering ITC’s current state. The committee then moved swiftly to solidify the agreement between CHMTS and PTS and ensure that the students could secure enrollment for the Fall 2023 semester.
This collaborative partnership forges an excellent opportunity for the advancement of Global Pentecostalism. The Church of God In Christ and the Church of God have more in common than many may realize. After, the signing ceremony, the Presiding Bishop and delegates were invited to a campus tour. Throughout the tour, the Executive Branch of Bishops pointed out references on their campus that connected to the events of the Azusa Street revival. They also shared how the Founder of their denomination was also present at the Azusa Street revival. The appreciation and respect for Bishop Charles Harrison Mason and his impact was evident from many, even among faculty members, who have authored books dedicated to Bishop C.H. Mason. As the tour continued to the library, we were informed that students also have access to books authored by COGIC writers and scholars. The influence of the Church of God In Christ has been an important component of their library for many years.
Current and prospective students now have the opportunity to obtain one of several master’s level graduate programs, two doctorate programs, and an accelerated two-year bachelor’s equivalent certificate program (for those who desire to obtain a master’s degree but do not have an undergraduate degree).
These programs include:
- Certificate of Wesleyan- Pentecostal Ministry (Pre-Master’s Certificate)
- Master of Divinity (MDiv)
- Master of Theological Studies in Pentecostal Theology or Biblical Studies (MTS-PT/BS)
- Master of Arts in Christian Studies (MACS)
- Master of Arts in Christian Ministries (MACM)
- Master of Arts in Pastoral Counseling (MAPC)
- Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling (MACMHC)
- Master of Theology (ThM)
- Doctor of Ministry (DMin)
- Doctor of Philosophy (expected launch Fall 2024)
For more information regarding these programs, please go to our new website: www.masonseminary.org.
As we move forward with this partnership, we dare not forget our great history with the Interdenominational Theological Center for the last 53 years. We pray that God shows them a path to recover from financial exigency. While we stand in humility and grace honoring such a history, we also look forward to new beginnings, great innovation, and synergy in a way that has been done before.
In the words of our Presiding Bishop J. Drew Sheard, “It’s a God thing”! This collaborative partnership is much larger than academics, it’s about the Kingdom of God, the unification of the Saints, and Global Pentecostalism. As we strive to educate God’s people, God’s way, both seminaries look forward to new opportunities and great possibilities. We will innovate and heal this country, from a past that divided us and God will get the glory!
Frequently Asked Questions:
The MOA stipulates that this is an agreement between CHMTS and PTS to create collaborative degree programs between the two seminaries. The most critical components of the MOA, that relate to the student experience, include the following:
- This agreement allows current and future CHMTS students to enroll in a PTS and CHMTS collaborative program. PTS will offer students all rights and privileges to their academic, financial aid/scholarships, and other student services and resources.
- CHMTS can still maintain its identity and influence in the academic process. All students enrolled in the collaborative partnership will receive degrees with both seminaries listed on the diploma.
- PTS/CHMTS students will take courses along with PTS students, however, CHMTS will include specific courses that better meet the needs of COGIC students. These courses will relate to Black Renewal Studies, COGIC History, COGIC Polity, and other COGIC-related topics.
- CHMTS has the ability to appoint adjunct faculty to teach at PTS. Those adjunct faculty members will be eligible to teach any course at PTS, especially courses relating to the Church of God In Christ and other black renewal theology topics.
- CHMTS will become a contributing partner of the Center for African Descent Studies, to incorporate more of COGIC’s influence in Black Pentecostalism.
- A team was developed to assist current ITC students in transferring their credits from ITC to PTS with as many allowable credits as permitted by their accrediting bodies.
- If anyone from the Church of God In Christ desires to attend PTS, they will earn a collaborative degree from both PTS and the C.H. Mason Theological Seminary. Both seminaries will be listed on their diploma.
- We are also working towards creating a Memphis campus of C.H. Mason Theological Seminary, which will allow courses to be conducted and/or streamed by our adjunct faculty there. More details on this campus location are forthcoming.
- This partnership will allow C.H. Mason to position itself to become an independent accredited seminary. Much planning and work is needed for this to manifest, however, PTS is supporting this desire and we will be working on steps to achieve this.
- Yes, they are accredited with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges and the Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada.
- PTS and CHMTS have arranged to give students, under the PTS/CHMTS collaborative degree program, courses that would be critical for COGIC students and CHMTS. These courses will cover various topics regarding Black Renewal Theology and COGIC history. There are also current adjunct professors from COGIC who teach at PTS and we plan to incorporate more scholars and courses in the future.
- The MOA is not an acquisition or a merger of the school; CHMTS is still a separate entity collaborating with PTS for educational purposes. CHMTS students who attend the collaborative degree programs will have both entities named on their diplomas. Preserving the name of our seminary is very important and we plan to keep it intact.
- With this partnership, we are now able to create our own seminary office in Memphis, but this is only stage one to our strategic plan. We look forward to sharing more, as more develops.
Yes! There are many scholarships available for those who desire to enroll in the Master’s or Doctorate programs. Some are criteria-based and some are for new students! You should speak with our enrollment team to determine the steps needed to identify what you would be eligible for.
Non-academic scholarship information is also available on the new website: Cost of Tuition and Scholarships
To learn more about the degree programs, certificate program, and curriculum, please visit our new C.H. Mason Theological Seminary website: www.masonseminary.org
Update:
On November 21st, ITC announced the re-opening of enrollment in Spring 2024 for one of their Master Degree programs, the MDiv program. However, as of December 5, 2023, one of the ITC’s major accrediting bodies, Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC), issued a disclosure statement announcing that the ITC has been placed on probation for 12 months. According to SACSCOC, this probation status applies to the entire institution and is the most serious public sanction imposed by the SACSCOC Board of Trustees short of loss of accreditation. This probation was enforced due to ITC being on warning for two years, the maximum consecutive time for a monitoring period. It is currently unclear what plans are in place to ensure the remedy of their non-compliance. For more information regarding the sanctions and current status, please follow the link: SACSCOC Disclosure
[1] April 17, 2023 – ITC Press Release. (Update): The original online press release has been removed from the ITC website, since the original publish date of this article, however, we have provided a copy.
[2] May 8, 2023 – ITC Village Letter. (Update): The original associated online press release has since been removed from the ITC website, since the original publish date of this article, however, we have provided a copy.
Revised: December 8, 2023
