Dordt College Mission Booklet

Our Mission WHAT DORDT COLLEGE IS ALL ABOUT

Our Mission DORDT COLLEGE

At Dordt College we help students become insightful, obedient, and active servants in God’s world. Our goal is to teach students to think critically and judge wisely as they learn how God’s creation works, how things fit together, and how they are called to live.

A Kingdom Perspective Scripture and creation reveal a sovereign God. All things are under his control and find their goal and purpose in his glory. The creation is his kingdom.

God created us in his image and gave us the task of cultivating creation, to develop its potential and take good care of it. Man’s disobedience disrupted things, creating division and strife, misery and death.

But God, with his word of grace, reclaimed his world through the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ. Even though the effects of the fall will continue until he returns, Christ has rescued the creation from the curse of sin, and he reigns as king over all.

He summons those he has redeemed to work for his kingdom everywhere.

A Christian Learning Community Dordt College provides an environment in which classroom and cocurricular (out of class) activities work hand-in-hand to create a holistic learning experience.

Our kingdom perspective, which drives the curriculum, helps students develop Christian insight by addressing fundamental questions such as: • Who owns your heart?

• How do things work together?

• How did we get where we are today?

• How should we live?

Dordt’s Core Curriculum is built on a foundation of theology, history, and philosophy courses, as well as classes that develop communication skills. Other Core courses in language and the arts,

the natural sciences, and the social sciences provide a broad supporting context for specialized studies. Majors, pre-professional programs, and a master’s program prepare students for a variety of vocations and professions. A Core capstone course helps senior students apply answers to these four fundamental questions to contemporary issues they will encounter in their post-graduate world.

Dordt College offers many educational experiences outside of the classroom. A cross-cultural requirement allows students to explore another culture, either through course work, study abroad, or volunteer service. In addition, some programs offer service-learning opportunities, which combine reading and research with planning and implementing a related service project.

Dordt College is a residential school: school About 85 percent of students live on campus. Various co-curricular activities build on and enhance what students learn in the curriculum. We aim to foster an attitude of service and commitment through social and devotional activities as well as community-building and service projects.These programs play an important role in developing serviceable Christian insight.

SOME CONCRETE STUDENT OUTCOMES WE EXPECT OUR GRADUATES WILL: • recognize the Bible’s main themes and teachings and its guiding role for a life of Christian discipleship

• demonstrate the insights, skills, and strategies needed to serve in their vocations and in the common tasks of adult life

• be spiritually discerning, evaluating and challenging the prevailing spirits and worldviews of our age in the light of God’s Word and a reformational perspective

• be increasingly wise, based on a mature fear of the Lord, in their understanding of his world and their service to his kingdom

• care for and respect everything God has created and maintain a balanced, wholesome lifestyle • understand how our world has developed historically, be able to critically evaluate the formative processes and religious spirits that have shaped various cultures, and contribute to reformation within their vocations and the common areas of life • be aware of the interconnected global nature of contemporary life, appreciating the rich diversity within creation and recognizing the interdependence of its parts

• commit to lifelong learning so that they can continue to develop and apply insight in faithful response to God • be sensitive to sin and idolatry in their own lives, in human society, and in the world around them • live as Christian disciples, working to transform aspects of our culture that oppose Christ’s rule This representative list of student outcomes is drawn from a document titled “The Educational Framework of Dordt College.” It and its companion foundational document, “The Educational Task of Dordt College,” are available on the Dordt College website at www.dordt.edu/publications.

A Faithful History Dordt College was organized in 1953 as Midwest Christian Junior College, largely because of a shortage of qualified teachers for Christian schools in the area. Doors opened in 1955 with 35 students and five faculty members.The name was later changed to Dordt College in honor of the historic synod held in Dordtrecht, the Netherlands, in 1618-1619.

The first four-year B.A. degrees were awarded in 1965.

The college grew rapidly in the ’60s and ’70s, with enrollment climbing above 1,200 in 1978. Today Dordt College enrolls approximately 1,300 students and occupies a modern, well-equipped 115-acre campus.

Dordt College has greatly expanded its offerings over the years. In 1969, the first business administration courses were offered, marking a move to combine a “liberal arts” education with “practical” instruction.

Agriculture, engineering, and social work soon followed. In 1993, Dordt College added a master of education degree to its associate’s and bachelor’s degree offerings.The current curriculum includes nearly 90 programs of study, taught by more than 70 full-time and numerous

part-time faculty members. With a broader range of curricular offerings, Dordt College is better able to fulfill its mission of providing education for kingdom service in all areas of life.

A Supportive Constituency Dordt College is owned and controlled by an incorporated society composed primarily of members of the Christian Reformed Church in North America (CRCNA). It is governed by a 45-member elected board of trustees made up of geographically selected CRC representatives and at-large representatives from the broader Reformed evangelical community. Dordt College has enjoyed the committed and faithful support of a loyal constituency for more than half a century.

DORDT COLLEGE ALUMNI POPULATION BY COUNTY

PROGRAMS OF STUDY BACHELOR’S DEGREE MAJORS

Criminal Justice

Medical Technology

Digital Media Production

Music

ASSOCIATE OF ARTS DEGREE PROGRAMS

Accounting

Dutch

Nursing

Administrative Assistant

Agriculture

Education: Elementary

Philosophy

Agriculture

Applied Science and Technology

Education: Secondary

Physics

Computer Networking

Art

Engineering

Political Studies

Biology

Engineering Science

Psychology

Early Childhood Aide, Special Education Aide, Teacher Aide

Biotechnology

English

Social Work

Business Administration

Environmental Studies

Spanish

Chemistry

Health and Human Performance

Theatre Arts

Communication

History

Computer Science

Theology

Individual Studies

Construction Management

Mathematics

Emphases are available in each major, with about 90 different areas of study.

General Studies MASTER OF EDUCATION Concentration in curriculum and instruction

Off-Campus Study PRE-PROFESSIONAL PROGRAMS Pre-Architecture Pre-Dentistry Pre-Legal Pre-Medical Pre-Occupational Therapy Pre-Optometry Pre-Pharmacy Pre-Physical Therapy Pre-Seminary Pre-Veterinary

Dordt College sponsors SPICE (Studies Program in Contemporary Europe), SPIN (Study Program in Nicaragua), SPAN (Study Program at Northrise University in Zambia), and other cross-cultural, summer programs in various countries. It also co-sponsors the Chicago Semester program with Calvin, Central, Hope, Northwestern, and Trinity Christian College.

Dordt College students also have access to 26 programs that are sponsored through The Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU), Calvin College, and other institutes and universities. For a complete list, go to www.dordt.edu/ academics/programs/off_campus.

498 4th Avenue NE l Sioux Center, Iowa 51250-1606 1-800-343-6738 www.dordt.edu PRINTED IN THE U.S.A., July 2011