The Master's University Magazine | Spring 2024

How one family’s sacrifice and service helped save TMU.

What’s On the Cover

1. CALIFORNIA POPPY

The Hotchkiss family had never before been to California (represented here by the California Poppy) before they uprooted their lives in the East to help save LABTS.

2. HOTCHKISS HALL

When LABC’s first dorm building on the new campus in Newhall was completed, it was a natural decision to name it after Herbert Hotchkiss in honor of his faithful service to the school.

3. SORRY, WE'RE CLOSED

In July 1947, in the midst of severe financial hardship and leadership challenges, the board of LABTS voted to close the school.

4. MRS. HOTCHKISS

Marjorie Hotchkiss served tirelessly alongside her husband on behalf of LABTS, including through the Women’s Auxiliary.

In a 1954 Baptist Bulletin article about LABTS, Herbert Hotchkiss is quoted as saying, “The world looks at the Bible through its books; we look at books through the Bible.”

Herbert Hotchkiss taught across a wide range of disciplines during his time at LABTS, from English to history to Bible.

7.

HOME AWAY FROM HOME

Hotchkiss Hall first opened in 1965, shortly before this picture was taken of students heading out to class or the cafeteria.

8. AN ICONIC HAND SIGN

Generations of students since the ’60s have formed lifelong memories in — and a lifelong affinity for — Hotchkiss Hall. The dorm’s hand sign is universally recognizable among those on campus.

9. ROAD TRIP

The Hotchkiss family drove from Philadelphia to Los Angeles in a 1941 Buick Special bought with a loan from Herbert’s father.

10. FAMILY LEGACY

After Herbert retired from teaching because of poor health, John Hotchkiss earned a master’s degree and came back to LABC to teach English in his father’s place.

Herbert pastored for 17 years at Spruce Street Baptist Church in Philadelphia (represented here by Pennsylvania’s state flower, the Mountain Laurel) before relocating to California.

When the Hotchkisses came to LABTS, their youngest child, John, was just 2 years old.

5. A BIBLICAL PERSPECTIVE

11. MOUNTAIN LAUREL

6. HERBERT HOTCHKISS

12. THE FAMILY

Dave

Luke

Katie Seitz

Annie

Anna

The Hotchkiss Legacy

In

Herbert and Marjorie Hotchkiss uprooted their lives in Philadelphia to move to the West Coast and help save Los Angeles Baptist Theological Seminary from the brink of collapse. The name attached to our oldest dorm is only one small marker of the enduring legacy left by the Hotchkisses’ sacrifice and faithful service.

Classical Education Crosses the Atlantic

Dr. Grant Horner has established a program to train TMU students in the art of classical education. Now, he’s partnering with an organization to help bring classical education methods to hundreds of thousands of students in schools across Africa.

TMU’s

alumni magazine features stories of God’s faithfulness in the lives of alumni, faculty, staff, and students. This quarterly publication also includes the latest news from the University. You can sign up to receive the digital magazine at masters.edu/magazine-subscribe

What’s In a Name?

Ihave fond memories of Hotchkiss Hall.

Over the course of four years, I made friends, orchestrated pranks, served as a resident assistant, and, occasionally, did homework there.

(Now, as the father of a 1-year-old, I regret how little time I actually spent asleep in the dorm.)

The name of the building, I admit, didn’t mean much to me back then. To be honest, I couldn’t have told you that it was named after Dr. Herbert Hotchkiss — or told you anything about who he was.

But in the past few years, as we’ve taken a closer look at TMU’s history in preparation for our centennial in 2027, I’ve been confronted with the deep significance of building names across campus.

When you read about the sacrifices of men like John Dunkin and Pete Reese, who gave everything to ensure the survival of the school, it’s hard not to look at facilities like Dunkin Student Center and Reese Field a little differently. You realize that the beautiful campus you take for granted is only here because of the faithfulness of others during times when resources and new students were harder to come by.

The subjects of this edition’s cover story certainly belong on that list of school heroes. In 1947, Hebert Hotchkiss and his wife, Marjorie, left behind a stable life in Philadelphia to take a job at a struggling seminary in Los Angeles. They received no promise of payment; it was simply what they believed God wanted them to do.

In truth, The Master’s University likely wouldn’t be here without the Hotchkiss family — and so many others like them.

So yes, I lived in Hotchkiss Hall without knowing anything about the man behind the name. But now that I do, the dorm serves as a reminder to be thankful for the men and women the Lord has used in the history of this institution. It’s also a reminder to all of us that our present actions matter. We don’t know how the Lord will use our obedience today in the lives of people tomorrow. The Hotchkiss family, for all their virtues, certainly couldn’t see into the future.

They simply remained faithful. And for that, their name will always be honored here.

Mason Nesbitt DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS, THE MASTER’S UNIVERSITY

a performance workshop for singers

voice classes · individual voice instruction training in performance techniques for soloists acting improvisation · practical music theory ensemble performance

beginning camps

ages 8-12 | cost $235

camp one june 10-15 | mon – fri, 2-5pm | final concert saturday, june 15 | 3pm

camp two june 17-22 | mon – fri, 9am-12pm | final concert saturday, june 22 | 3pm

camp three june 17-22 | mon – fri, 1:30-4:30pm | final concert saturday, june 22 | 6:30pm

advanced camp

ages 12-18 | cost $320

june 10-15 | mon – fri, 9am-1pm | final concert saturday, june 15 | 6:30pm

directed by TMU Music Faculty, Staff and Alumni location The Master’s University School of Music

Each student is required to choose one song upon registration that he or she must memorize to perform during the final concert. Song choice standards can be found online at masters.edu/songsofsummer.

Register starting February 1, 2024

Scan QR code to register or visit masters.edu/songsofsummer

YEARBOOK

This 1961 photo captures the first graduation ceremony we held at our new campus in Newhall. Dr. John Dunkin, who was president at the time, is seen here addressing the crowd at Under the Oaks.

TMU Today

The breathtaking Hall of Crucifixion-Resurrection is the setting for TMU’s annual Forest Lawn Concert Series. You’ll find more about this year’s concerts in the following pages.

Biological & Physical Sciences

TMU’s science programs consistently prepare high-achieving students to contribute in all fields of medicine and research, under the guidance of experienced faculty committed to the truth of Scripture.

95%

The acceptance rate of TMU students at medical schools, including top programs such as the Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry of USC, the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, and Baylor College of Medicine.

An average laboratory class size in TMU’s biology department, allowing for personalized instruction and learning development.

The number of biological science emphases offered, including pre-medicine, animal science, and paleontology. 10

100%

Percentage of faculty and staff who affirm TMU’s doctrinal statement, which includes commitment to a literal six-day creation.

ACADEMICS

Podcasting Course Gets Students Talking

Dr. Bob Dickson’s class pushes students to develop original content worth listening to.

BY JOSEPHINE LEE

When Dr. Bob Dickson first began teaching Podcast Studio at The Master’s University, the podcasting format had already taken to the skies and was planting its flag in the media atmosphere.

Now, some six years later, the podcast is securely in our orbit – as ubiquitous and accessible as it is varied in scope, covering seemingly every interest and subject imaginable. Dickson, who chairs the communication department at TMU, believes it’s more important than ever for students to make the medium an effective part of their communication toolbox.

In his course, Dickson helps students develop and execute their own unique podcast by coaching them through the primary aspects of the medium: technology and content. During the initial weeks, students learn how to use recording hardware and digital audio software to capture and edit quality sound. Developing this technical competency — what Dickson compares to “learning the scales needed to play an instrument” — is a necessary foundation to creating content worth hearing.

Then, to kickstart their creative ideas, Dickson challenges his students to take a

good look at the subjects they know best: themselves.

“We’re training students to use multimedia platforms to reach an audience,” Dickson said. “So it always comes back to, ‘What do you have to say? What is it that you feel is worth putting out into the world? What insights can you bring in that other people don’t have?’”

Dickson said, “One of the objections that gets raised is, ‘That’s already been done. There’s already a podcast on carnivorous plants.’ I said, ‘Well, do a better carnivorous plants podcast.’ Don’t forget that who you are is a big part of this. It’s not just information. It’s you.”

Practical preparation helps students strategize on how best to turn their ideas into actual content. Before any recording takes place, they’re tasked to develop a business plan (with thorough assessment of goals, audience, marketing, and costs) and then pitch their concept as if to an investor.

Once their business plan is finalized, Dickson turns students loose to create three 12-minute episodes. With each episode, they receive feedback from

Dickson and their classmates, a process that pushes them to refine their concepts. By the end of the semester, when Dickson asks them to reevaluate their initial business plan, their final product often sounds quite different.

Dickson’s goal is to make the course approachable even for students with no background in the medium whatsoever.

“This is a learn-by-doing class, and the assumption is they don’t know how to do it at all,” Dickson said. “I’m interested in effort — execution comes after.”

Ultimately, Dickson sees podcasting as another opportunity to develop young Christian creators who can serve their churches, contribute to their workplaces, and otherwise glorify God with their passions.

“Equip yourself to do these things,” Dickson said, “and the Lord will not see it go to waste.”

TMU’s communication department equips students to creatively share truth across many mediums. Learn more at masters.edu/communication

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TMU Set for 39th Annual Forest Lawn Concert Series

Christ’s death and resurrection take center stage at these annual performances.

BY JOSEPHINE LEE

This year, the Paul T. Plew School of Music at The Master’s University is putting on its 39th annual Forest Lawn Concert Series on March 2627. About 130 students (including the school’s University Singers, Chorale, and Orchestra) will perform Mozart’s “Requiem” inside the Hall of Crucifixion-Resurrection at Forest Lawn in Glendale, California. Audiences will enjoy Mozart’s masterpiece under the massive backdrop of Jan Styka’s painting, “The Crucifixion,” which measures 195 by 45 feet.

Bekah Colson, an administrative assistant for TMU’s School of Music and an alumna of the music department, says, “Forest Lawn is a favorite concert of our patrons because of the unique location and special time mourning and celebrating the crucifixion and resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”

Admission is free, but complimentary tickets must be reserved. For more information, visit masters.edu/ music-events

OUTSIDE THE CANYON

This year’s Forest Lawn concerts will feature Mozart’s moving final composition, “Requiem.” Here’s what the event looked like in 2023.

PHOTO BY SCOTT FRENCH

March

4

MONDAYS AT MASTER’S

For prospective students and families, this is a great opportunity to get a snapshot of what TMU is all about. Visit classes, take a campus tour, attend chapel, learn about financial aid opportunities, meet TMU students, and get questions about TMU answered. Learn more at masters.edu/visit

6-9

NAIA SWIMMING AND DIVING NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP

The Mustangs expect to send upwards of 15 athletes (between the men’s and women’s teams) to nationals at the Columbus Aquatics Center in Columbus, Georgia. Stay up to date on all the action at gomustangs.com

7

“THE CARNIVAL OF THE ANIMALS,” FEATURING CHAMBER INSTRUMENTAL ENSEMBLES

This will be an amazing, kid-friendly concert with our piano ensemble and chamber group. Come dressed up as your favorite animal or in an animal-inspired outfit. Get tickets at masters.edu/music-events

22

MEN’S VOLLEYBALL VS. VANGUARD

The Mustangs lost a five-set thriller to Vanguard in last season’s NAIA national semifinals. Ticket info for this year’s rematch is available at gomustangs. com/tickets. You can also watch the livestream at gomustangs.com/watch

23

BEACH VOLLEYBALL VS. HOPE INTERNATIONAL/CAL STATE LA

The Mustangs opened the season ranked No. 8 in the NAIA. This will be TMU’s second-to-last home contest of the year, taking place on the TMU Beach Volleyball Courts.

26-27

FOREST LAWN CONCERT SERIES

Join us for our annual Forest Lawn Concert Series at the Hall of Crucifixion-Resurrection at Forest Lawn in Glendale for a performance of Mozart’s Requiem. Get tickets at masters.edu/music-events

15

TMU ANNUAL GOLF TOURNAMENT

The Master’s University Annual Golf Tournament is our biggest fundraiser, garnering support for students at TMU. We hope to see you at The Oaks Club at Valencia for a great day of golf, fellowship, and most importantly, providing scholarship aid to students in need. To register, visit masters.edu/golf

19-20

VIEW THE U

This is a two-day event for prospective students and families, offering an unforgettable opportunity for students to experience life as a Mustang. Overnight accommodations are provided for prospective students. Learn more at masters.edu/visit

April May

5-6, 12-13

4-5 2

SPRING THEATRE ARTS PRODUCTION, “TUCK

This semester’s Theatre Arts production is “Tuck Everlasting,” based on the bestselling children’s classic by Natalie Babbitt. Join us for one of six showings, with 8 p.m. performances on Fridays and Saturdays, and 2 p.m. matinees on Saturdays. Get tickets at masters.edu/theatre

12-13

BASEBALL VS. VANGUARD

Vanguard opened the season ranked No. 17 in the country and came in No. 2 in the preseason GSAC Coaches’ Poll. TMU was No. 3 in the Coaches’ Poll. Ticket info is available at gomustangs.com/tickets. You can also watch the livestream at gomustangs.com/watch

MEN’S VOLLEYBALL GSAC TOURNAMENT HOSTED AT TMU

This year, TMU will be hosting the men’s volleyball GSAC Tournament on campus. Learn more and see our full athletics schedule at gomustangs.com

SPRING CONCERT

TMU’s annual spring concert serves as the grand finale of the School of Music’s concert schedule each academic year. Get tickets for this year’s performance at masters.edu/music-events

3

COMMENCEMENT

TMU’s 97th annual commencement ceremony will be held at the University’s campus. More details are available at masters.edu/ commencement-day . All are welcome to join via livestream at masters.edu/live

EVERLASTING”

FACULTY

Q+A

Prof. Matt Green brings his experience as a producer, writer, and director to the classroom in TMU’s Cinema and Digital Arts program.

Prof. Matt Green leads the Cinema and Digital Arts program at The Master’s University. He recently sat down with TMU Magazine to discuss the program’s latest project, “The Descent,” a thriller based on the book of Revelation. The project — which is the second feature film produced by the University and its students — is expected to be available on a streaming platform this year.

How many students were involved in the project and what kind of roles did they have?

We had close to 60 students work on the entire production. Almost the entire camera department was student led. We had five Winterim classes working on it. Those are all overseen by professors. The rest of it was student run. Six students oversaw the production design. The costume for our “creature” was built by a student, Catalina Sonnenburg, who just graduated last year. In the production team, we had three student producers: Miranda Watson, Mark Hoffman, and Isaac Busenitz. Every visual effects shot was done by Isaac. We give general oversight as professors, but the students are really the ones who are the boots on the ground.

What is the film about and how do you think it is relevant to this day and age?

The film deals with Revelation 9, at the end times. Everybody wants to know what's going to happen in the end times. The beauty of it is we have the answer in the book of Revelation — John's vision that he received. The film is relevant especially with all the chaos in the world. Our president, Dr. (Abner) Chou, always talks about how he likes us to create content that is timely and timeless. I think that this film is both.

When it comes to training your students, how much do you focus on teaching theory and how much do you focus on practical experience?

I think that those work together. As a professor, I’m responsible for all the students who are coming here. They’re getting an education that’s hopefully going to lead them to jobs; to just teach them only theory, and not a practical component, is not going to help get them work. By the time students graduate, I want them to have legitimate products that have been distributed. We have a graduate, a young lady, who was a producer on the first feature we did. She's now very successful back on the East Coast. She got to produce another feature film because she had already produced one with us. That carries a lot

PHOTO BY EZRA MOORE BY SOFIA BELTRAN

of weight. Now, students have a curated resume even before they graduate. That’s what makes us unique. No other school does full-length feature films, with the students working on it. It’s a lot of work, but because we're a smaller school, we can be more nimble and flexible.

When and where can people find “The Descent”?

In the next month or so, we’ll know when the film will be released. It will be on a streaming platform — which one is yet to be determined. We're also trying to get a theatrical release. We'll see what the Lord’s plan is.

What is next for the CDA department?

Cinema and Digital Arts just became its own major at TMU. I think from a student perspective, it’s way better for branding. This legitimizes your degree and your field of study a little bit more. Also, this summer we're going to do another feature. We are trying to work on a deal with another company that would guarantee us distribution. Lord willing, that will happen.

TMU’s Cinema and Digital Arts program is designed to train the next generation of artists to recognize God as the ultimate creative force and to reflect this knowledge in what and how they create. Learn more at masters.edu/CDA

GET TO KNOW PROF. GREEN

Has written, produced, and directed projects for both film and television.

Developed TMU’s Cinema & Digital Arts program, which gives students hands-on industry experience through the production of short and feature films.

Directed TMU’s first-ever feature film, “The Man From Nowhere,” which was released in 2021.

Success in the Digital Age

Clear Thinking

Shane Parrish

Shane lays out principles that successful modern and historical people have used to build a foundation for making better decisions, especially in high-pressure situations. Not every principle will be applicable, but overall, it has some good advice.

How the World Really Works

Vaclav Smil

This book gives insights into the realities of economics and global supply chain structures that go beyond the cliches of the internet and politicians. Smil uses science and statistics to break down how likely — or even unlikely — agendas are to actually occur. Examples include the likelihood of becoming oil independent, and how scare tactics are used to warn about the possibility of running out of breathable air.

How to Become a Straight-A Student Cal Newport

I wish I had read this when I was in college. Written for college students, this book offers excellent time management and study tips.

So Good They Can't Ignore You Cal Newport

Stealing a phrase from Steve Martin, Cal Newport argues that building a skill trumps the popular advice to “follow your passion.”

To use a phrase from the book: “Whereas the craftsman mindset focuses on what you can offer the world, the passion mindset focuses instead on what the world can offer you.”

COMPOSED BY PROF. PETER SHICKLE Assistant Professor of Communication

The Art of Discernment Returns

The third season of the University podcast features new and returning speakers and a new medium — video.

BY LUKE FITZGERALD

This semester, The Art of Discernment podcast returned for its third season. This is its first season as a video podcast, and it is now hosted by a rotation of faculty and staff at The Master’s University. The season will feature discussions with guests like Drs. John MacArthur, Ken Ham, Paul Twiss, and Costi Hinn, as well as TMU faculty members like Dr. Gregg Frazer and Dr. Jordan Morton.

The goal of The Art of Discernment is to provide a free resource to alumni and Christians at-large, helping them exercise biblical discernment toward a wide range of topics, from understanding the Holy Spirit to navigating K-12 education. Catch the newest episode every other Monday during the spring 2024 semester, either on TMU’s YouTube channel or your favorite podcasting platform. Learn more at masters.edu/aod

Campus Pastor Harry Walls, left, interviews Drs. John MacArthur and Ken Ham on an episode of The Art of Discernment.

PHOTO BY MARK FINSTER

PHOTOS BY EMILY WIDDERS

Video Series Explores the Land of the Bible

The Center for Thinking Biblically adds content focused on biblical locations in Israel.

BY LUKE FITZGERALD

Experiencing Israel through a program like the Israel Bible Extension (IBEX) Program at The Master’s University is an irreplaceable opportunity. But many people haven’t yet had the ability to visit the Holy Land in person. That’s why The Center for Thinking Biblically made a much-sought-after video course called “Land of the Bible” freely available last fall.

In these lectures, Dr. William Varner explains the historical background and events of the Bible while standing in the places where they happened, bringing key locations all over Israel right to users’ screens. Varner is a professor of biblical languages and Bible exposition at TMU and formerly was the director of the IBEX program. This video series follows him as he explains the topography of Jerusalem from inside the Old City walls and reads the Beatitudes on a mountainside above the Sea of Galilee. With more than 130 episodes and over 30 hours of content in these lectures, there’s plenty to learn about the historical and geographical context of Scripture.

The Land of the Bible lecture series, and many other series on an array of topics, can be found at thinkbiblically.org

01

how well do you know tmu?

What year was our institution founded?

A. 1935

B. 1927

C. 1930

D. 1941

02

What was the original name of our institution?

A. LOS ANGELES BAPTIST COLLEGE

B. THE MASTER’S COLLEGE

C. LOS ANGELES BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY

D. NONE OF THE ABOVE

03

Who was our first president?

A. JOHN DUNKIN

B. MILTON FISH

C. WILLIAM MATTHEWS

D. JOHN STEAD

04

What year did we move from Los Angeles to Newhall?

A. 1955

B. 1961

C. 1960

D. 1950

alumni — we're here for you.

utilize our cover letter and resume guides and scan an exclusive job board, with listings like these:

Marketing Media Classes Fuel Internship

Cameron Jordan’s digital marketing internship offers evidence that small lessons learned in the classroom can help students make a significant impact in the professional world.

BY LUKE FITZGERALD

Cameron Jordan (’26) had just completed his freshman year at The Master’s University when he landed a summer internship with a residential propane company near his home in northern Maryland. The organization, ThompsonGas, gave him a five-figure budget and one task: advertise on multiple platforms that were new to the company. This involved producing a TV commercial.

Even with only one year of college under his belt, Jordan says he felt prepared for this formidable task.

During his first two semesters at TMU, Jordan took courses like Business Communication, Social Media and Communication, and Pocket Studio. He also helped TMU produce a feature film during Winterim, serving as a first assistant camera and grip.

“All of those things, and especially the Winterim project, really gave me a

sense of comfort and confidence,” he says.

ThompsonGas had a simple yet openended goal for Jordan’s advertising when he came on. They wanted him to find ways to reach a high-income market near the company’s corporate headquarters in Fredrick, Maryland.

As he began, Jordan applied lessons from class about how to communicate and operate efficiently within a corporate structure. “I would bounce things off of my manager, but for the most part I was just asking a lot of questions,” he says. Learning proper email etiquette in his Business Communication class paid off when his inbox started piling up.

Before the internship, Jordan didn’t expect to spend much time creating content, but he ended up taking hundreds of photos and videos and posting some on social media. In the

Cameron Jordan (’26) says his classes at TMU gave him confidence during a summer internship in digital marketing.

process, he applied much of what he learned from a course called Pocket Studio, which taught him how to capture media and create stories with just the camera on his phone.

Prof. Jefferson Henson, who taught the course, says that Jordan took a special interest in the commercial side of storytelling, intrigued by expanding brand awareness and deepening brand identity. These lessons gave him a strong foundation to work from when he captured content for ThompsonGas.

On top of everything, TMU’s Winterim film production helped Jordan succeed in the internship as he collaborated with Distant Moon (a production house that has worked with big-name companies like Google and Chobani) to create a TV commercial. His previous experience helped him clearly communicate his goals for the commercial to the filmmakers.

By the time he finished his internship, Jordan was producing content on eight different platforms. One of his social media ads had a nearly 50% viewthrough rate. That means half the people it reached watched the whole ad, rather than scrolling away.

“Usually getting 15% of the audience to do so is really great,” Jordan says. Henson’s goal for the marketing media program is that graduating students would feel at home in both corporate and creative worlds. He sees Jordan’s first year as a prime example of the kind of impact the program can make.

“I feel like it gave him the confidence to exist in those spaces and be humbly assertive there,” Henson says.

To learn more about TMU’s marketing media major, visit masters.edu/ marketing-media

2,500+ REGISTERED USERS

20+

PHOTO BY ANNIE VLADOVSKA

TMU Adds Video-Game Design Course

BY LUKE FITZGERALD

In the fall of 2022, a group of computer science majors met in a corner booth of Dunkin Student Center. They wanted to start a club for video-game programming. Throughout the following weeks and months, they kept on chatting, planning, and dreaming. A year later, they reaped the fruits of their work, but it was not a club — it was a class.

Dr. John Beck taught this course, called Game Design and Development, last fall at The Master’s University. For the students involved, it was a semester full of cross-discipline collaboration, detailed game construction, and a whole lot of imagination.

One of the key students from the initial group was Andrew Webberley, a sophomore computer science major who started programming games when he was 8. With the help of his friends and Dr. Beck, who is the dean of the School of Business and Communication, Webberley wrote the syllabus for the course and submitted it for approval. By the start of the semester, the course was official.

In class, Beck encouraged and guided the students as they actively designed games, drawing on his 20 years of experience in the video game industry. Each week, students split into teams of four or five to work on their individual disciplines — programming,

ACADEMICS

Students team up creatively in new class focused on game-programming.

drawing, and story-writing, for example — and then collaborate on the details. At the end, they put it all together to make a functional product.

Rather than working on one complete game, they gained experience in a wide variety of game genres by creating demos of side-scrollers, roleplaying games, and tower-defense games. “Every time we’d move on, we did so with more skills,” says Webberley.

Beck also brought in guest speakers like James Chung (a developer on the Call of Duty franchise with Infinity Ward) and Voldi Way (a programmer and studio head who has developed over 100 retail products across major platforms, including Nintendo, PlayStation, and Microsoft consoles).

Beck was impressed by how devoted the class — which consisted mostly of communication and computer science majors — was to learning in a new environment.

“They’re so passionate about doing this work that they don’t require a lot of external motivation,” he says. “They’ve picked up the ball and run with it. For the students who wish to pursue a career in game design, the work from this class will serve as a valuable portfolio piece.”

Learn more about TMU’s School of Business and Communication at masters.edu/B&C

FACULTY UPDATES (biblical studies) recently had two articles published in the “Lexham Geographic Commentary on the Pentateuch,” edited by Barry J. Beitzel. The first article is entitled “The Patriarchal Travels in Canaan: A Geographic Assessment.” The second article is entitled “The ‘Land’ Given to Abraham and His Descendants: A Geographic and Socio-spatial Analysis.” Both articles show how details of biblical geography point forward to Israel’s future hope in the Messiah. The same volume includes articles written by TMU grads Chris McKinny and Benjamin Foreman.

Last spring, Dr. John Street (biblical counseling) successfully launched the school’s first doctoral program, the Doctor of Ministry in Biblical Counseling. This program focuses on training leaders in the next generation of biblical counselors. The first D.Min. cohort consists of six students from all over the United States and one from overseas. TMU welcomed its second D.Min. cohort of four students this spring. Of note, Dr. Keith Palmer has recently joined TMU’s full-time faculty to lend support in teaching and developing the D.Min. and wellestablished MABC programs.

Dr. Matthew McLain (biology and geology) has written two articles on fossils that are being published in scientific journals, including one on a creationist perspective on the supposed evolutionary transition from fish to four-legged animals.

Dr. Jordan Morton (education) recently appeared on The Art of Discernment podcast to discuss K-12 education. Host Dr. Bob Dickson (communication) asked Morton questions related to helping Christian parents navigate the decisions that come along with their child’s education. Morton laid out the many options that parents have, each opportunity with its own pros and cons. She also discussed biblical principles that can help parents make these decisions, including the importance of not being motivated by fear. Morton is herself a mother who has had to make decisions about her child’s education. You won’t want to miss the episode, set to be released on the University’s YouTube channel on April 8.

Concept art from a student demo game, Pi-Pato. Drawings by TMU student Sophia Nicolas.

Character art by TMU student Petr Bakhmutskiy.

Another Exciting Spring Expected for TMU Athletics

Mustang teams, athletes positioned for national-title contention once again.

BY DAVE CALDWELL

The 2023 spring sports season at The Master’s University was arguably the greatest season in the 60-plus years of the school’s athletics. The Mustangs claimed three individual national championships during the spring, with an additional two runners-up trophies brought back to the campus. Many veteran athletes return for the 2024 campaign, with teams strengthened further by key transfers and freshman recruits. Expect another exciting spring for the Mustangs.

As always, your best source for all things TMU Athletics is gomustangs.com, where you will find schedules, stats, and livestreams of games.

Baseball

HEAD COACH

Monte Brooks 28 TH SEASON

OVERVIEW

Last season the Mustangs finished fourth in the nine-team GSAC, qualifying for the conference postseason where they went 1-2 in the double-elimination tournament. Several key players were lost to

graduation, but the emphasis has been on recruiting pitching to bolster the staff. The offense, led by All-Golden State Athletic Conference returners Austin Young and Ryan Mathiesen, is expected to duplicate last season’s 7.9 runs per game.

KEY RETURNERS

Davis Beavers .261, 12 RBI

Ty Beck .246, 4 HR, 31 RBI

Cason Brownell .241, 19 RBI, 9 SB

JT Friesen 8-1 record, 4.04 ERA, 63 K

Miles Henderson .280, 8 HR, 31 RBI

Carson Knapp 6-3 record, 5.16 ERA

Ryan Mathiesen All-GSAC; .385, 10 HR, 49 RBI

Austin Young All-GSAC; .373, 16 HR, 50 RBI

KEY NEWCOMERS

Robert Schardt transfer pitcher from Oxnard College

Gage Webster transfer pitcher from Vanguard/University of Utah

Joseph DeFrancisco transfer utility player from Westcliff

LAST SEASON

31-16, 13-11 (4th in GSAC)

AUSTIN YOUNG EVI YATES

MATTHEW HAMM

Beach Volleyball

HEAD COACH

Annett Davis 5 TH SEASON

OVERVIEW

Last season, The Master’s beach volleyball team finished the season ranked No. 8 in the NAIA and third in the very-competitive GSAC. In fact, four conference opponents finished the year in the Top 10 nationally, a testament to the GSAC’s strength. Three All-GSAC players return to the Mustangs in 2024, and with the addition of nationally recognized newcomers, expect TMU to once again rank among the nation’s elite.

KEY RETURNERS

Violet Avila ’23 All-GSAC

Annika Booker ’23 All-GSAC

Evi Yates ’23 All-GSAC

KEY NEWCOMERS

Zoe Yates freshman from Chandler, AZ

Faith Wada transfer from Rio Hondo College

LAST SEASON

3rd in GSAC, Ranked No. 8 in the NAIA

Men’s Golf

DIRECTOR OF GOLF

Craig DeSpain 1 ST SEASON

OVERVIEW

The Master’s is coming off its most successful year of golf, with the men’s team finishing second in the NAIA National Championships, and Easton Johnson winning the individual national title. But Head Coach Jacob Hicks accepted the assistant golf coach position at North Carolina State, 2022 NAIA Runner-Up Jack Dudeck graduated, and Johnson transferred to the University of Louisville. However, new recruits and improved scores from returning players have proven the team has picked up where it left off last season.

KEY RETURNERS

Seth Bishop 75.8 scoring average; low-round 68 in 2022-23

Mitchell Briley 74.8 scoring average; low-round 69 4x in 2022-23

DonDon Bumacod 76.1 scoring average; low-round 72 in 2022-23

KEY NEWCOMERS

Wesson Opliger freshman from Grabill, IN Rye Winans freshman from Solvang, CA

Women’s Golf

DIRECTOR OF GOLF

Craig DeSpain 1 ST SEASON

OVERVIEW

The women’s team returns every player from a team that achieved program bests last season. The highlight came from Hannah Ulibarri, who finished as runner-up at the NAIA National Championship. With former Head Coach Jacob Hicks heading to North Carolina State, Craig DeSpain has stepped in as the director of golf, accepting the challenge of continuing the upward climb of this team as it enters its fifth year of existence.

HANNAH ULIBARRI

MITCHELL BRILEY

HANNAH FREDERICKS

CALEB

POULIOT

MONDAY, APRIL 15 TH , 2024 | THE OAKS CLUB at VALENCIA

The Master’s University Annual Golf Tournament is our biggest fundraiser, garnering support for students at TMU. We hope to see you for a great day of golf, fellowship, and most importantly, providing scholarship aid to students in need.

TO REGISTER, VISIT MASTERS.EDU/GOLF

KEY RETURNERS

Ellie Daugherty finished 26th at last season’s National Championship Preview

Peyton Grider finished tied-14th at last season’s National Championship Preview

Bella Huff finished 7th at last season’s National Championship Preview

Nicole Southard finished 19th at last season’s National Championship Preview

Hannah Ulibarri NAIA National Runner-Up

KEY NEWCOMERS

Grace Aamot helped Manhattan Christian HS win its sixth straight Montana state championship in 2023

Men’s Track & Field

HEAD COACH

Zach Schroeder 18 TH SEASON

OVERVIEW

TMU’s men’s outdoor track and field team has continued to be regarded as one of the best in the country, with the results on the track as proof. Last season, Davis Boggess (10k) and Caleb Pouliot (pole vault) each won national championships, and the team as a whole finished the season 12th nationally. Boggess, a four-time All-American, has graduated, but Pouliot returns as does the core of last season’s successful team.

KEY RETURNERS

Caleb Pouliot 2023 Pole Vault National Champion

Daniel Rush All-American in the 5k

Josh Williamson 9th in shot put at NAIA National Championships

KEY NEWCOMERS

Jake Fredericks freshman from Saugus, CA

Dominic Grinceri freshman from Ontario, CA

Seth Richardson freshman from Carmel, IN

LAST SEASON

1st in GSAC, 12th at NAIA National Championships

Women’s Track & Field

HEAD COACH

Zach Schroeder 18 TH SEASON

OVERVIEW

The women’s outdoor track and field team finished in the top 20 at NAIA nationals last year and returns multiple AllAmericans for 2024. Junior Hannah Fredericks has already earned seven All-American distinctions on the track and continues to put herself in the conversation as one of the greatest female athletes in Mustangs history. Every member of the 4x800-meter relay team that finished seventh at nationals in 2023 also returns, another reason to believe this should be a special season.

KEY RETURNERS

Hannah Fredericks ’23 All-American in the 10k; finished 3rd Ellen Palmgren ’23 All-American in the 800 meters; finished 8th; 4x800 Relay member

Emma Nelson ’23 All-American 4x800 Relay

Rebekah Niednagel ’23 All-American 4x800 Relay

Suzie Johnson ’23 All-American 4x800 Relay

KEY NEWCOMERS

Sierra Hale libero on the TMU women’s volleyball team

Juliette Colunga transfer from Clovis Community College

Kayli Lincoln freshman from Los Alamos, NM

Elizabeth Cole 3x state qualifier

LAST SEASON

3rd in GSAC, 17th at NAIA National Championships

Men’s Volleyball

HEAD COACH

Jared Goldberg 4 TH SEASON

OVERVIEW

In just five years of existence, TMU Men’s Volleyball has developed into one of the best programs in the country. And last season’s NAIA national semifinal appearance, when the Mustangs lost to eventual champion Vanguard in a five-set thriller, was further proof. As was the NAIA recognizing

Head Coach Jared Goldberg as its 2023 National Coach of the Year. With more NCAA Division I transfers arriving at TMU for 2024, expect the Mustangs to once again be in the national championship conversation.

KEY RETURNERS

Diego Perez 2x NAIA All-American

Isaac Seltzer 2nd on team in ’23 with 2.42 kills/set

Will Avera 2023 All-GSAC

Braden Van Groningen 6th in GSAC in ’23 with a .348 hitting %

Matthew Hamm NAIA Championship Tournament record 66 assists vs. Indiana Tech in ’23

KEY NEWCOMERS

Patrick Paragas transfer from D1 UC Santa Barbara

Mason Mullins transfer from NCAA D1 Concordia-Irvine

Preston Schmidt freshman from Irvine, CA

LAST SEASON

GSAC Tournament Champion, NAIA National Semifinalist

This booklet is a much needed and extremely helpful tool to provide a map to regaining sexual purity.”

— Dr. John D. Street Author, Passions of the Heart: Biblical Counsel for Stubborn Sexual Sins

Discoveries Underway in Student Research Projects

Assisted by Dr. Ross Anderson, three teams of students are conducting research with valuable applications for the field of medicine.

BY JOSEPHINE LEE

For aspiring scientists at The Master’s University, taking up a student research project is no small commitment. But it’s also a key opportunity to turn classroom studies into real discoveries under the guidance of experienced faculty. This year, Dr. Ross Anderson is helping three teams conduct exciting projects in the fields of molecular biology and microbiology.

Anderson taught at TMU for 25 years, carrying out dozens of research projects in his time as a professor of biochemistry. Despite officially retiring last spring, Anderson is continuing to mentor the next generation of researchers.

“I know these students, and I respect them, and I want to see them achieve their goals,” he said. “And part of that is research.”

One team, led by senior pre-medicine student Michelle Kwong, is testing a nucleotide analog that could

be effective in preventing viral infections at the cellular level. Previous students found the analog effective against bacteria; this year’s team will test the inhibitor against common human viruses.

“It’s exciting, because we have the ability to look into real diseases and real solutions, using novel research,” says Jack Bird, senior pre-medicine student and a member of the research team. “We’re basing our research off of projects from last year — their results look very promising, and so we’re going further.”

Another group of students is continuing a project begun by team leader and pre-veterinary medicine senior Shaveen Del Mel, investigating the potential antiviral properties of Magnoliasilver nanoparticles against bacteriophages. If successful, their research could prove valuable for medicine, even in combating cancer.

Last year, alongside Thai Perez (’23), Del Mel was able to identify silver’s natural antifungal and antimicrobial properties.

The team’s poster presentation, submitted to the West Coast Biological Sciences Undergraduate Research Conference, won a research award in the field of microbiology. Del Mel intends to submit their new findings to this year’s upcoming conference.

Junior pre-medicine student Steve Cingapagu is leading a team in studying the production of an enzyme called lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), which is expressed in five isoforms by different body tissues. His team is attempting to use in situ hybridization to identify if individual cells express different isoforms of LDH.

Cingapagu said, “One of these forms of LDH is critical in certain types of cancer, so understanding what causes this form to

be produced over other forms could allow us in the future to potentially develop cancer drugs that impede its production.”

With all of his teams, Dr. Anderson hopes students will gain the practical skills and experience to succeed in medical school and graduate school. But in the process, they also absorb his passion for the subject, dedication to quality research, and unfaltering encouragement.

“He teaches us like a father would teach his kids,” said Shaina Job, a senior studying cellular and molecular biology. “I feel like there’s more depth to that. I’m enjoying all my teammates — they’re so much fun, and it’s encouraging to see how they help me learn. I love the experience.”

For the latest news about TMU and its students, visit masters.edu/news.

Several TMU research teams, including Shaveen Del Mel, left, and Thai Perez, have won research awards at undergraduate conferences.

PHOTO BY DR. ROSS ANDERSON

ALUMNI FOCUS

Accomplished Music Grad Visits TMU

Desirée Hassler (’00) returned to teach and perform on campus earlier this school year.

BY JOSEPHINE LEE

Dr. Desirée Hassler (Miller) (’00) has performed at concert venues across the United States, but earlier this school year she returned to sing at a place that was instrumental to her musical journey: the Music Recital Hall at The Master’s University.

Hassler – a decorated soprano, active concert performer, and regular on the stage of the Lyric Opera of Chicago –has always loved to sing. “I don’t know how I wouldn’t sing,” she said. “I think this is just how God made me.”

But she didn’t truly start pursuing music until high school. When she came to

TMU (The Master’s College at the time), Hassler was able to explore a range of music styles and develop her vocal mastery in the classical genre. She built relationships with professors and voice teachers like Dr. Kimberlyn Jones, the now-retired founder of TMU’s opera program, who would continue to mentor Hassler for the next 20 years.

“The camaraderie and shepherding nature of the professors was really influential,” Hassler said. “I felt really prepared and inspired by them.”

At TMU, she also met another music student, Daniel Hassler. They’ve now been married almost 25 years.

After graduating, Desirée went on to the University of Illinois, where she received her master’s degree and then a doctorate in vocal performance and literature, with a minor in historical musicology. She and her husband also began raising their family of four children.

Hassler’s everyday life involves “a lot of teenagers, and a lot of Costco runs” — but she’s never stopped teaching and performing. Hassler and her husband both work at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, where Desirée is a professor of music and the voice area coordinator, offering private voice instruction alongside a variety of music courses.

She continues to perform widely. In fact, she’s sung over 1,200 times onstage at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, performing roles in important works such as “Tannhäuser,” “Oklahoma!,” and “Macbeth.” As part of the Lyric Opera, Hassler performed in an opera film of Pagliacci that went on to win the 2022 Emmy for Outstanding Achievement Arts/Entertainment Long Form.

Hassler’s repertoire includes classical pieces like Bach’s Mass in B Minor with

the Chicago Bach Project, and popular operas such as Verdi’s La Traviata with the Lake Geneva Symphony Orchestra. She’s also successfully competed from the regional to international level, receiving distinguished awards such as winner of the Voice Division of the International Franz Liszt competition in 2004.

In September, Hassler made time in her schedule to fly out and spend a few days at TMU. Although she’s visited several times since her graduation — most recently to sing in the concert honoring the retirement of Dr. Paul Plew, former dean of TMU’s School of Music — this visit was particularly memorable for her.

Hassler taught several lessons to vocal performance students, as well as a voice master class open to the public. She also performed in a guest recital of her own, collaborating with Dr. Ken Mays, professor emeritus at TMU and Hassler’s former theory teacher. The recital included some of the very pieces she learned as a student, as well as two hymn arrangements Mays wrote especially for her.

When she thought back on her experience at TMU — first as a pupil, now as an alumna — Hassler said that though the paint on the music building may be a different color, “the feeling here is also very familiar. Different faces, but the same goals."

“Being back feels extremely meaningful,” she said, “and I’m feeling a lot of gratitude to come full circle with this program and be able to collaborate with some of my former professors.”

TMU’s Paul T. Plew School of Music prepares students to develop their musical skills as an act of worship. If someone you know would be interested in studying music at TMU, tell them to visit masters.edu/music.

During a recent visit to TMU, Desirée Hassler taught several lessons to vocal performance students.

Truth & Life 2024 Exalted Christ in All of History

Speakers, including Drs. Ken Ham and John MacArthur, explored redemptive history through the theme, “Heaven + Earth.”

BY KAELYN PEAY

The 2024 Truth & Life Conference, hosted by The Master’s University in January, was titled “Heaven + Earth.” The event featured messages from Dr. Ken Ham (founder CEO of Answers in Genesis), Harry Walls (campus pastor of TMU), and Dr. John MacArthur (chancellor of TMU), celebrating Christ’s centrality from the beginning of history to the end.

In MacArthur’s message on heaven, and the end of human history described in Revelation 21-22, he said, “I want to establish in your mind that if you are a believer in Christ, you are headed for a heaven that cannot change, that will not change, because it is all bound up in the eternal decree of God, who has granted you eternal glory in Christ from before the foundation of the world.”

These and other messages are available for viewing on TMU’s YouTube channel

Dr. John MacArthur was one of the featured speakers at this year’s Truth & Life.

TMU to Produce ‘Tuck Everlasting’ This Semester

In April, students will perform a Broadway musical adapted from a classic children’s novel.

BY LUKE FITZGERALD

The Theatre Arts program at The Master’s University has another exciting production waiting behind the curtain. This spring, students will stage a musical based on the bestselling children’s novel “Tuck Everlasting.” Originally written by author and illustrator Natalie Babbit, it tells the story of an 11-year-old girl who longs for adventure. She finds more than she bargained for when

she winds up with a family that has found the secret to eternal youth. But along the way, she learns that being young forever isn’t all it’s cut out to be.

Tricia Hulet, director of TMU Theatre Arts, said the production has a cast and crew of 43 students. She added that audiences can expect to see elaborate sets, singing, and

choreography. “The themes are fun. There’s adventure. There’s danger,” Hulet said, “but beyond and underneath that, there are great themes of evaluating what really is the importance of life.”

Shows will take place from April 5-13. Tickets can be purchased at masters.edu/theatre

PHOTO BY HANNAH BARRETT

Fans of TMU Theatre Arts can expect elaborate sets, singing, and choreography from “Tuck Everlasting” this semester.

PHOTO BY ANNIE VLADOVSKA

FFeatures

Trophy Coffee has become one of the favorite gathering spots of TMU students.

32 The Hotchkiss Legacy

40 A Fantastic 50th

44 Classical Education Crosses the Atlantic

THE

PHOTOS (from left to right):

Despite Herbert’s strenuous schedule, LABTS’s 1958 yearbook notes that “his classes always show thorough preparation."

Hotchkiss Hall has housed students, like these two, since 1965. But the Hotchkiss family’s legacy extends far beyond the dorm named in Herbert’s honor.

Marjorie and Herbert Hotchkiss formed one of the most impactful duos in school history.

BY KAELYN PEAY

The Hotchkiss family not only helped save our institution from extinction, but faithfully demonstrated sacrificial service and wholehearted trust in the Lord.

EDITOR’S NOTE: The Master’s University (previously Los Angeles Baptist Theological Seminary, Los Angeles Baptist College, and The Master’s College) is nearing its 100th year as an institution. As we approach the milestone in 2027, this is the second in a series of stories about men and women used mightily by the Lord in our history.

hen Dr. Herbert Hotchkiss first received the invitation in 1947, he and his wife Marjorie weren’t particularly excited. Los Angeles Baptist Theological Seminary (LABTS) wanted Herbert to leave his home in Philadelphia and the church he had pastored for 17 years to come teach in California.

Decades later, Marjorie recounted the reasons for their hesitation in a written history she drafted for the school.

“First, with all of our families in the East, we had never had a desire to move to the ‘wild and woolly west,’” she wrote in 1991. “Secondly, we were a family of seven, five children whose ages ranged from 13 down to 2, and we had no car and no savings.”

The “no savings” part was critical, because LABTS, then 20 years old, was struggling financially and on the cusp of closing.

“If the school had no resources, how could they afford to bring us west, and support us once we were there?” Marjorie wrote. “No, it was not a sensible move to consider, so my husband wrote that though he was concerned for their survival, he believed the more reasonable direction for the school would be to pursue a man with fewer children, freer and more mobile.”

However, Dr. Carl Sweazy — then a member of LABTS’s board of trustees and the source of Herbert’s lifechanging invitation — was insistent. He asked the Hotchkisses to pray about it. They said they would. And as they prayed, their hearts began to shift. Passages in Scripture about trusting the Lord and following

where He calls rang loud in their ears.

Then the situation became even more dire. In July 1947, the Hotchkisses learned that the board of LABTS had voted to close the school. The school’s existing leadership had imploded, and resources just weren’t there to continue any longer.

But by then, the Hotchkisses were resolved. They would go, and Herbert would help save the school. He wrote back urging them not to go forward with closing; he was coming, along with another East Coast academic named Dr. Milton Fish, who had also agreed to help.

With LABTS hurting for funds, there was no help to be received with moving expenses and no guarantee of a salary when Herbert got there. But that didn’t matter. The Hotchkisses packed their young family into a 1941 Buick Special bought on a loan from Herbert’s father and drove west, trusting the Lord to provide.

And provide He did — and not just financial means to survive in California, or friendships in a place where they knew no one. In response to that decision to leave their lives behind for an uncertain future, the Lord has provided the Hotchkiss family with an enduring legacy through their ministry to students and the continued existence of a school that probably would not have survived without them.

John Hotchkiss, who ultimately followed in his father’s footsteps and taught for four decades at what became The Master’s University, says Herbert “came as a protector of the vision” of the school.

“I think my parents saw this as God’s way of using them in a ministry

that was worth preserving, worth investing in — worth giving their lives to.”

A SEASON OF SACRIFICE

For Herbert, this wasn’t the first time he’d sacrificed a more comfortable life because he felt called to ministry.

He was once on track for a stable career in academia, teaching English at Cornell University and later Wheaton College. But when he felt a call to pastoral ministry, he switched tracks to study at Westminster Seminary and take up the pastorate at Spruce Street Baptist Church in Philadelphia. Though he taught at Philadelphia School of the Bible on the side, his primary ministry for 17 years was at his church.

Even so, the call to LABTS involved giving up even more security in exchange for a less certain field of ministry. There was no knowing whether the school would survive the year. But with the news of Hotchkiss and Fish coming out to help, the board agreed to reverse the closure and keep trying.

The Hotchkiss family arrived in Los Angeles just in time for the start of classes in the fall of 1947. Herbert showed up ready to teach the small but faithful cohort of 15 students who, like him, had agreed to come even with the school’s future on shaky ground.

LABTS was in a hole of debt to the prior year’s faculty, because there hadn’t been money to pay their salaries. In one of his very first acts after arriving, Herbert participated in a Sept. 1 meeting with his fellow professors about this issue.

In the end, they told the school’s

board that LABTS should prioritize all necessary expenses, including paying off debt, over paying faculty salaries. Even if that left nothing to pay them with, they resolved that the school not go any further into the red on their account.

“Many learned the meaning of sacrifice in those beginning days,” Marjorie wrote by way of poignant summary.

Still, the Lord provided financially for the Hotchkiss family. Days after arriving, Herbert connected with an Armenian congregation in the city looking for an English-speaking preacher. Each Sunday, he drove over to preach at the morning and evening services, and this ministry kept his family fed.

Of course, preaching twice on Sundays, on top of his responsibilities at LABTS, made for a trying schedule.

“Both of us are working harder than we ever worked before,” Herbert wrote in April 1948 in a letter to a prospective student. “I lost so much weight and strength for a while that I had to ask the Lord for new strength to do His work. He heard our prayer, and from that day I gained weight, and strength to sit up and work till 2 a.m., when needed several nights a week. There comes a time when an ‘all-out’ effort is needed in the Lord’s service, and this is it.”

As a key member of a small faculty, Herbert was called on to teach across a wide range of disciplines — something his educational background had prepared him for. Drawing from his studies in both literature and theology, he primarily taught Bible, history, and English courses.

Herbert’s conviction that the liberal arts ought to be studied — and particularly studied from a biblical perspective — was instrumental in bringing him to LABTS, and that conviction shone through clearly in his teaching across every subject.

A 1954 Baptist Bulletin article on LABTS quotes Herbert as saying, “The world looks at the Bible through its books; we look at books through the Bible.”

The school’s 1958 yearbook describes Herbert as a “godly and scholarly example” to his students. And

HOTCHKISS FAMILY TIMELINE

1947

THE HOTCHKISS FAMILY MOVES TO LOS ANGELES SO THAT HERBERT CAN TEACH AT LABTS.

1961

THE SCHOOL AND THE HOTCHKISS FAMILY MOVE TO NEWHALL.

1963

JOHN BEGINS STUDYING AT LABC.

1965

HOTCHKISS HALL IS COMPLETED AND DEDICATED IN HONOR OF HERBERT.

1967

JOHN GRADUATES FROM LABC.

1968

HERBERT TEACHES HIS FINAL CLASS AT LABC.

1969

JOHN BEGINS TEACHING AT LABC.

1972

HERBERT PASSES AWAY AT THE AGE OF 77.

2005

MARJORIE PASSES AWAY AT THE AGE OF 92.

2013

JOHN RETIRES FROM TEACHING AT TMC.

despite his strenuous schedule, the book notes that “his classes always show thorough preparation.”

On top of teaching, Herbert also took on many other responsibilities at the school — from corresponding with prospective students and employees, to serving as the registrar, to helping with summer maintenance work.

Marjorie, too, had her hands full, serving at LABTS on what was called the “Women’s Auxiliary.” “We were the voluntary maintenance department of the school in the early days,” she wrote. This group — made up of female students, wives, and mothers connected to LABTS — took responsibility for maintaining dorm rooms, cooking meals, and hosting fundraising dinners that helped keep the school afloat through its leanest years.

Slowly but surely, the school’s student body and reputation grew. And when Dr. John Dunkin came on as president in 1959, progress accelerated. His first year, Dunkin reversed the policy of paying faculty salaries last, instead making such payments the first priority.

Then, in 1961, the growing school moved locations from urban Los Angeles to rural Newhall. The Hotchkiss family moved with it.

‘LITTLE JOHNNY HOTCHKISS’ GROWS UP

One of the incoming students in those days was John Hotchkiss. Only two years old when his family moved to California, “Dr. Hotchkiss’s little son” was often seen hanging around the school.

“The first decade was probably the most difficult of the school’s history,” wrote Marjorie, “and I recall my husband saying, ‘There seems to be a crisis every day.’ (But) God had provided something to greatly encourage us from the first day we arrived. On the wall of the Seminary building just outside the Dean’s office was a plaque which read:

God hath not taught us to trust in His name

And thus far hath brought us to put us to shame.”

Wrote Marjorie, “That buoyed our spirits many, many times.”

“Our family was eager to move out of the city,” Marjorie wrote. “ … Before the freeway was out that far, Newhall was still something of a frontier town and cost of housing had not accelerated. God's timing is perfect. We were able to buy an adequate house built in 1943 just a mile from the college.”

All of the hard work and sacrifice of earlier years was finally starting to bear fruit. The school, which began referring to its college division as Los Angeles Baptist College (LABC) in 1961, saw its enrollment grow semester by semester, with the campus and faculty growing alongside.

In the fall of 1963, he showed up on campus as a student for the first time — the fourth Hotchkiss child to do so. He enrolled as a humanities major, following in the footsteps of his father’s education in English.

John says he quickly “fell in with some pretty adventurous dormmates,” gaining a reputation as a prankster. But he was also up to his elbows in the same ministry as his parents: building (in his case, literally) the school.

The new campus in Placerita Canyon had previously served as Happy Jack Ranch, and turning it into a usable

After Herbert passed away, Marjorie continued pouring herself into LABC. She managed the bookstore and counseled female students, and in the 1970s she spent six years as the dean of women.

learning space, John says, was “an adventure like no other.”

“I just remember that building after building after building went up,” he says.

John helped build many of these with his own hands, both during high school and as an LABC student. “I did framing and masonry work — I drove tractors,” John remembers. He worked on Vider and Rutherford halls, Powell Library, and the “White House” (now the Chancellor’s House).

Then, in 1964, he turned his labors toward a new project: a large H-shaped dormitory with room for 200 students. Along with other classmates, John worked long days on that project at less than a dollar an hour.

The next year, the finished project was dedicated in honor of John’s father, and generations of students have since called Herbert V.

“The board just gravitated toward naming it after him,” John says. “He didn’t donate money, but he did spend the last 20 years of his life in the preparation of students and the service of the Lord.”

Meanwhile, Herbert’s health was failing. He was already in his 50s when he made the move to California, and the stresses of his responsibilities wore on him. In the same year that Hotchkiss Hall was dedicated, he suffered from severe heart failure. Though he resumed work afterward, he taught only half the number of classes as before.

The years had been hard on Herbert. In fact, John says that his father never adjusted to the West Coast’s climate and culture. “But he never complained, and he never thought of going back,” John says. “He saw this as God’s will. And he loved the students — he just poured his life into preparing them.”

Herbert took the duty of teaching the next generation of believers very seriously. In a 1962 document, he used military language to describe the necessity of a Christ-honoring education, writing, “Freshmen in secular colleges are not prepared to meet the attacks on Christian faith.

THE WORLD LOOKS AT THE BIBLE THROUGH ITS BOOKS; WE LOOK AT BOOKS THROUGH THE BIBLE.

HERBERT HOTCHKISS

1954, BAPTIST BULLETIN ARTICLE

… Green troops are not prepared for battle. They need Christian, battlewise teachers.”

Herbert kept up the fight nearly to the last moment. In 1968 he taught his final class at LABC, and he entered glory in January 1972, ten days before his 78th birthday.

By then, John had already stepped in as LABC’s Prof. Hotchkiss.

John graduated from LABC in 1967 (marrying his classmate Sharron Roberts the same year) and went on to further studies in English at Pepperdine University.

“Little Johnny Hotchkiss” grew up to become one of the school’s most beloved professors.

“The idea was to prepare and get my graduate degree so that I could come back and fill in the gap that Herbert Hotchkiss had left,” John says.

John began teaching at LABC in 1969. “I was only 24,” he says. “But I knew how to read and write and explain things. And I just got better at it as time went on.”

THE WORK CONTINUES

Though Herbert was gone, Marjorie was far from done pouring herself into LABC.

In fact, as her house emptied, with her children steadily filtering through LABC, marrying, and starting families of their own, she found herself with more time to serve. She managed the bookstore, counseled female students, and opened her home to those who needed housing. In the 1970s, she even spent six years as the school’s dean of women.

In Carl Sweazy’s written history of the school, he made a special note of Marjorie’s contributions.

“Along with many others, I look upon Mrs. Hotchkiss as the ‘mother’ of our college,” he wrote. “... (T)his exceptionally gifted and personable woman has served the college in many capacities. … I have witnessed her consistent loyalty and love for the school through the years. Her quiet, gracious, dignified service ranks her among the ‘greatest’ on our campus.”

In 1976, LABC granted Marjorie an honorary bachelor’s degree. And though she retired the next year, she wrote that she continued to “have a vital interest in the college through prayer and other support.”

John, meanwhile, faithfully served as an English professor for more

than four decades, soon rising to the position of department chair. He taught generations of students and mentored new English faculty as they joined the school, including current professor Dr. Kurt Hild.

“He was every bit a friend as he was a colleague and mentor,” says Hild. “He was so bright and so knowledgeable, and he had such a humble, careful, thoughtful, gentle way of teaching students. I am indebted to him for more than I would ever be able to say.”

All told, John spent 66 years of his life in and around the school that is now The Master’s University.

“For the majority of the school’s history, little Johnny Hotchkiss was hanging around somewhere, doing something,” says John, who now lives in Tennessee with his wife Sharron. “I would never have imagined having a career of almost 45 years in one place. That was the grace of God, and then the grace of the directors to keep putting contracts in front of me.”

John retired in 2013. At that year’s commencement ceremony, he was honored by Dr. John MacArthur for his wisdom and kindness as a professor. A news article written at

the time records that he received a standing ovation from the students in attendance.

“John (Hotchkiss) played a major role in building out the English major,” says Dr. John Stead, executive vice president of TMU. “And he was probably the best of all of our faculty in his comprehensive concern for preserving the history of the University. He’s contributed substantially to that historical portfolio.”

He did this, in part, by keeping extensive archives of his parents’ documents, which now serve as a window into a crucial period of the institution’s history. Included in these archives is his mother’s firsthand account of those years.

When Marjorie Hotchkiss sat down in 1991, 14 years before her death, to record this perspective on her family’s relationship with LABC, she concluded with these words:

“I praise the Lord that He brought our family to California to be a part of this school which stands so solidly on the Word of God, and continues to train young people for the service of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.”

LABC president John Dunkin presents John Hotchkiss with the school’s Alumnus of the Year Award.

The Alumni Association recently welcomed members of the Class of 1974 back to campus to reconnect with friends and reflect on their time at LABC.

BY MASON NESBITT

A FANTASTIC

Guests at the Class of 1974 Reunion, left to right: Mike and Brenda Keith, Scott and Laurie Baughman, Lisa and Jim Crouch, Darlene and Steve Potter, Martha and Jim Edgar, Darlene Sandowich (standing in front of Jim Edgar), Becky and Tom Ruhlman, Kevin Farrow, Daryl Conklin, Terri Lund, Ron Vandermey, Richard Lund, Denise Vandermey, Sue Moore Donaldson, Earl and Diana Oliver, and Debra Fetters.

PHOTO BY MARK FINSTER

FANTASTIC

Dr. Abner Chou had nearly finished delivering a short welcome to the Class of 1974 when he encountered a friendly interruption.

“I’m thrilled to see all of you here from 50 years ago,” Chou, president of The Master’s University, said during a dinner for the class’s golden reunion in December.

“It’s only been 20 years,” one alum called out, drawing laughs from her classmates. “You count backwards after a while,” another guest echoed.

The two-day reunion was permeated by an unmistakable lightheartedness, as alumni gathered at what they knew as Los Angeles Baptist College to reconnect with friends, revisit old stomping grounds, and share stories of God’s faithfulness in the decades they’ve been apart.

Why was it so important to reconvene?

“Those were formative years. We all became adults at the same time,” says Daryl Conklin, who didn’t finish his degree at LABC but still felt a deep connection to classmates in that era.

Conklin attended LABC from 1970 to 1972 before transferring to pursue a bachelor of science degree in building construction and design. Still, he says his time in Newhall opened his eyes to the power of Scripture. An opportunity to see the people he shared such formative years with was too good to pass up. “I wouldn’t have missed it,” said the Ohio resident.

The reunion opened with a catered dinner on Thursday, Dec. 7, and attendees, all wearing a lanyard with

their LABC yearbook photo on it, lingered for a long time afterward, continuing to talk about memories, kids, and careers. At one point during the evening, guests passed around a long-distance FaceTime call with Tom Loong, a member of the Class of ’74 who returned to his native Hong Kong after graduation, teaching at a Bible college and seminary there. Everyone, it seemed, wanted to tell Loong hello.

The next day, inside Dunkin Student Center, alumni took turns sharing updates from the last 50 years, many of the anecdotes demonstrating God’s commitment to carry His people through life’s highs and lows. Then they prayed — a fitting conclusion. But moments later, they got going again, and the stories and laughs continued to flow.

“We only had 300 students back then, so you just felt like you were one big family with a lot of camaraderie and Christian fellowship,” says Becky Ruhlman (’74), who met her husband Tom (’71), on her first day at LABC. They now have 32 grandchildren and live in Washington state, where Tom has served as the

Jim Crouch (’74) and others enjoy a catered dinner inside the English and History Center.

PHOTO BY MARK FINSTER

pastor at Tabernacle Baptist Church in Shoreline since 1980.

Becky says her time at LABC grounded her in the Scriptures, a statement echoed by Mike Keith (’74), who has used that foundation in more than four decades as a pastor, currently at New Hope Community Church in Lake Tapps, Washington.

Keith’s ministry is but one example of how the Lord has used the Class of ’74.

Earl Oliver has been a pastor for 50 years, spending most of that time alongside former Los Angeles Baptist professor Bruce Stabbert at Fellowship Bible Church in Tacoma, Washington.

Debra Fetters taught school for 41 years.

Dr. Ron Vandermey had a commentary on Hosea published by Moody Press while he was still in his 20s, has served

as a pastor, and in 2000 was named History Teacher of the Year by the Southern California Historical Society.

Scott Baughman, the reunion’s organizer, was a financial analyst for the city of Tacoma, started a language school in Portugal as a tentmaking ministry, and was then an administrator at a Christian school in Scottsdale, Arizona, for 20 years.

Kevin Farrow spent two decades working as an all-source intelligence analyst for the U.S. Army.

Sue Moore Donaldson is a podcaster and a speaker at Christian women’s events.

That’s only a few of the many stories that were shared.

During the reunion’s dinner, guests played a game: Who Am I? A speaker read three facts about someone from the Class of 1974 and asked the group to guess who he was referring to. Some of the answers were serious: “I was an adapted P.E. teacher serving children with special needs.” Some were not: “I participated in the prank carrying Mr. Marshall’s VW Bug into the lobby of Hotchkiss Hall.”

There was plenty more reminiscing. During a tour of campus, Conklin talked about afternoons on the soccer field. Baughman shared fond memories of a “ditch day” trip to San Diego with

classmates. More than one person reflected on the close mentorship they received from LABC professors, who cared not only about their students’ academic achievements but about their spiritual lives.

While there was plenty of looking back, Chou, TMU’s president and John F. MacArthur Endowed Fellow, addressed the present. At the dinner, he thanked the group for paving the way for the school’s current faithfulness and reminded them that the University’s doctrinal convictions hadn’t changed –even if the buildings around them had.

Chou didn’t have to look far for an example of campus transformation. The reunion dinner took place on North Campus, inside the English and History Center, a spot that in 1974 still belonged to Grace Baptist Church.

As the group left that night, they were invited to attend chapel the following morning; “Can we skip or will we get demerits?” someone asked. Despite the teasing, many of the guests did join the student body for chapel and were encouraged by what they witnessed.

Said Baughman, “The music, focus on Scripture, and the practical message all left us feeling blessed to have attended and confirmed that TMU continues to have the strong biblical principles that the institution was founded on in 1927.”

Sue Moore Donaldson, left, and Daryl Conklin during a tour of campus.

Kevin Farrow, right, Mike Keith, center, and other members of the Class of 1974 visit chapel during their reunion in December.

PHOTO BY MARK FINSTER

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE MASTER’S UNIVERSITY ALUMNI ASSOCIATION AT MASTERS.EDU/ALUMNI

PHOTO BY MARK FINSTER

Reunion guests get a look at the new grand entrance to the Business Center during a tour of campus.

PHOTO BY MARK FINSTER

CLASSICAL EDUCATION CROSSES THE ATLANTIC

BY JOSEPHINE LEE

DR. GRANT HORNER IS CONTRIBUTING TO AN ENORMOUS EFFORT TO BRING THE CLASSICAL CHRISTIAN APPROACH TO EAST AFRICA.

One evening in 2017, Dr. Grant Horner had just finished conducting a plenary talk in Manhattan when he came face-to-face with a continent-sized proposal.

“How’d you like to help me start a thousand classical schools in Africa?”

Horner’s answer was equally frank.

“Sign me up!”

The encounter between Horner and Karen Elliott, the executive director of the Rafiki Foundation, began a trans-Atlantic partnership that has since incorporated Horner into an enormous effort to revolutionize schooling in East Africa. Most recently in October, he made an important trip to join Rafiki conferences in Kenya and Uganda, where he and other educators introduced hundreds of African teachers, parents, and leaders to the value of a classical Christian education.

The Rafiki Foundation’s investment in the classical approach stems from its larger effort to transform Africa by providing the next

generation with spiritual care and academic training. Rafiki has taken on the mantle of transmitting classical Christian education to hundreds of students in its educational facilities and partnering church schools. Now, through agreements with key leaders, their curriculum is expanding across East Africa.

Horner is a professor of English, Renaissance, and Reformation and the director of the classical liberal arts program at The Master’s University. He also serves as a regional director for the Alcuin Fellowship, a think tank of classical educators that hosts educational conferences for teachers around the country. It was at one such retreat that Horner and Elliott met and began brainstorming on how Alcuin’s resources could carry the classical approach across the Atlantic.

During the conferences in Africa last October, Horner and other Alcuin fellows shaped a vision for what classical education could look like in a uniquely African context — not replacing the cultural heritage, but building upon it. Where some have associated classical education exclusively

with Europe, Horner points to a Mediterranean origin, identifying key church fathers who initiated the movement – like Athanasius, Tertullian, and the formidable Augustine.

Horner says, “Our goal was to communicate to them what classical Christian education is, help them understand that its roots — the original formulizers of theology in the postapostolic age — were Levantine and North African, and then to challenge them to investigate it.”

As part of the conferences, meetings were held with decision-makers representing various denominations and educational systems in East Africa. Many indicated their desire to implement Rafiki’s curriculum in their own institutions — an effort that will affect at least a thousand schools and hundreds of thousands of children.

Horner’s involvement with classical Christian education goes back a long way. He first made contact with the movement in the 80s, when its initial seeds were being planted. The call for a radically different but historically

grounded form of schooling didn’t impress him much in the beginning.

“This will never take off,” he thought.

Two decades later, when the movement had exploded across America, Horner would become one of its foremost academics, designing the high school humanities program at Trinity Classical Academy in Santa Clarita, one of the country’s top classical schools. This was followed by his development of the classical liberal arts (CLA) program at TMU, the first of its kind in the United States.

Now, having already sent out dozens of well-equipped students from the program, Horner believes that the same model of education could transform lives across East Africa.

“The classical approach is asking, ‘Where do I find goodness, truth, and beauty in my culture? And why do all of us have a sense of goodness, of truth, and of beauty — whether we are in the jungles of Borneo or urban Manhattan?’” he says.

One of Horner’s very first graduates from the CLA program, Tate Dafoe (maiden name England), has seen the growth of the classical movement in Africa firsthand. Dafoe, who was classically schooled even before coming to TMU, has made five trips to Rwanda since high school to help train both teachers and students. She emphasized the importance of having Western educators partner in the organization’s mission.

She said, “The teachers there have the vision for it, but they don’t really know what it looks like in practice. To have people who have studied or learned under classical education is very helpful for them.”

Horner and the Alcuin Fellowship will continue to provide materials, run training sessions, and recruit teachers to assist Rafiki. The cross-cultural connection could prove valuable for students in the advancing African schools as well as students in Horner’s own program seeking to serve abroad.

Dafoe explained, “I think it would be a great opportunity for other CLA

Horner is the founder of TMU’s classical liberal arts program, which is developing the next generation of classical teachers.

Last October, Horner and other educators crafted a vision for how classical education could serve Africa’s needs.

PHOTO COURTESY OF RAFIKI FOUNDATION

PHOTO COURTESY OF RAFIKI FOUNDATION

majors to go over there for a month and help out in teaching a few courses, seeing what it looks like on a different continent. I know that it’s as beneficial for us as it is for them.”

If Rafiki’s ambitious efforts prove successful, Horner anticipates a future where African students will be able to engage classical literature side-by-side with the rich works of their heartland.

Horner said, “I want to watch them run their own Socratic dialogues about similarities and differences between East African, Levantine, North African, European, and American cultures. What can they learn from us? What can we learn from them? Where are we both responding to some universal that God has woven into the fabric of His universe?”

At conferences in Africa last October, Horner conducted plenary talks and Socratic method trainings to bring the classical approach to life.

Thanks to a group of generous partners, every donation you make to the TMU Fund in the month of March will be matched dollar for dollar, up to a cumulative donor total of $50,000 — for a grand total of $100,000 to the fund. When you give during March, you are not just doubling your donation, you are doubling your impact!

Together we can empower more students to receive an education that prepares them for a life of enduring commitment to Christ, Scripture, and lasting contribution to the kingdom of God worldwide.

C Connect

50 The Homegoing of David van Wingerden

52 Thinking Biblically with Dr. John MacArthur

56 Just Catching Up

IN MEMORIAM

demonstrated a genuine care for all he encounters. His heart’s desire is that others may know his Savior and the joy that comes from following Him.”

David first came to The Master’s University (that was then The Master’s College) as a student in the early ’90s. He studied business and biblical counseling. He met Keri at TMU. They both graduated in 1995.

Shortly after graduation, David and Keri married and moved to Ethiopia for 16 months. David was able to use his knowledge of soil and farming to help local farmers grow food more productively.

Unshakeable Joy and Enduring Faith: The Homegoing of David van Wingerden

David van Wingerden (’95), a beloved member of The Master’s University and Seminary board of directors and a TMU alum, entered the presence of the Lord on January 15, 2024.

For 19 months, David battled acute myeloid leukemia. As his body slowly succumbed to the disease, he took every opportunity to champion the cause of Christ, constantly laboring to encourage, serve, and sacrifice for others and always expressing gratitude for the Lord’s provision. During treatment, David continued to attend TMUS board meetings. Afterward, he would take students out to meals and spend time encouraging other board members. He was tireless in pouring himself out for others.

Three weeks before David’s homegoing, his wife, Keri, emailed these words to his fellow board members and leaders at TMUS:

“When David was first diagnosed he

BY TMUS STAFF

committed to fighting his cancer with everything he had. Not only has he done that, he’s done it with dignity, integrity, a focus on others and almost no complaints. It appears his fight is almost over. He can say like Paul, ‘For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith. In the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing’ (2 Tim. 4:6-8).

“Oh, what a precious gift eternal life is. David was speaking with a friend about approaching the end and how it is hard to depart because we were created for good works and to share the hope of the Gospel, and he doesn’t feel he’s done. Each conversation he’s had that I’ve been either a part of or a silent listener to he’s

After their time in Ethiopia, David and Keri returned to Ohio, not far from where he was born and raised in Oberlin. He began working in the family business — Express Seed Company — and would eventually become the company’s chief operating officer. In Ohio, he and his wife raised five children: TJ, Makannen, Chatham, Jack, and Kaytence. Three of his children have attended TMU. David was a long-time member and deacon of Grace Church of North Olmsted, and he has faithfully served on the TMUS board since 2021.

When asked about David’s character and the legacy he leaves behind, Dr. Abner Chou, president of The Master’s University and Seminary, said, “David embodies everything we want a TMU grad to be. He captured all things to the lordship of Christ, and we are thankful for his leadership on the board. When we spoke with him the day before he went to hospice, he charged all of us at TMUS to never stop battling for absolute fidelity to the Lord Jesus Christ and His Word. David lived out that commitment, that is the legacy he left to us, and we must continue to uphold the truth which he so cherished.”

TMU is setting up a scholarship in David’s honor. More information will be available at masters.edu/donor-scholarships.

As he battled cancer during the last months of his life, David van Wingerden continued to faithfully represent Christ and serve others.

The MacArthur Center Podcast

The Expositor: The Story of How John MacArthur Became the World’s Premier Expository Preacher

HUSBANDS, LOVE IS NOT OPTIONAL

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she would be holy and blameless.

So husbands ought also to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself.

EPHESIANS 5:25-28

Verse 25 offers a clear principle: The husband’s responsibility is to love his wife. It doesn’t say rule her. He already has that tendency — a tendency to dominate her, to control her, to command her. The curse does that. He is told here that he is to love her.

And this is the love of self-sacrifice. You are to love your wives just as Christ also loves the church and gave Himself up for her. That is the manner of love, the same kind of love that Christ extended to His church.

I have often heard people say about their wife, “I love her too much.” I promptly reply, “Do you love her as much as Christ loved the church? If

you don’t, then you don’t love her enough.” That’s the standard.

This elevation and commitment to a wife was frankly revolutionary in the Roman world, as it is revolutionary in our world today. It’s revolutionary today where you have an agenda in which a man basically says, “As long as you fulfill what I want out of life, you can be my wife. And when you cease to do that, I’ll get somebody else.” That’s how it works today. What God said through Paul was shocking then and it is shocking now.

We are to love our wives. That is a command. You cannot say, “Well, I don’t love her anymore,” without confessing that you’ve sinned.

You say, “Well, wait a minute, you don’t know how she’s treated me.” That’s not the issue. Christ loved sinners when they hated Him. Is that not true? And that’s the model.

Can I say it simply, gentlemen? The Spirit-filled husband loves his wife not for what she can do for him, but what he can do for her. That’s how Christ’s

love worked and works. He loves us not because there’s something in us that attracts Him; He loves us because He determined to love us despite our unattractiveness. He loves us with a love that seeks not to tyrannize us, but rather, that seeks to meet our needs, to understand us, and to provide strength for us.

The Spirit of God gives us the capacity to carry and share this kind of love. The love of Christ is shed abroad in our hearts. The very love which Christ Himself demonstrated toward us, we partake in.

We who have been born again have a sincere love, a fervent love, because of the imperishable seed of the living and abiding Word of God which has granted us new life. God so loved us that He gave His Son. Christ so loved us that He gave His life. We love our wives to the point of self-sacrifice.

This post is based on a sermon Dr. MacArthur preached in 1996, titled “God’s Pattern for Husbands, Part 1.” Find more posts from Thinking Biblically at masters.edu/TB

The Master’s in Ministry

After graduating from TMU in 2006, I went on to intern at a church in Colorado Springs, which led to my first youth ministry position in Columbia, Missouri. I spent two years in that position and often thought that my counseling degree had well equipped me for the role. After working in youth ministry, the Lord directed me to a role in the banking industry, which I did for years. However, during my time as a banker, I still desired to do pastoral

ministry. I subsequently became bi-vocational, working at the bank and with my church. This culminated in me being asked to plant a campus of our church in the capital city of Missouri, Jefferson City. After church planting for three years, my wife and I moved back to Colorado Springs, and I took a job with Focus on the Family in fundraising.

After serving five years overseeing various aspects

of fundraising for Focus on the Family, a position opened up for me to lead our pastoral initiatives under the brand The Focused Pastor. Today I get to use my pastoral experience to develop content, initiatives, and events that serve pastors all over the country. My time at TMU helped to prepare me for a life of ministry in the local church, in the public sector, and now in the parachurch context that I get to serve in.

Josh & Harmony Zeichik

Highlighting Alumni Serving the Lord in Vocational Ministry

Josh (TMC ’06, MABC ’17) Jack (8) | Charlie (5) | Micah (2)

Carly Jean Los Angeles is an online clothing and lifestyle brand that sells primarily women’s attire to customers around the world.

Ask the company’s owners, Chad and Carly Jean Brannon, and they’ll give you another definition: It’s a stewardship from the Lord meant to be wielded for His glory and the good of others.

That mindset has motivated the couple to invest in The Master’s University and its students, committing time, energy, and resources to Chad’s alma mater and the alma mater of more than a third of the company’s employees.

“I’ve been given so much by the University and by Pastor John’s ministry through Grace Church,” Chad says. “And we thought, ‘Hey, we’ve already got this natural interaction happening with TMU. Do we want to

Carly Jean Los Angeles Commits Time, Energy, and Resources to TMU

BY MASON NESBITT

formalize it in any way?’ That’s how it started.”

As it happens, it was also at Grace Church that Chad and Carly Jean first met nearly 20 years ago. They married in 2006, and two years later Chad finished his degree in organizational management at TMU.

By then, Carly Jean had already started Carly Jean Los Angeles (CJLA), operating a brick and mortar location, mostly selling vintage resale designer products and clothing she had in her closet.

In 2010, Carly Jean and Chad pressed pause on the business as they grew their family. But in 2015 they decided to relaunch it online.

Since then, the company has shipped nearly 1 million orders to over 150,000 customers worldwide. CJLA prides

itself on producing timeless pieces of clothing that can be mixed and matched with what women already own, creating a seemingly endless number of everyday outfits. Chad and Carly recently added a men’s line — 1906 Collective — as well as a home and children’s line.

Over time, the company’s staff expanded, with many of the new employees coming from The Master’s University. Today, TMU alums are running data and finance, overseeing millions of dollars in clothing production, and heading up marketing. Several TMU grads also work as interns. “We have Master’s alums everywhere,” Carly Jean says.

Why so many employees from the same university? For one thing, Chad and Carly Jean believe you can’t teach character.

CORPORATE SPOTLIGHT

The Brannon family (left to right): Tucker, Hudson, Chad, Navy, Carly Jean, and Ford.

“That’s one reason we love the students we’ve gotten from TMU,” Chad says. “They care for people well, and people see that our business is different.”

A handful of years ago, Chad and Carly Jean decided they wanted to bless TMU in return, signing on as corporate partners and looking for concrete ways to engage with the student body.

One way is by guest speaking in classes. During his time as a student at TMU, Chad says that his management and leadership skills increased, as did his focus on glorifying Christ in the arena of business. Now, he aims to pass those insights on to current TMU students, answering questions from young men and women who hope to follow in his footsteps as Christ-honoring professionals.

For her part, Carly Jean recently served as a judge at the finale of The Master Interview, an annual competition where TMU students create resumes, perform elevator pitches, and receive mentorship from industry pros. Five finalists ultimately sit for interviews in front of a live audience.

Carly Jean and her fellow judges deliberated and ultimately chose Samuel Jean, a kinesiology major, as the winner. The grand prize was a $2,500 scholarship.

“It was a blast,” Carly Jean says. “I absolutely love getting to meet students, and I was so blown away by how it was organized and the way the students prepared and executed. I think it’s such a valuable tool for students to be able to get this kind of handson experience before graduating.”

CJLA has plans to do even more with the University. This spring, the company sponsored a Mustang basketball game, giving away CJLA sweatshirts, and Chad was scheduled to speak in another business class. Chad and Carly Jean also love engaging with students at TMU’s career fairs. What’s more, “We have an interview here in just a couple days with another TMU student who’s graduating,” Chad said in December.

More than anything, Chad and Carly Jean want to honor Christ in everything their company does, so they’re actively building a culture that reflects Christian values. They hope more TMU alumni will work for them in the future.

You can learn more about Carly Jean Los Angeles at carlyjeanlosangeles.com

Aaron + Sarah Kent

TMU CONNECTION

Sarah (maiden name: Karkenny) graduated from TMU’s teacher education program in 2018.

WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

Jupiter, Florida

ON THE JOB

Aaron works as a dermatology physician’s assistant, and Sarah is a homemaker.

FAVORITE MEMORY OF TMU

“My favorite memory of TMU was being able to attend the University at the same time as my brother, Jason Karkenny. I am also thankful and look back fondly at the opportunity to attend chapel throughout the week and continually hear faithful preaching. Hearing men bring the truth of Scripture each week was a true privilege.”

HOW CAN THE TMU COMMUNITY PRAY FOR YOU?

“Please pray that we can be useful instruments for Christ and faithfully serve our church body. Pray that we can be faithful stewards of what the Lord gives us and trust in his unfolding providence. Thank you!”

Aaron + Brooke Shackelford

TMU CONNECTION

Aaron graduated in 2019 from TMU’s communication program, and then earned an MBA in 2022. Brooke (maiden name: Rickard) earned her communication degree in 2020.

CHILDREN

Millie Jo - 2 | Bliss - <1

WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

Indianapolis, Bradenton (Florida), or Santa Clarita — depending on the time of year

ON THE JOB

Aaron is going into his sixth season as a professional baseball player for the Pittsburgh Pirates organization. Brooke is a homemaker.

FAVORITE MEMORY OF TMU

Aaron fondly remembers bonding on road trips with the baseball team, and the life-changing Bible classes with Drs. Gifford, Beals, and Chou. Brooke remembers the sweet times making lifelong friendships in the dorms, and sitting under the teaching of Drs. Gifford, Hill, and Chou.

HOW CAN THE TMU COMMUNITY PRAY FOR YOU?

“The salvation of many of our friends in the Pirates organization. That we would trust in the Lord in the uncertainty of my baseball career. Sustainment for Brooke and the girls as we travel for two weeks of each month for the next year.”

Bryan Lucas works as a regional sales manager at Procore Technologies, a global leader in cloud-based construction management software. He graduated from The Master’s University in 2012 with a business degree in accounting. We recently asked him for advice on how believers can be salt and light in the workplace.

TREAT WORK AS A SACRED ACT

When approaching work, no matter the task at hand, I am always reminded of Ephesians 6:5-9. This passage is a constant reminder to me that all I do in the workplace is an act of service to glorify our God. No matter the assignment given to me by my boss, it is an opportunity to do it with excellence so our God may be given the glory through the talents He has given me.

DO EXCELLENT WORK

Something else I often think about when it comes to being salt and light in the workplace is to strive to be excellent in everything I do. Matthew 5:16 is a passage that we are all familiar with, but I often am reminded of our command to let our light shine through our good works. It is an opportunity everyday as an employee to excel in our jobs to show others around us God’s glory through our good deeds.

BE A SERVANT LEADER

This is one of those principles that goes back to my time at TMU. I had the privilege of playing on the baseball team, and one thing [our coach] Monte Brooks always challenged us on was Philippians 2:3-4. He reminded us often that no matter our position, we had an opportunity to think about how we could serve our teammates. This is something I took directly into my career. No matter my position, I have the opportunity to “do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility, count others more significant than yourselves.”

During the 1961-62 school year, our institution was hard at work on the first new building of the Newhall campus — the library. Powell Library has since seen renovations and expansions, but it still enjoys the rich history of being one of the school’s oldest buildings.

SCHOLARSHIP HIGHLIGHTS

Pastor and Missionary Dependent Scholarship

AMOUNT: $16,000 awarded as $4,000/year for up to 4 years.

Awarded to full-time students who demonstrate need and are dependents of full-time pastors or missionaries who provide their family’s primary support and whose ministries are consistent with the mission of TMU.

LEARN MORE AND APPLY AT MASTERS.EDU/ CHURCH

SoCal Church Scholarship

AMOUNT: $1,000

This new, one-time scholarship is for first-time applicants to the residential undergraduate program who attend churches in the Southern California region (defined with Fresno County as the northern extremity). Standard admissions criteria apply. Additionally, as a SoCal Church applicant, TMU will waive the application fee.

LEARN MORE AND APPLY AT MASTERS.EDU/ CHURCH

Alumni Scholarship

AMOUNT: $20,000 awarded as $5,000/year for up to 4 years.

These legacy scholarships are available to new students whose parents hold a degree from The Master’s University, The Master’s College, Los Angeles Baptist College, or The Master’s Seminary.

LEARN MORE AND APPLY AT MASTERS.EDU/GRADS

Red & Blue Scholarship

AMOUNT: $14,000 awarded as $3,500/year for up to 4 years.

This community scholarship is for students dependent on a parent currently working full-time in law enforcement or a fire department.

LEARN MORE AND APPLY AT MASTERS.EDU/RED-AND-BLUE

The Master’s University Magazine

Santa Clarita’s open spaces give TMU students ample opportunities to enjoy the outdoors.