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Pensacola Christian College

Pensacola Christian College (PCC) is an unaccredited, fundamentalist, Independent Baptist college in Pensacola, Florida, founded in 1974 by Arlin Horton. The Pensacola Christian College nursing program is approved by the Florida State Board of Nursing. Additionally, graduates are immediately eligible to apply for the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurse (NCLEX-RN) in all 50 states and U.S. territories

History

In 1974, Arlin Horton and his wife Beka founded PCC to further their vision of "Education from a Christian Perspective." The school's 4,500 undergraduate students represent every state in the United States and over sixty other nations. Pensacola Theological Seminary, an extension of PCC's graduate school, was founded in 1998.

The school is also an active proponent of fundamentalist Christian education; their in-house publisher, A Beka Book (named after Horton's wife, Beka), provides a K-12 curriculum that is used by fundamentalist Christian schools and homeschooling families.

In 2005 more than 3,500 delegates attended practical clinics and seminars sponsored by the college. The Principal's Clinic provides administrators and teachers with materials, methods, and principles for starting and building a fundamentalist Christian school. They also hold a Summer Seminar that provides faculty and administrators with an in-depth orientation into their perspective on how a Christian school should be operated.

Academics

Pensacola Christian College's statement of purpose is: Pensacola Christian College was founded with the purpose of training young men and women for a life of service to Jesus Christ.

Undergraduate programs

PCC offers over sixty undergraduate programs of study. These programs fall under the oversight of eight academic divisions including the Division of Bible, the Division of Business, the Division of Education, the Division of Communicative Arts, the Division of Music, the Division of Arts and Sciences, the Division of Basic Sciences and Engineering, and the Division of Nursing.

Graduate and postgraduate programs

Post-graduate degrees are offered through the Graduate school at PCC and through Pensacola Theological Seminary in the fields of Education, Music, Art, Divinity, Ministry, Nursing, and Business Administration.

Accreditation

Pensacola Christian College is not accredited by any accreditation body recognized by its country. However, the Pensacola Christian College nursing program is approved by the Florida State Board of Nursing. Additionally, graduates are immediately eligible to apply for the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurse (NCLEX-RN) in all 50 states and U.S. territories. According to the US Department of Education, unaccredited degrees and credits might not be acceptable to employers or other institutions, and use of degree titles may be restricted or illegal in some jurisdictions. The Chronicle of Higher Education reported:

Pensacola [Christian College] ... has shown no interest in outside approval of any kind. Nor does it advertise its unaccredited status. A search of the Web site turns up no mention of accreditation. It is not mentioned in the college's viewbook either, which dedicates four pages to sports activities and two to campus facilities. It is mentioned, in small print, on the inside flap of the course catalog: "Pensacola Christian College has never made application for regional accreditation as the College believes it would jeopardize the College's philosophical distinctives." The catalog goes on to say that getting other colleges to accept Pensacola's credits "has seldom been an insurmountable problem."

As PCC is not accredited, PCC graduates may have difficulty pursuing a graduate degree or getting employment where an accredited degree is required. This is not due to a lack of accreditation bodies, as there are at least three bodies recognized by the United States Department of Education that accredit religious colleges. All students at PCC are required to sign a statement that they understand that "Pensacola Christian College has never made application for regional accreditation because the College believes it could jeopardize the College's philosophical distinctive. It is the practice of Pensacola Christian College, and other colleges and universities, to accept or reject credits based on their own institutional criteria regardless of whether or not that particular school transferring credit is accredited."

The Chronicle of Higher Education found that many Christian colleges and some secular institutions accept Pensacola's credits. Several former students told the Chronicle that they had had no difficulty transferring credits or applying for jobs. However, some former PCC students interviewed by The Chronicle of Higher Education on their experiences with using their PCC degrees and transferring PCC credits to other institutions reported serious problems:

[Abel Harding] applied to the University of Florida and was told that none of his credits would transfer. "I had to start over," he says. So, after three years at Pensacola, he enrolled as a freshman at nearby Santa Fe Community College

[Amy Brown] graduated from Pensacola in 2003 with a degree in early-childhood education. But because the college is not accredited, she cannot teach in public schools

PCC Education majors are informed their freshman year that the degree which they will earn is geared toward teaching in Christian schools, in particular Christian schools that use the A Beka Books curriculum. Education majors are also informed that because most states require their teachers to be state certified in order to teach, they would not be able to teach in a public school in their home state following graduation simply with a PCC Education degree. It is generally accepted that it is difficult to become state certified if the applicant's undergraduate degree is unaccredited.

In the summer 2007 issue of the PCC Update, a quarterly magazine published by PCC containing PCC announcements and reviews, PCC President Dr. Arlin Horton stated in a column:

"...the success of our graduates demonstrates PCC's excellent quality of education. Their credits have been accepted by over 700 colleges and universities, including over 375 accredited graduate schools, 72 medical schools and 66 law schools.
This reputation for excellence is also based on each student's academic achievement as he [or she] seeks to transfer to other institutions or admission to graduate schools. PCC graduates further demonstrate academic excellence by being accepted to and successfully studying at some of he most prestigious accredited Graduate schools in America."

Although PCC lacks institutional accreditation, its nursing program is certified by the Florida State Board of Nursing.

Philosophical position

PCC offers neither coursework nor information of any kind contradicting young Earth creationism or flood geology. This is based on their position on Biblical teachings from the first three chapters of Genesis. Evolutionary theory is taught, but not as fact. Archeology is taught from a Biblical timeline and perspective, hence the concurrent existence of Chinese and Egyptian dynasties during the time of Noah's ark is not taught. Instead, an alternative time line for history is taught, following the Ussher chronology. Additionally, PCC has taken a firm stand against Freudian psychological principles. Instead, they teach a viewpoint of psychology and counseling based on teachings from the Bible, with the Bible being the source of help for non-organic psychological problems. The Nursing program, however, includes a six credit course titled "Psychology and Mental Health Nursing".

Articles of faith

PCC's articles of faith as found on its website:

PCC's Articles of Faith reject the teachings of Calvinism, Modernism, Neo-orthodoxy and the modern day charismatic movement. PCC specifically states that charismatic students will not be permitted to participate in or promote speaking in tongues, and would be better served attending elsewhere.

PCC also states that they believe the Textus Receptus is the superior Greek text of the Bible and upon this basis use the King James version of the Bible for all their pulpit ministry and classroom Bible instruction. (see King James only debate below)

Student life

Fine Arts Series

Every semester the college invites well known performers unaffiliated with PCC to put on productions and performances in either the Dale Horton Auditorium or the Crowne Center on the campus of PCC. Prominent artists that have performed at PCC include the late Jerome Hines of the New York Metropolitan Opera, the Atlantic Brass Quintet, Christopher Parkening, the Vienna Boys' Choir and the Gregg Smith Singers. Every semester the staff and students of PCC also put on plays and operas which in the past have included Shakespearean plays and Gilbert and Sullivan musicals.

Concert and Recital Series and plays

PCC senior Communicative Arts students and graduate students are required for part of their course work to perform in either a concert or recital according to their concentration. These concerts and recitals are open to the public, and provide opportunities for PCC students to experience musical and dramatic productions.

In addition to these concerts and recitals the Dramatic Arts department puts on small plays in the experimental theater located in the Communicative Arts building. Due to the grassroots nature of these plays, directed and performed by PCC Speech and Dramatic Arts students, these productions generally sell out for every performance and many students consider them a highlight of the semester.

Collegians

All PCC students are required to participate in on campus societies called Collegians. Every fall semester the PCC Collegians hold Greek Rush which includes a parade of every collegian through campus and provides collegians the opportunity to recruit new members from the incoming freshman class. All collegians are identified by a series of three Greek letters. All men's collegians end with the Greek letter Delta "Δ" and all women's collegians end with the Greek letter Rho "Ρ". Collegians provide opportunities for PCC students to hone leadership skills, to serve in on campus capacities, provides opportunities for off campus group excursions and provide a venue for on campus activities including intramural sports. Collegians meet Wednesday mornings twice monthly.

On campus sporting events

PCC participates in the National Christian Collegiate Athletic Association (NCCAA) for intercollegiate sports. Eagles Basketball games played in the Arena level of the Sports Center provide a great deal of excitement for PCC students during the basketball season. The Lady Eagles Volleyball team also competes at the intercollegiate level. Starting in 2008, PCC will have a women's intercollegiate basketball team.

In addition to intercollegiate athletics, PCC students are also afforded the opportunity to play intramural sports through their Collegians. Collegian sports are known for intense team rivalries and expressions of team spirit. Sports offered through collegians include Soccer, basketball, softball, volleyball, and broom-hockey among others. Every fall Collegian Soccer culminates with the winners of the playoffs facing each other in the annual Turkey Bowl held over the Thanksgiving weekend. In the spring students enjoy softball and basketball which provided athletic opportunities to PCC students.

PCC also hosts a number of invitational high school sporting tournaments and camps.

Free time recreation

The campus of PCC offers opportunities for non-organized individual or group recreation during free time. On the lower level of the Sports Center, students can ice-skate, bowl at PCC's 12-lane bowling alley, play racquetball in one of 6 courts, play miniature golf, play table tennis, or work out in one of the weight rooms. Also available on campus is the Field House in which students can play basketball, swim in the Swim Center and play tennis in the tennis courts. On east field students can utilize outdoor basketball courts, a soccer field, an eight lane running track, softball fields, and additional tennis courts. There is also an indoor running track in the upper level of the Sports Center. A new Sports Center expansion is almost completed; it will feature an in line skating rink, flowrider surfing, and the largest indoor climbing wall in the nation. The Sports Center is being renamed in honor of the president; it is now designated the Arlin R. Horton Sports Center. Although it is some distance from campus, students willing to make the 30-minute drive can enjoy West Campus, where students can sail in catamarans or go kayaking.

On campus work assistance program

PCC students who would otherwise not be able to afford a college education are given the opportunity to work on campus through PCC's Work Assistance program. Unlike in a typical workplace, students are assigned jobs rather than interviewing for them. Through work assistance students can maintain a part-time job on campus in a number of areas including security, print-shop, housekeeping, dining/food service, grounds and facilities. A Beka Book's workforce is composed mostly of PCC students whose wages are transferred to their college accounts. There is an available cash worker program; workers in this program have their earnings direct deposited to their bank account. However, priority for employment is given to those in the work assistance program.

For students who choose to do so, PCC also offers a specialized work assistance program whereby students can sign a contract to work on campus for a five-year period while taking classes. Upon completion of their contract these students graduate from PCC completely debt free. The work assistance program also provides a means for PCC to keep their costs down because, instead of hiring full-time staff to run the day to day operations of the campus, under the supervision of qualified staff the campus is largely run and maintained by PCC students.

Rules and regulations

Rules at PCC are strict; the college maintains, "attendance at PCC is a privilege not a right." This phrase is printed in all of PCC's administration and registration publications including course catalogs, student handbooks, and information sent out to prospective students regarding attendance at PCC.

Regulations govern many aspects of the residence hall students lives, including dress, hairstyles, cleanliness of residence hall rooms, styles of music (PCC only permits its students to listen to classical music, traditional Christian music or Sacred music), borrowing, off-campus employment, and internet access.

PCC also has strict policies regarding mixed-gender interaction. Physical contact between members of the opposite sex (including shaking hands) is not permitted under any circumstance. Written permission of the dean’s office must be procured for all off-campus meetings between members of the opposite sex. In addition, all mixed-gender meetings (on and off-campus), must have a PCC chaperone present. All stairwells and elevators on campus are segregated by gender. In the absence of being able to have physical contact, a fad has developed among dating students on campus where couples stare deeply into each other’s eyes. This practice by students is variously called "eye kissing", or "optical intercourse" and is jokingly called "making eye babies." This activity however is discouraged by the administration.

Other violations of PCC policy include the use of language considered profane or foul by the college administration, visiting movie theaters, patronizing unauthorized area businesses, being off campus after hours and being in another residence hall room after hours. Additionally, being in a residence hall belonging to a member of the opposite sex, the use of alcohol, or tobacco products, gambling, possession or use of pornography, engaging in any form of pre-marital sexual activity or any other actions considered by the college to be immoral, and engaging in social activities with members of the opposite sex as a group while off campus can result in immediate dismissal. The administration of PCC also reviews any reports brought to their attention of students behaving in a manner unbecoming of PCC ideals who are at home or away on school breaks while enrolled at the college.

Demerits and punishments

At the beginning of each semester students are required to sign a waiver stating that they understand "attendance at PCC is a privilege not a right" and that they therefore agree to abide by all regulations and guidelines set forth by the college. Students who are found to be in violation of this signed agreement are subject to administrative review by the Discipline Committee (members of the college administration selected to review alleged infractions of college policies), during which time demerits are assigned or canceled corresponding to the degree of the infraction or circumstantial conditions surrounding the incident in question. Although nearly all students acquire demerits at one time or another, historically one-third of the PCC students do not accumulate enough demerits (over 15) to be retained on their records. As a result, one-third of PCC student records reflect 0 demerits per semester, and most other PCC students records contain a very minimal number of demerits.

For students who do acquire demerits, PCC has four levels of punishment; students can be "campused", "socialed", "shadowed", or expelled. An accumulation of 75 demerits results in being campused for two weeks. Campused students are not permitted to leave the campus grounds or speak with any other student subject to discipline. The punishment of being campused reoccurs with every new accumulation of 25 demerits.

PCC prohibits physical contact of any kind between members of the opposite sex. Students caught violating this prohibition are subject to being socialed. Students who have been socialed are not permitted to speak or interact with members of the opposite sex for a period ranging from one day to four weeks, depending on the severity of the offense.

Upon suspicion by the Dean's office that a student is in great violation of college policy that student may be subject to being shadowed. Individuals who are shadowed are assigned to a Floor Leader (a fellow student who is selected by PCC to provide leadership in the residents hall and to enforce college regulations) and must remain with the Floor Leader at all times. This includes being required to attend the Floor Leader's classes, and moving to the Floor Leader's room. During the duration of being shadowed the student is prohibited from speaking with any student other than the Floor Leader. The purpose of shadowing is to provide the administration time to review the case against the student and to assess the seriousness of their infraction. Infractions that result in being shadowed are usually deemed to be severe enough to result in expulsion from PCC, but not all students who are shadowed are subsequently expelled from PCC.

The final form of punishment is expulsion or forced withdrawal from the college. Expulsion is often used in conjunction with shadowing, to provide a time frame for arrangements to be made for the student to leave campus and return home. In certain circumstances, students have been required to leave campus within the 24-hour period after expulsion without arrangements being made. Students who have been expelled or who withdraw from PCC on poor terms are often banned from returning to the campus for a cooling off period determined by the Administration. If seen on campus, PCC security will escort them off college property. The PCC security office keeps pictures and information on all former students and other individuals banned from the campus.

Concerns regarding punishment at PCC

Many individuals have shown concern over punishments handed out by PCC, especially shadowing. "There is an implied 'presumption of guilt.' Any student is vulnerable to having his life severely interrupted, possibly suffering exceptional emotional and spiritual distress as he is isolated, pressured, and scared, being made to feel guilty even when there is no reason.

Furthermore, any one student is able to write up another student, giving them demerits. The Student Voice, a website designed to discuss such concerns about PCC, says, "It is also inherently unfair to sanction a student for something when the individual doing the sanctioning is unknown. What check is there against prejudicial charges? If anyone believes that prejudice is not present at PCC, they are very naive. [...] The process arbitrarily takes one person's word over another's. Why is this the case? Why is it that if you accuse another student of something, you automatically receive the benefit of the doubt over the accused simply because you have made an accusation? [...] There are a multitude of reasons why one person's word may not be accurate: prejudice, incorrect perception of surrounding circumstances, incorrect information, etc.

Notable alumni

Maria Boren (Grant) - Job candidate on the 2nd season of NBC's reality TV show, "The Apprentice". Also featured on the cover of Maxim.
Cathy McMorris Rodgers - elected to United States House of Representatives from Washington state
Esther Slater McDonald - Former Counsel to the Associate Attorney General for the United States Department of Justice, implicated by the DOJ Inspector General in the controversial 2006 dismissal of U.S. attorneys
Patrick J. Callahan - Captain in the United States Marine Corps; defended Lance Corporal Jerry Shumate, one of the "Pendleton Eight" charged in the Hamdania incident.

Controversies involving PCC

King-James-only debate

Pensacola Christian College supports the exclusive use of the King James Version of the Bible, a tenet of the King-James-Only Movement. However, PCC simply considers the Greek Textus Receptus that forms the basis of the King James New Testament to be superior to other available New Testament texts; it does not espouse the "advanced revelation" or "re-inspiration" views of some KJV-only groups (such as those of fellow Pensacola area Christian leader Peter Ruckman).

In 1996, Dell Johnson, who would later become the dean of Pensacola Theological Seminary, gave two chapel messages advocating the exclusive use of the King James Bible and the Received Greek text. In 1997, the school released a video featuring Johnson, Michael Bates, and the late Theodore P. Letis entitled "The Text Is The Issue." The following year, Letis and Johnson presented a history of textual criticism in American Bible seminaries, blaming Benjamin B. Warfield and his followers including A.T. Robertson in the Southern Baptist Convention, Lewis Sperry Chafer at Dallas Theological Seminary, and Charles Brokenshire at Bob Jones University for what they considered undesirable changes.

At the end of the video, Johnson attempted to steer clear of being lumped with certain King James Only advocates such as Jack Hyles, Peter Ruckman, and William Grady, who hold a stricter view on which versions are acceptable.

Politics, taxation and religion

The school has an active Anti-"Tax Rebel" stand and will report anyone who they feel is breaking the tax laws of the country. They will also prevent any student from associating with anyone they feel has an anti-taxation stance.

Senior vice president Rebekah Horton feels that it is her duty to report anyone she feels is breaking tax law. In the mid 1990s, after she learned of Kent Hovind's anti-tax stand said "'We know the Scriptures do not promote (tax evasion),'" during testimony against Hovind during his 2006 trial, "'It's against Scripture teaching'.... Horton believed it was the college's duty to report the misleading doctrine. 'I didn't want to see innocent people get led astray,' she said. Pensacola Christian College then decided its students no longer were permitted to work with Creation Science Evangelism".

The Student Voice

In 1996 one particular PCC alumnus started an electronic newsletter entitled The Student Voice. This newsletter voiced opposition to various rules and policies of the college. During this time The Student Voice also bought out advertising space on a large billboard adjacent to the campus of PCC to advertise its website. Dr. Arlin Horton and the administration of PCC responded to the newspaper's first issue with a speech in the campus chapel, calling the newspaper "an attack from Satan", reminding students that when they registered for enrollment at PCC they agreed to follow all rules and regulations of the college, that they were not forced to attend the school, and that anyone involved with the newspaper would be subject to expulsion. The following semester PCC banned all devices which would allow an individual to connect a personal computer to the Internet. Later, The Student Voice was moved to PensacolaChristianCollege.com The Student Voice released new issues regularly for two years and continued to release their newsletter irregularly through their website until 2003. As of 2007, their website still keeps an archive of the issues of The Student Voice, but it has not been updated since 2003. In light of claims by former students it is possible that The Student Voice was not the sole reason for loss of Internet access at PCC. These former students have stated that the same year a ring of students were intercepted while involved in surfing Internet pornography. Internet access on the campus of PCC was severely limited until the summer of 2004 when a new, heavily filtered, wireless Internet service run by the college became available to all students on campus.

PCC response to anti-PCC activities by current students, former students and alumni

It has been alleged that alumni who criticize the college are removed from the college mailing list and are put on a blacklist. In March 2006, the college banned several alumni from returning to campus because they had criticized the college on the popular website MySpace. Students are eligible for expulsion if their MySpace profiles contain material the college considers inappropriate, such as unapproved music or pictures. The PCC administrative staff monitor the MySpace and Student Voice websites regularly to review what current and former students are saying about the college.

Faculty credentials

According to Pensacola Christian College's 2007 Student Handbook, fewer than one in three professors holds the terminal degree in his or her field. Additionally, the majority of PhD-equivalent professors possess D.Div. or Ed.D degrees granted by PCC.

Other ministries of PCC

The Campus Church

Pensacola Christian College, hosts a "local church" in the main auditorium on campus, The Crowne Centre, called the Campus Church. Most PCC students are required to attend the Campus Church, which PCC feels is an integral part of each student's spiritual growth.

On December 10, 2006, Dr. Arlin Horton announced that Dr. Neal Jackson would be the pastor of the Campus Church. Dr. Jackson received his Bachelor of Arts degree and Master of Arts degree from PCC. He also has a Doctor of Ministry Degree from Luther Rice Seminary. In addition, Lloyd Streeter, formerly the pastor of the First Baptist Church of LaSalle, Illinois, has accepted the position of co-Pastor. The position of Pastor of the Campus Church had previously been held by Jim Schettler who resigned that position in May, 2006.

Since the inception of PCC and of the Campus Church, critics have pointed out that college's Campus Church may not be a true local church. One example of how the Campus Church operates differently is the recent selection of its current pastors. Traditionally local churches of the Independent Baptist persuasion (as the Campus Church claims to be) form a pulpit committee which presents pastoral candidates to the congregation for a yes or no vote. Upon a majority yes vote of the congregation a call is extended to the candidate to become the church's pastor. In the case of Dr. Neal Jackson and Dr. Lloyd Streeter becoming the Campus Church co-pastor in January 2007, Arlin Horton personally selected them without either a pulpit committee or congregational vote. PCC however holds that as an independent church they have the right to operate the Campus Church according to their interpretation of what is scriptural.

Rejoice in the Lord

The Campus Church of Pensacola Christian College records its Sunday services for weekly television broadcast of Rejoice in the Lord. The programming of Rejoice in the Lord consists of musical numbers performed by the Rejoice Choir, various PCC musical ensemble groups, congregational singing recorded in the Campus Church and preaching by the pastor of the Campus Church, Dr. Neal Jackson.

WPCS

Pensacola Christian College owns radio station WPCS 89.5 FM, known on-air as Rejoice Radio. WPCS is the main station of the Rejoice Broadcasting Network (sometimes referred to as "RBN"). The content heard on Rejoice Radio consists primarily of inspirational music and syndicated Christian radio programming.

A Beka Book

A Beka Book is a publisher affiliated with Pensacola Christian College that produces K-12 curriculum materials that are used by fundamentalist Christian schools and homeschooling families around the world. It is named after Rebekah Horton, wife of college president Arlin Horton. A Beka Book and Bob Jones University Press are considered the two major publishers of fundamentalist Christian-based educational materials in America.

A Beka Book has been criticized by The University of California and National Center for Science Education for publishing information contrary to accepted historical consensus, scientific consensus, especially regarding the theory of evolution. A Beka Book takes a firm Biblical literalist and young earth creationist position in its science curriculum, portraying Biblical creation as a theory of origins that does not contradict science. These institutions have criticized A Beka Book for selling works that are contradictory to the mainstream scientific consensus regarding the origins of the universe and the origins of life. In Association of Christian Schools International et al. v. Roman Stearns et al., a judge upheld the University of California's rejection of A Beka publications for preparatory use because the books are "inconsistent with the viewpoints and knowledge generally accepted in the scientific community..

For a short period A Beka Book held tax exempt status because its profits were channeled into PCC as a tax exempt religious organization or educational institution. In January 1995 the U.S. Internal Revenue Service ruled that the college's publishing arm was liable for taxes as a profit-making entity. The IRS further ruled that since the profits of the publishing arm benefited the organization as a whole due to the fact that both A Beka Book and PCC were run under the same organization and that all of the profits of A Beka Book went directly to PCC constituting 60% of the college's income. The effect of this ruling rendered the publishing company ineligible for future tax exempt status. Although PCC was ultimately cleared of any liability for back taxes, PCC paid the estimated at $44.5 million, and A Beka Book paid another $3.5 million dollars.