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HISTORY OF MBU

THE MIRACLE OF MARANATHA

About Maranatha TodayView History Highlights

Maranatha is an institution committed to the principles on which it was founded—the truth of God’s Word and an adherence to Baptist distinctives that set it apart from other Christian colleges and universities.

Maranatha’s theological position and local church emphasis are, and have been, vital. Academically, regional accreditation and the wide scope of the University’s programs have offered our graduates nearly unlimited career and ministry opportunities.

“I want parents and students to know we will stay true to our foundation, to the fundamentals of the faith that are as important to them as they are to us,” University President Dr. Marty Marriott said. “We will always be Baptist, biblical, dispensational, and evangelistic. We will always emphasize the local church. Those are non-negotiables. There aren’t going to be sudden shifts in what we believe or how we apply those beliefs. We are going to stay the course that has been laid out for us over the last 50 years.”

That course began in 1968, when Maranatha Baptist Bible College was established by Dr. B. Myron Cedarholm and his wife Thelma.

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The Cedarholms helped raise $150,000 to purchase a campus, now valued at $18 million, from the Brothers of the Congregation of the Holy Cross. Watertown resident Elayne Senn first phoned Cedarholm to suggest he consider the grounds of the former Sacred Heart Military Academy.

 

The first payment was made June 1, 1968, and Maranatha Baptist Bible College opened just three months later, on September 10, with 173 students and 27 faculty members. Maranatha awarded degrees to 13 students on May 31, 1969.

The academic offerings, fine arts options, and intercollegiate athletic programs all greatly expanded under Cedarholm, who remained president until 1983. Many of the present campus buildings were constructed, including 6 of the 10 dormitories and the Gymnasium.

During the 1980s and 1990s Maranatha achieved financial stability as well as enrollment growth that expanded nearly every year. No fewer than 39 different building and remodeling projects, including the Cedarholm Library and Research Center, were completed between 1983 and 1998. Maranatha also earned regional accreditation in 1993, a pivotal moment in the university’s academic history.

When you are personally involved in a miracle, you never get over it. First hand, we saw God supply the college’s every need. I was grateful for the impact of Dr. Cedarholm and the faculty on my life. Beyond their testimony of integrity, service, and sacrifice, they sincerely labored to send graduates out into the world to make an impact for God. As Maranatha Baptist University expands its offerings, I believe it is not only a privilege, but a sacred calling to be a trustee of MBU and to guard its legacy for the generations to come.

—Dr. Doug Jackson, Chairman of the Board

Enrollment continued to grow during the first decade of the 2000s, surpassing 900 students in the fall of 2004. The newest major building on campus, the Dining Complex, opened in the fall of 2005. The Global Encounters missions program began in 2006. The later part of the decade saw the addition of Maranatha Online and Maranatha Baptist Seminary. The Army ROTC chapter was established in 2006 and has grown from 6 cadets to 60 in the 2015-2016 school year. A total of 42 cadets, including the 2016 graduates, have been commissioned since 2006.

The Board of Trustees approved the name change to Maranatha Baptist University on October 28, 2013, which led to its announcement to the faculty and staff on November 15, 2013, and to the student body in December of 2013. In March of 2014, the university’s new branding and mascot–the Sabercat–were released in a special ceremony. In May 2014, the School of Education introduced a new online graduate program, the Master of Education in Teaching and Learning. The Doctor of Ministry in Preaching and Leading was introduced in May 2015, followed by the Master of Organizational Leadership, and online program starting in August 2016.

Current students remain as committed to God’s work as those who preceded them. Our most recent alumni survey indicates that 95 percent of our graduates are actively involved in local church ministry. God has blessed and sustained a school that remains true to its mission—to develop leaders for ministry in the local church and the world “To the Praise of His Glory.”

 

50th Year Fall Festival Performance – Highlighting the History of Maranatha