West Virginia Program
Palmer Theological Seminary and the West Virginia Baptist Convention have formed a unique partnership to bring Palmer Theological Seminary's Master of Divinity program to current and aspiring pastors in the West Virginia area. This partnership enables men and women in the West Virginia region to develop or enhance their ministry skills while remaining close to home.
Navigate this site:
Program Options
Courses & Faculty
Location & Map
Tuition & Other Costs
Library Facilities
New Student Orientation
Contact Information
2008-2009 West Virginia Course Listings
2009-2010 West Virginia Course Listings (updated)
Program Options
Students may:
- take courses toward the M.Div. degree,
- meet the West Virginia requirement for certification or ordination by auditing at least 10 courses (20 units),
- earn continuing education units (CEUs),
- take courses for personal fulfillment or lay training.
The curriculum includes Palmer Theological Seminary's required M.Div. and selected elective courses. Appropriate persons in West Virginia will determine which courses will be accepted to satisfy certification of ordination for pastors of American Baptist Churches.
Courses & Faculty
Courses are taught by Palmer Theological Seminary's regular full-time and adjunct professors and by qualified part-time faculty from West Virginia and elsewhere. The goal is to provide Theological education equivalent in quality to that offered on the Philadelphia campus of the Seminary. Most courses are intensives. Intensive courses are three month courses with one week (7 hours per day for 5 days) of class time. Students engage the course material one month prior to class and two months afterwards for a two unit course.
Location & Map
Most of the courses will be held at the beautiful West Virginia Baptist Conference Center at Parchment Valley, Ripley. One course per year is held on Palmer Theological Seminary's campus. Courses may be taken at other seminaries and transferred into the program.
Where is Parchment Valley? Note: this page contains a large graphic file.
Tuition & Other Costs
Extraordinary efforts have been made to keep tuition costs down for the West Virginia Extension students. For the 2009-2010 academic year, tuition is $950 per (two-unit) course. This compares with $1,240 per course for full-time students at the Seminary's main campus and $1,320 per course for part-time students. Generally, the partnership has subsidized over one-fourth of student tuition. In addition, the West Virginia Baptist Education Society provides scholarships of $400 per course for West Virginia American Baptist students. The cost of auditing a course is $210 per unit.
Students are responsible for the costs of travel, room and board at Parchment Valley. For West Virginia American Baptist students, room and board is $44.75/night. For all others, room and board is $56/night. Fees are subject to change. For information about assistance with room and board, contact the WV Program Coordinator. (See Contact Information below.)
Library Facilities
Palmer Theological Seminary's Austen K. deBlois Library is the primary resource for library materials. Access to the catalog is available at http://library.palmerseminary.edu. We encourage you to make frequent use of this site. A user's guide is available from the On-site Administrator. Materials from the Philadelphia campus may be requested via e-mail, phone or fax.
In addition, six West Virginia educational institutions make their library resources available to Palmer Theological Seminary's extension students. They are:
Contact Information
If you would like to learn more about the West Virginia program, send your name, postal address and phone number to Matt Lyons, Church Relations Officer, at mlyons@eastern.edu or call 304-549-0271. You may also contact Connie Sue Johnson, WV Program Coordinator, at ajoyfulheart@suddenlink.net or call 304-485-8117.
Palmer Theological Seminary
6 Lancaster Avenue, Wynnewood PA 19096
1-800-220-3287
Fax: 610/649-3834
West Virginia Baptist Conference Center, Parchment Valley
Rt. 2, Box 304, Ripley WV 25271
304/372-3675
1-800-489-8564
Fax: 304/372-5160
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