Some seminaries within the Reformed community welcomed students from overseas as well as from Canada and the United States to their campuses this fall.

Mid-America

First-year students at Mid-America Reformed Seminary represent every continent except Antarctica.

Master of Divinity (M.Div.) students include Joshua Flinn from the RCNZ in New Zealand and Pete Van’t Hoff from the URCNA in Leduc, Alberta. Two other URCNA students are from opposite coasts: Daniel Ragusa is from New York, while Bryan Punter is from California. Jeremy Baker, a member of the OPC, is from Arizona.

Another M.Div. student, Arjen Vreugdenhil, is attending seminary at the same time as his father, Jaap Vreugdenhil, who is enrolled in the Master of Theological Studies (MTS) degree program. Both are from the Netherlands, although Arjen has lived in Michigan for a dozen years.

Three MTS students have foreign countries of origin, although they have been in the States in recent years. Moody Wasif was born and raised in Egypt, Pablo Martinez is from Chile, and Sung hwan Kan is from Korea.

Daniel Dumont is a part-time student from Canada, who was originally from Haiti. Another part-time student, Moses Sanchez, is a member of an OPC mission work in Chicago.

Greenville Presbyterian

The incoming class at Greenville Presbyterian Theological Seminary includes six Americans in the Master of Divinity (M.Div.) program and one foreign student in the Bachelor of Divinity (B.D.) program.

The M.Div. students come primarily from southern states. Trevor Setzer, from South Carolina, and Thomas Booher, from North Carolina, are both members of the PCA. Another North Carolina student, Michael Spangler, belongs to the OPC (Orthodox Presbyterian Church). Steve McCullough, a member of the ARP (Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church), hails from Georgia.

The two remaining M.Div. students come from opposite sides of the country. Caleb Bouma is from Idaho and belongs to the CREC (Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches). Christopher Colby, from Pennsylvania, is a member of the ARBCA (Association of Reformed Baptist Churches of America).

Steven Cliff is a non-denomination student in the B.D. program who came to Greenville from New Zealand.

Puritan Reformed

The incoming class at Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary includes six US and seven foreign students in three programs.

Five students are in the M.Div. (Master of Divinity) program. Americans include Kevin Grasso, a member of the PCA, Robert Sass, who belongs to the CRC, and Phillip Stoffregen, a Baptist. Kuen Su is from Malaysia and belongs to the Kuala Lumpur Reformed Evangelical Church. Xiongzhi Yin is from China and belongs to the Chinese Christian Church/Presbyterian.

Four students are in the MAR (Master of Arts in Religion) program. John King is from the US and belongs to the PCA. Confex Makhalira is from Malawi and is a member of CCAP (Nkhoma Synod). Getachew Woldeamanuel and Gemechu Almi are both Baptists who are from Ethiopia.

Four students are pursuing a ThM (Master of Theology) degree. Michael Borg, who is a member of the OPC, and Shelby Gemmen, a member of the CRC, are both U.S. citizens. Ian Macleod is a member of the Free Presbyterian Church from the UK. Nicodemus Ude belongs to the Nigeria Reformed Church and came to PRTS from Nigeria.

The above article by Glenda Mathes appeared on pages 12-13 of the November 13, 2013, issue of Christian Renewal.