History
Evangelical Higher Education in Maine:
A History of New England Bible College & Seminary
New England Bible College and Seminary is a union of two historic Christian educational institutions dedicated to serving church leadership needs in southern Maine and beyond.
New England Bible College
In 1959 President Harold Duff founded NEBC as Glen Cove Bible School to prepare men and women for Christian service. Twenty years later Christian Schools, Inc. became insolvent and GCBC was forced to close its doors. Luckily, Christian Schools, Inc. was granted permission from the state to reopen the school with a new name in a new location. Renamed New England Bible College, the college opened its doors in January 1980 in Portland, Maine. In 1984 the college was moved to larger facilities at the First Baptist Church of South Portland.
Faced with the school’s closure, NEBC approached Grace Evangelical, Inc. to ask if it would assume responsibility for continuing NEBC’s educational mission, which it did in 2015. Grace Evangelical College and Seminary, based in Bangor, Maine,
offered both undergraduate and graduate level theological education. But now its undergraduate program operates under the name of New England Bible College, while its graduate program operates under the name Grace Evangelical Seminary.
Grace Evangelical Seminary
Grace Evangelical College and Seminary was established in March, 2001, incorporated as Grace Evangelical, Inc., under the laws of the State of Maine and overseen by a Board of Advisors and Board of Trustees. Grace Evangelical currently operates under a legislative exemption from the secular charter process available to religious higher education institutions in the State of Maine. Under the exemption, Grace Evangelical is permitted to confer degrees.
Since its founding, Grace Evangelical has granted more than 30 undergraduate and graduate degrees. Grace Evangelical acquired affiliate status with the Association for Biblical Higher Education (ABHE), an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. In 2008, Grace Evangelical programs were approved by the Maine State Approving Agency for the use of VA benefits to pay tuitions of veterans enrolled in degree or certificate programs at the school. In May 2009, the Association of Christian Schools International (ACSI) recognized Grace Evangelical as a provider of Continuing Education Units (CEUs) in Biblical Studies for ACSI-certified teachers.
Looking to the Future
In 2021, the names of Grace Evangelical and New England Bible College were merged as a DBA into New England Bible College and Seminary. Grateful for God’s faithfulness, we are looking to what He has in store for the future. Our mission is to transform lives through the biblical education and missional training of leaders who will impact the world for Christ. We are committed to providing low-cost, easily accessible biblical higher education that will equip people to leave an impact for Christ in the home, church, marketplace or the world.
Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken. Ecclesiastes 4:12
The undergraduate and graduate teachings at New England Bible College and Seminary are a strong pairing. We acknowledge Christ to be the central strand in our institutions and trust that He will sustain and grow the school according to His perfect will.