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Former name | Pacific Bible Institute (1944–1964) Pacific College (1964–1976) Fresno Pacific College (1976–1997) |
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| Motto | Founded on Christ |
| Type | Private university |
| Established | 1944; 81 years ago (1944) |
Religious affiliation | U.S. Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches |
| President | André Stephens |
Academic staff | 200 |
| Undergraduates | 2,731 |
| Postgraduates | 1,298 |
| Location | , United States 36°43′34″N119°44′05″W / 36.7260°N 119.7348°W /36.7260; -119.7348 |
| Campus | 42 acres (17 ha), 16 buildings |
| Colors | Navy Blue and Orange |
| Nickname | Sunbirdswww |
Sporting affiliations | Pacific West ConferenceNCAA Division II (2012–present) NAIA (1986–2012) |
| Mascot | Sunbird |
| Website | fresno.edu |
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Fresno Pacific University (FPU) is aprivate Christian university inFresno, California, United States.[1] It was founded as thePacific Bible Institute in 1944 by the Pacific District Conference ofU.S. Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches. The university awarded its firstBachelor of Arts degree in 1965.[2] The first master's degree program was introduced in 1975.[2]
At the time of its founding, Pacific Bible Institute was located in a large home at 1095 N. Van Ness Ave. There were five staff members and twenty-eight students. By the time the first school year was finished, a formerYWCA building at the corner of Tuolumne and L streets (originally designed byJulia Morgan) had been purchased, and the next school year began in this building.
By 1958, land was purchased for the construction of the current campus near the corner of Butler and Chestnut, along with theMennonite Brethren Biblical Seminary and the new Butler Avenue Mennonite Brethren Church. Construction began on a new classroom building that year, and two dormitory buildings one year later. The classroom building was ready for use in the fall of 1959, but the dorm buildings were not completed until 1961 because of financial difficulties.
The Bible Institute became an accredited junior college in 1961, and decided to develop a four-year program two years later, in 1963. In 1964, Pacific Bible Institute changed its name to Pacific College, and became accredited with theWASC the next year. By 1967, the decision was made to add graduate courses, and the accreditation for the first master of arts program was received from WASC in 1975. The college changed its name to Fresno Pacific College in 1976 and to Fresno Pacific University in 1997.
In 2010 the Mennonite Brethren Biblical Seminary became a part of the university, and changed its name toFresno Pacific University Biblical Seminary.[3]
The university was granted an exception toTitle IX in 2015 which allows it to legally discriminate againstLGBT students.[4] Same-sex sexual activity by students (as well as any heterosexual sexual activity outside of marriage) is a violation of university residential policies. In 2015 then-president Richard Kriegbaum stated thatgay marriage was "anti-Christian."[5]
Fresno Pacific offers bachelor's degrees in more than 40 fields with over 100 areas of study. It also offers advanced degrees orcredentials in the fields ofEducation, Business, Leadership & Organizational Studies, Social Work, Kinesiology, Nursing, Divinity, Ministry, and Marriage & Family Therapy. The university is organized into two schools: The School of Arts & Sciences, and the School of Graduate & Professional Studies. Fresno Pacific isaccredited by theWASC Senior College and University Commission.
In February 2009 Fresno Pacific University began offering a "Four Year Graduation Guarantee."[6] FPU already has the highest four-year graduation rate in the Central Valley, with 60 percent of traditional undergraduate students already graduating in four years, compared to 12–15 percent in the CSU system.
Fresno Pacific University's main 50-acre campus is located in the south east area of Fresno, hub of the Central Valley region of California and the fifth largest city in the state.
The university also maintains four regional campuses in Central California:
| Completed | Name | Information |
|---|---|---|
| 1958 | Sattler Hall | Named for earlyAnabaptist leaderMichael Sattler in 1973. |
| 1961 | Krause Hall | Named for Arthur and Lydia Krause in 1990. Further units added to in 1962. |
| Nachtigall Hall | Named for Ben W. and Anna Marie Nachtigall in 1989. Further units added in 1962. | |
| Schlichting Hall | Named for Marvin and Loree Schlichting in 1994. Further units added in 1962. | |
| Warkentine Hall | Named for Al and Dotty Warkentine in 1989. Further units added in 1962. | |
| 1962 | Hiebert Library | Named for Cornelius and Elizabeth Hiebert, the primary contributors. |
| 1964 | Alumni Hall | Building costs were mostly covered by alumni (renovated 2005). |
| 1966 | Marpeck Center | Named for early Anabaptist leaderPilgram Marpeck in 1973. |
| 1968 | Kriegbaum Hall | Part of Witmarsum Quad, renamed for former college president Richard Kriegbaum. |
| Witmarsum Quad | Named for the village ofWitmarsum, birthplace ofMenno Simons, in 1973. | |
| 1971 | Strasbourg Hall | Named for the city ofStrasbourg, where early Anabaptists often sought refuge, in 1973. |
| 1981 | Special Events Center | |
| 1986 | Bartsch Hall | Named forSilas Bartsch and his wife Nadine Bartsch.[1][7] Silas was an administrator and former interim president.[8] The building was an existing residence which was purchased and remodeled. |
| 1990 | Wiebe Education Center | Named for Arthur and Evelyn Wiebe. Arthur was a former president and member of the faculty, as well as the president of the AIMS Foundation, which provided a large portion of the funding. |
| 1992 | McDonald Hall | Named for Arthur and Barbara McDonald, contributors and co-chairs of the fundraising campaign. |
| 1998 | Jost Hall | Formerly known as East Hall, changed in 2017 to current name. |
| 2002 | AIMS Hall | Named for The AIMS Foundation, which provided a large portion of the funding by means of a grant. |
| 2003 | Steinert Campus Center | Named for Marvin and Nadine Steinert, primary contributors. |
| 2010 | Seminary House | Previously the administration building of Mennonite Brethren Biblical Seminary, which became a part of the university in 2010. |
| 2010 | North Hall | Previously a classroom, student center, and office building of Mennonite Brethren Biblical Seminary. |
| 2022 | Warkentine Culture and Arts Center | Named for Al & Dotty Warkentine, primary contributors. |
The Fresno Pacific athletic teams are called the Sunbirds. The university is a member of theDivision II level of theNational Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), primarily competing in thePacific West Conference (PacWest) for most of its sports since the 2012–13 academic year.[9] while its men's and women's water polo teams compete in theWestern Water Polo Association (WWPA). The Sunbirds previously competed in theGolden State Athletic Conference (GSAC) of theNational Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) from 1986–87 to 2011–12.
Fresno Pacific competes in 17 intercollegiate varsity sports: Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, soccer, swimming, tennis, track & field and water polo; while women's sports include basketball, cheerleading, cross country, soccer, swimming, tennis, track & field, volleyball and water polo.
The athletics mascot is Sunny the Sunbird.[10]
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Formerly known as Mennonite Brethren Biblical Seminary, FPBS changed its name when it merged with FPU in 2010.
Silas Bartsch resigned as Superintendent of Kings River Unified School District to launch our professional development program. While its mission was to improve education in Valley schools, it also generated income that helped fund undergraduate education.
Wiebe remembered the telephone call where Bartsch offered, not just to serve on a board or advisory committee as Wiebe had thought, but to leave his post as superintendent of Kings Canyon Unified School District to teach at FPU.
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