Olivet University

Last updated

Olivet University
Olivetulogo.jpg
Type Private university
Established2000;25 years ago (2000)
Religious affiliation
 World Olivet Assembly
Endowment $42.3 million (2019) [1]
President Matthias Gebhardt
Location
Anza
,
California
,
United States
Colors    Burgundy, gold
Website www.olivetuniversity.edu

Olivet University is a private Christian university in Anza, California. It was founded by David Jang in 2000 and is accredited by the Association for Biblical Higher Education to award certificates, bachelor's, master's, D. Min., and Ph.D. degrees. [2] Olivet has an additional campus in California and formerly also operated in several other states. Its New York State operations were ordered closed by a judge in 2022. In December 2024, the state of California withdrew its license to operate effective January 10, 2025.

Contents

Academics

Olivet University is divided into eight colleges: Jubilee College of Music, Olivet Business School, Olivet Institute of Technology, Olivet School of Art & Design, Olivet School of Language Education, Olivet School of Media & Communication, Olivet Theological College & Seminary, and Zinzendorf School of Doctoral Studies. [3] The university is approved by the BPPE (Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education) to grant bachelors, master's, and doctoral degrees, and certificates. [4] The Ralph D. Winter Library, named in July 2007 for missiologist and Olivet University Honorary Chairman Ralph D. Winter, currently features 150,000 physical and electronic items for Biblical higher education and research, [5] [6] which are distributed throughout the university's main library, the William L. Wagner Mission Library, the Asian library, and seven specialized libraries. [7]

Partnership with IBT Media

IBT Media says it has an ongoing "working relationship" with Olivet University which includes the school's providing design assistance and computer resources, and IBT Media's providing internships for students. IBT characterizes this relationship as similar to those Silicon Valley companies have with local universities. [8] However, publication Christianity Today alleges that IBT Media has a close relationship both with Olivet and with its founder, controversial [8] [9] evangelical pastor David J. Jang. It claims that Jang is an investor in and has exercised control over IBT Media. [8] [10] [11] Executives characterize the relationship as being between the institutions and not the founders, and that it is purely operational. [8] [11] Additionally, students of Olivet worked for IBT Media in the early days of the International Business Times . [12]

History

Olivet Theological College and Seminary was founded by evangelical pastor David J. Jang in 2000, in Seoul, South Korea, where it was co-located with the Southern Cross College Korea Campus, [13] [14] and in Los Angeles. Jang was a member of the faculty of Southern Cross College and the first director of its Korea campus. [15] The college was intended to train ministers for Jang's denomination, but eventually functioned more as a "seedbed" for mission, offering multiple study fields and distance learning to ministry-bound students.

By 2004, the seminary expanded and incorporated into a university comprising five programs: Olivet Theological College & Seminary, Jubilee College of Music, Olivet College of Art & Design, Olivet College of Journalism, and Olivet Institute of Technology, and relocated to San Francisco. [16] Ralph D. Winter advised Jang on the relocation and expansion plan, and later served as the honorary chairman of Olivet University. [17] [18] The university moved into the former University of California, Berkeley Downtown Extension Campus, near the Moscone Center, in 2005. [19] They also founded Olivet Business School, which offers MBA programs [20] and opened extension sites in Nashville, Tennessee, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C. [21] Olivet School of Art & Design, Olivet School of Language Education, Olivet School of Media and Communication, and Olivet School of Language Education were later added to accommodate different degree programs.

By the late 2010s, in addition to California, Olivet University had operations in the District of Columbia; Florida (Sanford, near Orlando); Georgia (Atlanta); Illinois (Chicago); Missouri (St. Louis); New York (Dover and Manhattan; and Tennessee (Nashville). In California, in addition to its main campus in Anza it had a campus in Mill Valley, formerly the site of Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary. [22] [23]

On 26 November 2018, the Manhattan District Attorney charged the university and three of its officials with money laundering, fraud, and conspiracy in connection with the investigation into IBT Media. The indictment alleged that the university and its officials overstated the university's financial health to lenders and created a fictional auditor to approve its financial statements, then used funds for operational purposes rather than purchasing equipment. [24] [25] The logic of the indictment, however, was questioned as no one involved enriched themselves and no lender lost money. [26] On February 20, 2020, Olivet University pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy and falsifying business records [27] and paid $1.25 million in forfeiture. [27] [28] In 2022, the Department of Homeland Security brought new charges of money laundering and also of human and labor trafficking and visa fraud. [29] In June 2022, the New York State Education Department did not renew Olivet University's temporary permission to operate in New York, [30] and withdrew the university's license to offer courses or programs for academic credit in the state, citing "a pattern of mismanagement" and ties to "criminal activity". [31]

In 2023, with federal investigations into Olivet University continuing, the California Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education began an investigation into the university's operations in the state. [32] [33] [34] [35] On December 10, 2024, a judge with the state Office of Administrative Hearings revoked the university's license to operate in California and ordered it to cease operations in the state effective January 10, 2025 based on deficiencies in faculty qualifications, student record-keeping, and educational standards. Olivet announced its intention to continue operations under a claim of religious exemption. [22] [36]

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References

  1. ↑ As of June 30, 2019. "U.S. and Canadian 2019 NTSE Participating Institutions Listed by Fiscal Year 2019 Endowment Market Value, and Percentage Change in Market Value from FY18 to FY19 (Revised)". National Association of College and University Business Officers and TIAA. Retrieved September 20, 2020.
  2. ↑ "Memberships & Approvals". Olivetuniversity.edu. Retrieved April 2, 2019.
  3. ↑ "Olivet University". Olivetuniversity.edu. Retrieved April 8, 2014.
  4. ↑ "School Detail: Olivet University". Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education . Retrieved July 31, 2021.
  5. ↑ "Olivet University celebrated the official renaming of University library to the Ralph D. Winter Library on September 10, 2007 with a dedication service held in the library facilities of the main campus building immediately after the Fall Convocation ceremony". Olivet News. Retrieved June 30, 2012.
  6. ↑ "The 25 Most Influential Evangelicals in America". Time. Archived from the original on June 11, 2010. Retrieved June 30, 2012.
  7. ↑ "Olivet University's Ralph D. Winter Library". Ralph D. Winter Library. Retrieved June 30, 2012.
  8. 1 2 3 4 Lauria, Peter (August 3, 2013). "Newsweek's New Owners Say They Bought "A Lot Of Cachet"". BuzzFeed . Retrieved August 6, 2013.
  9. ↑ Smietana, Bob (July 16, 2012). "LifeWay land deal with Calif. school faces scrutiny". USA Today . Retrieved August 6, 2013.
  10. ↑ McCarthy, Tom (August 5, 2013). "Newsweek is dead. Long live Newsweek?". The Guardian . London. Retrieved August 6, 2013.
  11. 1 2 Bercovici, Jeff (August 5, 2013). "Meet The Mysterious Duo Who Just Bought Newsweek". Forbes . New York. Retrieved August 6, 2013.
  12. ↑ Dooley, Ben (March 31, 2014). "Who's Behind Newsweek?". Mother Jones . Retrieved April 8, 2014.
  13. ↑ "Dr. David Jang New Role at HBS". Olivetnews.com. Retrieved June 6, 2013.
  14. ↑ "Dr. David Jang WEA NAC Member". worldea.org. Retrieved June 6, 2013.
  15. ↑ "David Jang Bio" . Retrieved April 3, 2014.
  16. ↑ "History". Olivet University. Archived from the original on June 6, 2017.
  17. ↑ "Library". Olivet University. Retrieved April 2, 2019.
  18. ↑ "Dedication Service Marks Renaming of Library". Olivet University. September 11, 2007.
  19. ↑ "Olivet University Public Statement to Recent Media Publications". Olivet University Seminary Blog. August 23, 2012.
  20. ↑ "Olivet Business School". Olivet University.
  21. ↑ "About Olivet: Extensions". Olivet University. Archived from the original on March 19, 2015. Retrieved September 19, 2015.
  22. 1 2 Egelko, Bob (December 23, 2024). "California judge orders university with Marin campus to close — but it plans to keep operating". San Francisco Chronicle.
  23. ↑ "Our Locations", Olivet University, archived on April 2, 2019.
  24. ↑ Kellner, Mark (November 26, 2018). "DA adds evangelical university to fraud case against Christian Post owners". Religion News Service . Retrieved January 5, 2019.
  25. ↑ "DA Vance Announces Indictment of Olivet University Officials and Christian Media CEO in $25 Million Fraud Probe Arising out of Newsweek Investigation" (Press release). New York: Manhattan District Attorney. November 15, 2018. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
  26. ↑ Henning, Peter J. (October 19, 2018). "The Challenge With Prosecuting Newsweek's Former Owner for Fraud: There Were No Losses". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  27. 1 2 Alejandra Molina (February 20, 2020). "Bible college and former Newsweek and Christian Post publishers plead guilty in $35 million fraud probe". religionnews.com. Retrieved December 16, 2020.
  28. ↑ Kelly, Keith J. (February 20, 2020). "Bible school Olivet University pleads guilty in money-laundering case". New York Post.
  29. ↑ Jamali, Naveed; O'Connor, Tom (October 10, 2022) [April 22, 2022]. "Christian University at the Center of Federal Trafficking and Fraud Probe". Newsweek.
  30. ↑ "Olivet University Statement on the Conclusion of Olivet University New York on June 30, 2022". Olivet University. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  31. ↑ Jamali, Naveed (August 8, 2023) [July 2, 2022]. "New York Shuts Down Olivet University Amid Federal Money-Laundering Probe". Newsweek.
  32. ↑ Nelson, Joe (March 30, 2023). "Olivet University target of AG Bonta complaint that could shut down the California-based Christian college". The Mercury News.
  33. ↑ Cochrane, Deborah (March 17, 2023). "Accusation Before the Department of Consumer Affairs for the Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education State of California" (PDF). Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education - BPPE.
  34. ↑ Bauer-Wolf, Jeremy (March 29, 2023). "California attorney general complaint could shut down Olivet University". Higher Ed Dive.
  35. ↑ Jamali, Naveed; Rouhandeh, Alex J. (March 28, 2023). "California Moves to Shut Down David Jang's Olivet University as Feds Circle". Newsweek.
  36. ↑ Shalby, Colleen (December 17, 2024). "Judge orders California Bible college to cease operations after state hearing". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 17, 2024.
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