Fresno Pacific University

Fresno Pacific University
Former name	Pacific Bible Institute (1944–1964); Pacific College (1964–1976); Fresno Pacific College (1976–1997)
Motto	Founded on Christ
Type	Private university
Established	1944
Religious affiliation	U.S. Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches
President	André Stephens
Academic staff	200
Undergraduates	2,731
Postgraduates	1,298
Location	Fresno, California, United States; 36°43′34″N 119°44′05″W / 36.7260°N 119.7348°W
Campus	42 acres (17 ha), 16 buildings
Colors	Navy Blue and Orange
Nickname	Sunbirds www.fpuathletics.com
Sporting affiliations	Pacific West Conference NCAA Division II (2012–present); NAIA (1986–2012)
Mascot	Sunbird
Website	www.fresno.edu

Fresno Pacific University (FPU) is a private Christian university in Fresno, California.^[1] It was founded as the Pacific Bible Institute in 1944 by the Pacific District Conference of U.S. Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches. The university awarded its first Bachelor of Arts degree in 1965.^[2] The first master's degree program was introduced in 1975.^[2]

History

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 former YWCA building at the corner of Tuolumne and L streets (originally designed by Julia 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 the Mennonite 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 the WASC 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 to Fresno Pacific University Biblical Seminary.

The university was granted an exception to Title IX in 2015 which allows it to legally discriminate against LGBT students.^[3] Same-sex sexual activity by students is considered grounds for removal from campus. The school considers gay marriage to be anti-Christian.^[4]

Chief executives

Campus

1944–1946 Sam W. Goossen – Acting President/Dean
1946–1947 George B. Huebert – Administrator
1947–1953 George W. Peters – President/Dean
1953–1954 Rueben M. Baerg – Acting President
1954–1955 Rueben M. Baerg – Acting President, one-half year; Administrative Committee last half of year, Dr. George W. Peters, Chmn.
1955–1960 B.J. Braun – President
1960–1961 Arthur J. Wiebe – Director of Pacific Bible Institute; Mr. Joel A. Wiebe – Interim Director
1961–1975 Arthur J. Wiebe – President
1975–1976 Edmund Janzen, Chairman, Presidential Council
1976–1982 Edmund Janzen – President
1982–1983 Silas Bartsch – Interim President; Edmund Janzen on leave
1983–1985 Edmund Janzen – President
1985–1997 Richard Kriegbaum – President
1997–2000 Allen Carden – President
2000–2002 Harold Haak – President
2002–2012 D. Merrill Ewert – President
2012–2014 Pete Menjares – President
2014–2017 Richard Kriegbaum — President
2017–2022 Joseph Jones — President
2022−present André Stephens – President

Academics

Fresno Pacific offers bachelor's degrees in more than 40 fields with over 100 areas of study. It also offers advanced degrees or credentials in four areas: Education, Individualized Master of Arts, MBA, Leadership & Organizational Studies and Peacemaking & Conflict Studies. The university is organized into five schools: The School of Business; the School of Education; the School of Humanities, Religion and Social Sciences; the School of Natural Sciences; and the School of Biblical Seminary. Fresno Pacific is accredited by the WASC Senior College and University Commission.

Graduation guarantee

McDonald Hall

In February 2009 Fresno Pacific University began offering a "Four Year Graduation Guarantee."^[5] 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.

The university will guarantee graduation within four years to qualified students entering the traditional undergraduate program. The guarantee is limited to basic graduation requirements for a single major with no minor. Transfer, degree completion and graduate students are not part of the guarantee.

Student responsibilities include:

Sign up for the guarantee during the freshman year, choose a major by the second semester of the freshman year and keep that major until graduation.
Make course plans with their adviser, follow those plans and meet all advising, registration and financial aid deadlines.
Complete at least 32 units per year with passing grades in each course and remain in good standing behaviorally.

Campuses

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:

Merced Regional Campus
North Fresno Regional Campus
Visalia Regional Campus
Bakersfield Regional Campus

Buildings

Hiebert Library

McDonald Hall

AIMS Hall, Mathematics and Science

Completed	Name	Information
1958	Sattler Hall	Named for early Anabaptist leader Michael 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 leader Pilgram Marpeck in 1973.
1968	Kriegbaum Hall	Part of Witmarsum Quad, renamed for former college president Richard Kriegbaum.
1968	Witmarsum Quad	Named for the village of Witmarsum, birthplace of Menno Simons, in 1973.
1971	Strasbourg Hall	Named for the city of Strasbourg, where early Anabaptists often sought refuge, in 1973.
1981	Special Events Center
1986	Bartsch Hall	Named for Silas Bartsch and his wife Nadine Bartsch.^[1]^[6] Silas was an administrator and former interim president.^[7] 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	Building on Townsend Street dedicated to the arts program. Construction was funded through fundraising and private donations.

Athletics

The Fresno Pacific athletic teams are called the Sunbirds. The university is a member of the Division II level of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), primarily competing in the Pacific West Conference (PacWest) for most of its sports since the 2012–13 academic year.^[8] while its men's and women's water polo teams compete in the Western Water Polo Association (WWPA). The Sunbirds previously competed in the Golden State Athletic Conference (GSAC) of the National 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.

Mascot

The athletics mascot is Sunny the Sunbird. Sunny is a much loved figure in the campus community.

Traditions