Therapon University's Non-Traditional, Distance-Ed Philosophy

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.Learning is a lifetime activity, from birth to death, a constant process of growing and becoming.

There are levels of learning as well as kinds of learning.

Learning is experiential and to learn requires practice.

Ministry experiences and occupational experiences provide learning that is as valid, perhaps even more valid, than traditional campus-confined, classroom-based instruction, and this life-learning can be accurately and responsibly measured for its academic equivalency.

Academic credit should be given not only for understanding the criteria of competency, but also for demonstrating actual competence itself.

Traditional systems of education are too restrictive for many ministry-focused people.

Non-traditional systems of education are based on a belief in freedom of choice and on the belief that a range of positive options are attendant upon the exercise of individual rights. Non-traditional systems assert that the individual must be able to choose to grow, develop, learn, and use his talents and potentials, and that he deserves responsible recognition for his effort.

The center of the educational system should be the learner and not the teacher.

People learn more effectively when they are actively involved in the development of learning goals, the selection of subject matter content, the selection of learning methods and techniques, and the setting of their own appropriate pace.

Social justice dictates that all learning, regardless of where it takes place, be treated as equitably as possible in a society which values and encourages individual knowledge and competence.

The world of ministry experience blends with the world of education to produce an integrated living/learning society. Knowledge is valid regardless of its source.

It makes little difference where or how learning takes place, at age 20 or 50 or 75. What is important is that it does take place and under conditions appropriate to the learner.

Each individual is entitled to equal opportunity for recognition of equal accomplishment and ability. Therapon University prohibits discrimination against current or prospective students on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, national origin, age, disability, or any other legally protected characteristic. The University does not by this non-discrimination statement disclaim any right it might otherwise have to maintain its commitment to its Christian identity or the doctrines inherent in the Bible.