Campus News

Wheaton College Launches the A. Duane Litfin Divinity School

The A. Duane Litfin Divinity School merged two formerly separate branches in the Wheaton College Graduate School to provide the best training possible for today’s Christian leaders. The Litfin Divinity School blends two strengths of the College: biblical and theological studies and ministry, leadership, and evangelism programs. With the creation of the Litfin Divinity School, students can continue to grow in biblical scholarship, ministry leadership, and cultural engagement, prepared for the challenges of being a Christian leader in a complex world. With an expanded flexible learning format, now available for all master’s-level Bible and theology degrees, students around the globe will have greater access to the Divinity School’s graduate programs.

Learn more at wheaton.edu/litfin.

Dr. Theon Hill Appointed Assistant Director of Multicultural Recruitment

Based in the Office of Undergraduate Admissions, Associate Professor of Communication Dr. Hill will partner closely with Director of Admissions Evan Bennett. Together, they will support and oversee recruitment strategies and relationships to enhance the multicultural student experience. Hill will serve as the intercultural adviser for undergraduate admissions and manage the BRIDGE pre-college program. He will also continue his teaching responsibilities as a faculty member.

50 Years of the WCBG Scholarship

In 2025, the Wheaton College Billy Graham Scholarship program will celebrate 50 years. It began in 1975 as a Billy Graham Center ministry when two businessmen who valued missions started endowed funds at the College. These funds have provided scholarships for over 1,000 recipients to pursue a graduate-level education at Wheaton. The program continues to enable Christian leaders to receive training and positively impact the ministries they are involved in worldwide.

HLC Reaffirms Wheaton College Accreditation

In August, the Higher Learning Commission reaffirmed the College’s institutional accreditation after the commission’s comprehensive site visit in April 2024. The HLC reported that Wheaton met each criterion for accreditation, such as integrity and a clear mission that guides the institution. The HLC also praised numerous aspects of the College, including the relationships maintained within and outside the school’s community. 

Core Book: Homer’s Odyssey

Homer’s Odyssey is this year’s Core Book, a work chosen yearly that illustrates important themes from Wheaton’s Christ at the Core curriculum. The Odyssey is a Greek epic poem that prompts readers to reflect on various themes, from marriage and ethics to suffering and politics. There are many resources available for the Wheaton community to engage with the text this year, including discussion panels, poetry-reading sessions, and the new Core Book Podcast hosted by Wheaton faculty.

Learn more at wheaton.edu/corebook.

Student Government Association

Student Government has a new name and structure to better serve the student body. The restructured Student Government Association now includes two separate entities. The Executive Board—consisting of the Student Body President, Vice President, and committee VPs—focuses on proposals for campus change. The Commons is a group of representative student leaders who meet monthly to discuss issues across campus and vote on proposals from the Executive Board. Class presidents now comprise a separate student organization, Inter-Class Council, while continuing to focus on class-specific needs.

Fourth Lausanne Congress

More than 100 Wheaton College students, faculty, staff, and alumni attended the Fourth Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization from September 22–28 in Seoul-Incheon, South Korea. The historic gathering drew more than 5,000 Christians from around the globe, both in person and remotely, to engage through large-group discussions, topical or regional sessions, and speaker presentations. Wheaton College President Philip Ryken ’88 presented a plenary address on “Christlike Servanthood,” drawing from the Book of Acts.

International Missionary Book Mailing

This Christmas, alumni missionary families serving in 64 countries outside the United States will receive the following gifts, thanks to publishers who donate books and the College’s Board of Trustees, which provides funds for shipping costs.

• Strengthening the Soul of Your Leadership: Seeking God in the Crucible of Ministry by Ruth Haley Barton ’81 (IVP, 2018)
• In His Image: 10 Ways God Calls Us to Reflect His Character by Jen Wilkin (Crossway, 2018)
• Overflow: How the Joy of the Trinity Inspires Our Mission by Michael Reeves (Moody, 2021)
• No Shortcut to Success: A Manifesto for Modern Missions by Matt Rhodes (Crossway, 2022)
• Pilipinto: The Jungle Adventures of a Missionary’s Daughter by Valerie Elliot Shepard ’76 (P&R Publishing, 2023)
• The Hand of God by President Hudson Armerding ’44 (Wheaton College, 2004)
• From Wheaton to the Nations by David Howard ’49 (Wheaton College, 2001)
• Wheaton Magazine, Winter and Summer 2024 issues