Prison Fellowship

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Overview:

The School for Correctional Ministries Credential Program at Wheaton College is designed for people serving in correctional ministry to remain fully engaged in their ministry, while participating in college accredited courses in chaplaincy, reentry or correctional ministry. SCM students create a learning community (face-to-face and online) with their peers from around the nation and are guided by our expert faculty.

Distinctives

Course content and readings include current information and practices of the National Institute of Corrections. Assignments are practical and can easily be tailored to your current ministry needs. The SCM is served by an incredible team of professional faculty who is leaders in the field and have extensive practical experience. The faculty has published numerous articles, obtained thousands of dollars in funded grants, and are recognized regionally and nationally as experts in their field. SCM collaborates with the following ministries: Prison Fellowship, Good News Jail & Prison Ministries, Christian Association for Prisoner Aftercare and Crossroad Bible Institute. The American Chaplaincy Training School (ACTS) was merged into SCM.   The credential program promotes faith and learning through the integration of biblical principles and a Christian worldview.

Structure

The Correctional Ministries Credential program is a set of seven (7) college accredited, undergraduate/graduate, courses (21 credits) carefully designed to meet competencies identified by professionals for quality correctional ministry. The bulk of the program is online coursework, bookended at the beginning and the end by summer residential courses.

All Students will take three (3) core courses followed by focus area required courses. The first core course is offered as a 5-day residential class in June on the campus of Wheaton College. Five (5) courses are offered online through the Summer, Fall and Spring sessions. The program concludes with a final 5-day residential course on the campus of Wheaton College in June.

Program Length

The program is purposefully and intentionally structured to accommodate for working students to complete the program in one year of part-time study. To benefit the most from our program, we encourage students to enroll for the entire year. Students, however, may sign up for individual courses. Our program also offers a two-year sequence, which provides the same coursework over a longer period of time.

What is a Credential?

A credential indicates students have met competencies established by the issuing agency. Completion of the credential program signals to all concerned that the individual has completed a set course of study that prepares them for ministry within a correctional setting (in-prison, reentry, or other correctional ministry setting). Students who complete the credential program will receive a certificate from the Institute for Prison Ministries indicating the completion of the credential program.  This is a non-degree program.  The certificate does not guarantee employment or entrance in a correctional institution.  It is up to each institution or agency to determine hiring and entrance criteria.  It does demonstrate the specific correctional ministry preparedness of the individual seeking employment or entrance.

All credential courses are accredited through Wheaton College, which is fully accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools as well as by several other accrediting agencies (see Wheaton College website for complete information.) Accreditation means that all courses taken at Wheaton College met the standards set forth by the accrediting agency.

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