CityView Magazine

62 | April 2016 S hrouded by the towering pines of McPherson Church Road, the unassuming, white one-story Carolina College of Biblical Studies sits on 2.5 acres of prime Fayetteville real estate. By 2020, the college will step boldly from the shadows with a $2 mil- lion dollar interior and exterior renovation that will increase the size of the college to an impressive 13,500 square feet. "It's inauspicious," laughed Bill Boyd, the College's Vice President for Strategic Development, as he described the current appear- ance of the building. "It hides the power of the impact." "It's time for the exterior to match what is going on inside," he said, as he unveiled the plan for improvements, which will utilize the building's existing 7,500 square foot structure and expand in a linear design along the property. A fully-bricked exterior and a modern grey metal roof will bring together the current building with the new structure, to include two or three new classrooms, a more spacious library, additional offices and a new auditorium. "One of the main reasons we are expanding is that, really, we are cramped. Books shouldn't be all the way up here," said Bill Korver, CCBS President, as he extended an arm to reach the top shelf of bookcase in the small library. "Currently, we have no place for students to just sit down, relax and study. e new library will be three or four times this size." Of the new square footage, the library will account for nearly half. Meeting the Need e Cape Fear School of eology was established in 1973 by local pastor Dr. William Owens. Since moving to the current location in 1980, the institution, which was re- named Carolina Bible College and finally, Carolina College of Biblical Studies, has quietly forwarded its mission to "dis- ciple Christ-followers, through biblical higher education, for a lifetime of effective servant leadership." From a history of steady, modest enrollment came an enrollment boom in 2013 when the College was granted accreditation by the As- sociation for Biblical Higher Education and was approved to offer online degree programs. Accreditation While its rise in popularity is directly attributed to ac- creditation, the financial aid opportunities that accompa- nied accreditation put the college "on the map." "Four years ago, someone who struggled financially would have to scrape together $300 per class and pay all expenses out-of-pocket, but if you're struggling to pay the light bill anyway, $300 for a class isn't going to happen. With accreditation came Title IV fund participation and Pell grants. With those in place, students may still struggle financially, but the reality, now, is that you can take four classes, be a full-time student and because our costs are so low, it's free," said Korver. feature BY COURTNEY PHILLIPS The Expansion of the Carolina College of Biblical Studies Standing on the Promises Breaking Ground Dr. Bill Korver & Mayor Nat Robertson

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