MOUNT OLIVE, WV (LOOTPRESS) – Donning robes and tassels over their typical khaki uniforms, eight inmates at Mount Olive Correctional Complex received their baccalaureate degrees as the Class of 2023 of Mount Olive Bible College.
The commencement ceremony on January 24 in the maximum-security prison’s gymnasium featured remarks by Dr. Daniel Anderson, president of Appalachian Bible College, and music from the Jubilate Handbell Choir. Dr. John Rinehart, professor at Appalachian Bible College, gave the commencement address entitled “Seven Gifts of Biblical Wisdom,” taken from Proverbs 3:13-20. Family members of the graduates attended, along with corrections staff and dignitaries, and MOBC’s twenty-three currently enrolled students.
Three graduates were recognized for achieving highest honors (cumulative GPA 3.85-4.0), two for high honors (3.60-3.84), and three for honors (3.30-3.59). A ninth graduate received his degree in absentia. In keeping with Appalachian Bible College tradition, each man was also granted a Servant’s Mantle—a symbolic towel printed with the words “Trained to Serve.”
Mount Olive Bible College is an additional location of Appalachian Bible College of Mount Hope. The West Virginia Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation facilitates MOBC as a moral rehabilitation program. Appalachian Bible College and Catalyst Ministries partner to provide the donor-supported program at no cost to the students or taxpayers.
Jim Rubenstein, former Commissioner of Corrections, initiated the establishment of MOBC after hearing of the success of a Bible college within Louisiana State Penitentiary, also known as Angola. Beginning in September 2014, MOBC became the third program of its kind in the U.S.
Like Appalachian Bible College, MOBC is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (hlcommission.org) and the Association for Biblical Higher Education (abhe.org). A sampling of required courses includes Bible Study Methods, Bible Doctrines, English Composition, Sociology, Apologetics, and Homiletics. Appalachian Bible College faculty commute to teach these courses in a designated classroom in the Industries building of the Complex.
MOBC students also participate in Field Service, which gives them regular opportunity to put into practice what they learn in the classroom. Field Service assignments include leading in chapel and Bible studies, and assisting in the library, medical ward, and mental health ward.
“I’m going to continue to be a student of God’s Word for the rest of my life,” one graduate promised. “Being part of the Bible college has reminded me I am loved and I am not forgotten. It has helped me to live in a way that is pleasing to the Lord.”
As Director of MOBC, Dr. Steve Russell observes the impact that the Bible has had on its students: “As they studied in order to share the Word of God with others, that truth has also shaped and transformed their lives. I believe that the Lord will use each of these men as a powerful testimony to His grace both inside the correctional system and eventually on the outside. And the cycle of instruction begins again with another group of students!”
As West Virginia’s only accredited Bible College, Appalachian Bible College has been training men and women to serve in church-related ministries since 1950. ABC offers Bible Certificates, Associate of Arts, Bachelor of Arts, and Master of Arts programs, including online courses. The campus is located just north of Beckley, while an additional location serves inmates within Mount Olive Correctional Complex.
