It was not a typical AGM for Columbia Bible College. Delegates to the College’s annual general meeting held on Oct. 11 unanimously endorsed the nomination of Dr. Bryan Born to become its newest President. Dr. Born will assume the presidency on December 22 which will also mark the retirement date of Columbia’s current president, Dr. Ron Penner.
Born is currently serving as the Director of Intercultural Studies at Columbia, a post he has held since arriving in 2004. During the previous 12 years he worked together with African churches in Botswana and Lesotho. He holds Masters degrees in Divinity and Theology, along with a Doctorate in Missiology.
He and his wife of nearly 30 years, Teresa, have three adult children, two of whom are married.
Dr. Born’s address to the delegates at the AGM was enthusiastically received. In his speech he outlined the challenges he sees facing young adults today and his vision for Columbia and its role in meeting those needs.
“Some of you are no doubt aware of the recent Canadian study, ‘Hemorrhaging Faith,’ headed up by James Penner and a similar study done by David Kinnaman of the Barna group in the U.S. featured in his book ‘You Lost Me’. These publications argue that the issues of uninhibited media access, relational alienation and skepticism of authority are the defining challenges facing present-day young adults. Most concerning is the reality that many have no one to help them make wise choices, discern truth from error, and learn how to think for themselves.”
Born in the old MSA (Matsqui Sumas Abbotsford) hospital in March 1962, the son of Jake and Hilda Born, Bryan was raised in Mt. Lehman and attended Mt. Lehman Elementary School for grades 1-2, before moving to a dairy farm in Matsqui Prairie in 1970. He attended Matsqui Elementary School for grades 3-7, and then completed grades 8-12 at the Mennonite Education Institute. He also attended Fraser Valley College (now UFV) for his first year of post-secondary education (1980-81).
Bryan attended East Aldergrove MB Church as a child, then Matsqui MB, and finally Central Heights MB where he was baptized in 1980. Upon returning to Abbotsford in 2004, he began attending Ross Road Community Church (formerly East Aldergrove) and serves there as an elder.
Columbia Bible College is based in Abbotsford and is affiliated with the British Columbia Mennonite Brethren Conference and Mennonite Church British Columbia.
More information on Columbia Bible College and its programs can be found at: www.columbiabc.edu