Regent University Divinity School Partners With Church of God in Christ’s Eastern New York Jurisdiction on Ministry Training

Regent University’s School of Divinity announced on March 11, 2025, a new partnership with the First Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction of Eastern New York of the Church of God in Christ (C.O.G.I.C.). The university said the partnership is meant to strengthen theological and ministerial education through academic programs, expanded ministry experiences and shared resources.

Corné J. Bekker, Dean of the School of Divinity, said the university was grateful for the partnership. He said the school is committed to learning from and serving the global Church, and that the arrangement would give students opportunities to prepare for ministry leadership in the context of the Church. He also said he hoped the partnership would prepare more workers for the harvest of the Lord.

The agreement provides a tuition discount for members of any C.O.G.I.C. First Jurisdiction church. It covers Regent’s School of Divinity, its College of Arts and Sciences undergraduate programs, and master’s and doctoral programs in the university’s other schools, a relationship between a church body and a university that reflects the unity Christ prayed for (John 17:21).

The C.O.G.I.C. is one of the largest Pentecostal Christian denominations in the United States, with more than 6.5 million members, according to the release. The release states that the denomination has historic African American roots and was founded in 1907 by Bishop Charles Harrison Mason, who was part of the Azusa Street Revival led by African American pastor William J. Seymour.

Regent University was founded in 1977 and describes itself as America’s premier Christian university. The release says it has more than 13,000 students on its 70-acre campus in Virginia Beach, Virginia, and online worldwide. It offers associate, bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in more than 150 areas of study.

The university also cited several rankings: the #1 Best Accredited Online College in the United States (Study.com, 2020), the #1 Safest College Campus in Virginia (YourLocalSecurity, 2021), and the #1 Best Online Bachelor’s Program in Virginia for 13 years in a row (U.S. News & World Report, 2025). The release directs readers to www.regent.edu/royalsrise to support the Royals Rise capital campaign for campus expansion.

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