Denominations often begin colleges. We are different: Methodism began on a college campus. John Wesley was brought up with a respect for education. It began with his mother's home instruction. This was followed by his experiences at the Charterhouse School in London and his time at Oxford University. It all nurtured a healthy appetite for learning.
    As a product of his belief in the basic worth of all people and their equality in God's eyes, he set out to improve the educational opportunities for all children, especially the children of the poor. Today, United Methodists have 99 colleges, 14 seminaries and 10 college preparatory schools. As United Methodists, our commitment to education is longstanding. 
    One of the distinguishing elements of Methodism has always been its openness to people of all races and to people of all faiths. But Methodists have also been open to people of no faith. Diversity and openness are very Methodist. 
    There is no such thing as Methodist mathematics, Methodist English or Methodist chemistry. There are no academic departments at any of our Methodist colleges that begin with the adjective “Methodist.” So how do we distinguish ourselves as a United Methodist College, true to the spirit and intent of John Wesley, yet responsive to the highest standards of the academy and the educational needs of students? That is a challenge eight Methodist colleges in North Carolina gladly accept each year.
A College of the Church is a college, not a church. If that college dares to identify with the church, it accepts for itself a rigorous commitment to distinctive ideals. Course content in a College of the Church does not necessarily differ from colleges that do not make such a claim. The laws of physics or the events of history do not change because they are taught in a College of the Church. The difference is in the intentional commitment to nurture a specific context of spiritual and social values.