Houston Baptist University is pleased to announce the development of an all-new Global Center for Mental Healthcare and Ministry anchored in the highly respected College of Education and Behavioral Sciences, and featuring robust in-person and online mental health undergraduate and graduate programs.
The vision of the Center is “to be a global leader providing faith-based, postsecondary and graduate mental health and ministry education focused on equipping the next generation of mental health leaders.” The Center offers residential and online undergraduate and graduate-level degree programs in counseling, psychology, marriage and family specialties, pastoral counseling and human services. Students are able, through a media-rich, interactive, video-based platform to take classes via HBU Online featuring some of the best minds in the field. The Global Center programs are based in current research and standards of care and are Christian-based. Graduates will be prepared to pursue roles in areas such as public health, private practice and church ministry.
Dr. Robert B. Sloan, HBU president, said, “We couldn’t be more pleased to launch the Global Center for Mental Healthcare and Ministry for such a time as this. From the opioid addiction crisis to the pornography pandemic in our culture, the needs are vast. So many people are hurting and in need of Christ-centered, professional care.”
Dr. Tim Clinton, president of the American Association of Christian Counselors, the world’s premier Christian Counseling organization, said, “Houston Baptist University has taken a massive step forward in creating the new Global Center for Mental Healthcare and Ministry. I believe it is poised to immediately influence and become a national and international voice for Christian care and counseling. For years, I have been saying the future of online education belongs to universities that will build robust educational curricula that feature classroom instruction with some of the best mental health educators and experts in the world. HBU has done just that!”
Recently, HBU became an Elite Platinum Sponsor with the AACC, and together they have developed a strategic alliance to help expand the HBU academic platform. HBU, with historic strengths in Christian counseling and psychology, will increase program offerings in these critical healthcare arenas.
Sloan said, “My prayer is that God will use our new, innovative programs and courses to train a generation of leaders who speak into the hearts and lives of those seeking godly counsel.”