The University of Mount Olive at New Bern a Community Partner
The University of Mount Olive at New Bern a Community Partner
NEW BERN – The University of Mount Olive at New Bern is a Christian faith-based, values-centered private institution rooted in the liberal arts tradition. The University serves its students, its founding church, and its communities.
Serving Students
The University of Mount Olive at New Bern accommodates the lifestyles of its adult student population by providing programs to fit their individual needs in a time and setting convenient for any lifestyle. UMO at New Bern provides students various options for completing their degree including seated classes and online courses. The liberal arts education that is the basis for the academic programs at UMO at New Bern provide a solid foundation for a lifetime of opportunities, enabling student to build careers and adapt to the ever-changing global marketplace.
In addition to the one-night-a-week degree programs for adult students, the University also offers online programs including the RN to BSN program for registered nurses who have graduated with an associate degree or diploma in nursing, criminal justice and criminology, and the Master of Business Administration degree.
Serving the Community
The University of Mount Olive is committed to engaging students in the kind of service that builds citizenship and communities. The University believes that it has the ability to not only transform the lives of students, but to also transform the lives of those who come in contact with its students. President Philip P. Kerstetter said, “The University of Mount Olive embraces and supports acts of service as tangible expressions of our Mission, Vision and Values statements. To us, service is a lasting engagement with a place, a people, a culture.”
The University of Mount Olive at New Bern participates in a variety of community service projects including: being partners in the Adult Education Working Group for the Greater Five Points Transformation Plan; serving on the Board of Directors of STAFF House, Inc. in New Bern; partnering with MCAS Cherry Point to provide onsite education resources at the Training and Education Center; holding a Family Fun Day for students and the community; providing a free Career Fair for students and the community in the spring; offering free seminars on a variety of timely topics; and by providing meeting space for nonprofit organizations such as Craven County Schools, Monarch, Promise Place, and the Craven Literacy Council.
“The University of Mount Olive at New Bern is very much integrated into our community though personal and business relationships, events, and the experiences we share,” said UMO at New Bern Director Luis Miranda. “It is critical for our students to understand how they each play a role in this community and how important it is to take a leadership role in supporting those around the University.”
The University of Mount Olive is so committed to community service that in August of 2011 the Board of Trustees approved a “Service to the Community Leave Policy,” which gives full-time staff members four hours of leave time each month to use in service to nonprofit organizations.
“Volunteers are needed more than ever,” said Kerstetter. “The University of Mount Olive represents an enormous pool of idealism and energy, and through our policies and our actions we are helping tackle some of our communities’ biggest challenges.”
The University of Mount Olive is a private institution rooted in the liberal arts tradition with defining Christian values. The University, sponsored by the Convention of Original Free Will Baptists, has locations in Mount Olive, New Bern, Wilmington, Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, Research Triangle Park, Washington, Jacksonville, and in Smithfield at Johnston Community College. For more information, visit old.umo.edu.