Lancaster Bible College announced Monday that it has acquired the academic programs of a Bible college in Maryland and will be conducting classes there in addition to those at its Lancaster County campus.

"Our goal is to build a stronger and brighter future for biblical higher education," LBC president Peter Teague said Monday during a phone interview.

The oversight of all academic programs transitioned from the school —Washington Bible College and Capital Bible Seminary in Lanham, Md. — to Lancaster Bible College on Jan. 21.

"Both institutions share a common vision," Teague said in a statement. "This endeavor values collaboration over competition and minimizes duplication of resources in the mid-Atlantic region."

Details concerning the financial terms of the acquisition were not released.

According to Teague, LBC did not acquire property. Instead, it is leasing space from Washington Property Co. at the Patriot Business Park East in Maryland, where it will open an academic center. The college is leasing 18,575 square feet of space on the first floor of a building formerly occupied by the University of Phoenix at 7852 Walker Drive in Greenbelt.

LBC, which serves nearly 1,600 undergraduate and graduate students, now leads two programs outside Lancaster County.

In fall 2012, it began offering degree programs through a partnership established with the Center for Urban Theological Studies in Philadelphia. The partnership is called "LBC at CUTS."

"And, with this new acquisition, we assimilated over 400 students (from Maryland) and hired a team of 24 faculty staff into the LBC family," Teague said.

The Maryland center, he said, is called Lancaster Bible College/Capital Bible Seminary, Capital Campus. It features 11 classrooms, study areas, offices, a lounge and a library.

It will serve adult learners in non-degree and graduate education courses, available in traditional, online and blended formats.

"It makes a strong statement to our students that we want to provide a quality learning environment," Teague said. "We are delighted with the state-of-the-art technology alongside the state-of-the-art teaching LBC will bring to this building."
ebetancourt@lnpnews.com