New partnership will provide grants for graduate ministerial students

The Charles B. Keesee Educational Fund has approved students in Liberty University’s Rawlings School of Divinity to become eligible for grants to pursue graduate training in ministry.

On Thursday, a ceremonial signing of the partnership was held during a special luncheon attended by Liberty President Jerry Falwell and his wife, Becki, as well as members of the fund’s board, School of Divinity administration, and members of Liberty’s Board of Trustees.

The fund distributes over $3 million in grants annually to students from select schools that have a Baptist affiliation. Liberty is one of two institutions to be approved this year — the first schools to join the program in 20 years.

“This is the most significant scholarship gift that the School of Divinity has ever been given, and it’s a gift that keeps on giving, year after year,” said Dr. Ed Hindson, dean of the School of Divinity. “We are truly honored to know that they’ve added Liberty to their list of schools because of our commitment to training Baptist students for the ministry. While we are training a wide variety of students at Liberty for various kinds of ministry, our heart and soul of what we were in our founding days is still a part of who we are today, and this cooperative relationship will help that to continue.”

The Keesee Fund was established in 1941 by the late Mr. and Mrs. Charles B. Keesee of Martinsville, Va., who desired to make sure pastors and ministry leaders received the education they needed to better represent the Gospel. It is being offered for students in Liberty’s residential Master of Divinity and select Master of Arts degree programs, as well as the Doctor of Ministry program. Grants will range from $4,000-$8,000 per year for a maximum of four years for students at the master’s degree level and $2,000-$3,000 per year for a maximum of three years for students pursuing the Doctor of Ministry degree.

Liberty President Jerry Falwell said the partnership emphasizes Liberty’s focus on providing a world-class residential program.

“We are so honored and so grateful for your faith in Liberty University and our students training for ministry,” he told the guests. “We can’t wait until the new School of Divinity is finished and to have your students fill it up.”

(The new home of the Rawlings School of Divinity includes a 275-foot, 17-story tower that is currently under construction. It is scheduled to open in January 2018.)

The Keesee Fund grants are administered by a Board of Trustees who review students’ applications and eligibility for aid. Applicants must be residents of Virginia, North Carolina, or South Carolina (they must prove 12 months of residency as outlined by the Keesee Fund prior to beginning a graduate degree). They must also be a member of a Baptist church and have the intention to enter a Baptist ministry upon graduation.

After a tour of campus and the luncheon, the fund’s board members met with about 45 potentially eligible School of Divinity students, who all received Bibles.

The fund’s board will begin accepting applications in the spring. For more information, contact the Rawlings School of Divinity at (434) 582-2569 or divinity@liberty.edu.