Requirements,

Ecola exists to raise up disciples of Jesus Christ who have the desire, knowledge, and discipline to live out their faith in a practical way. We believe that the interaction a Christian believer has with the Christian community and secular culture is an invaluable part of their Christian testimony, and the natural outflow of spiritual life and growth. As growing Christians, Ecola students are expected (and required) to participate in the local community through weekly church attendance, regular outreach, and community service.

CHURCH ATTENDANCE - Click here for local churches.

During the school year, Ecola students should find a local church assembly in which they feel comfortable, and attended the same church throughout the year. Regularly changing churches is discouraged, except in the case of work schedule conflicts, in which case students may instead attend an evening service when and where available. There are a variety of Bible-teaching churches on the North Oregon Coast, and all of them cheerfully welcome the attendance of our staff and students.

MINISTRY OUTREACH

Students may choose from a wide variety of outreach opportunities in which to participate throughout the year. Options include working with local youth groups, AWANA, Kids’ Club, street evangelism, worship leadership, as well as many others. Creativity is encouraged and the Ecola staff welcomes suggestions for new ministries, and allows some latitude for the fulfillment of the outreach requirement. We all have different gifts and abilities, and our diverse student body plays an important role in the Christian impact on the area. Students should use these outreach ministries as opportunities to apply what they learn in class, and to test their interest in, and ability for vocational Christian ministry.

COMMUNITY SERVICE

Opportunities for service to the community of Cannon Beach and the greater North Oregon Coast area abound. Occasionally, Ecola will schedule volunteer events, such as a beach clean-up. Regular winter storms cause damage to landscaping and houses, providing students with opportunities to be involved in practical ways. Every year, the staff is impressed with the creativity and dedication of student-led volunteer service.

Graduation,

Like other colleges and universities, the graduation requirements for Ecola’s program are satisfied through the accumulation of credit hours. The 31 credits needed to meet the graduation requirements at Ecola each represent 15 classroom hours—equivalent to colleges and universities with 15-week semesters. In a departure from traditional programs, however, students at Ecola all take the same courses throughout the year, and the courses are completed when all three terms have been finished. Each student must have taken all tests and cleared all financial obligations to the school in order to graduate.

The diploma is a certificate of completion received after earning a minimum of 30 credits. The diploma is a valuable document when applying to missions organizations, and worth varying amounts of undergraduate credit at many Bible Colleges.