New Counseling Cognate Being Offered!
Last month, Kentucky Mountain Bible College announced a new cognate in Christian Counseling, available starting Fall 2020. This cognate is a new concentration within the Christian Ministries program, in which one can select two cognates (or minors) to build a major. Students in the Christian Ministries program start with a core of Biblical Studies, to which are added any two of the following cognates: Christian Counseling, additional Biblical Studies, Ministerial, Missions, Communications, Music Ministry, or Discipleship/Christian Education.
The head of the new Christian Counseling cognate is Ruth Darland, who graduated with her BA from KMBC in 2009, and her MA in Clinical Counseling from Liberty University in 2014. Ruth served for one year in a child/youth crisis center, and she also served a year at an elementary school. For about five years she worked in a drug rehab center as a licensed counselor. She received her Supervisor License last year, which is the highest license that Kentucky offers.
One invaluable benefit of studying Christian Counseling/Psychology at a Bible college is the foundation of a Biblical worldview. In studying Psychology and Counseling one will run into many different worldviews. A Biblical worldview that acknowledges that humanity is fallen gives a realistic starting point to counselors. Graduates of Kentucky Mountain Bible College have a solid Biblical worldview and are equipped to deal with the real problems of real people, with the hope of real change.
For those who wish to go on into the fields of licensed counseling or psychology, one must acquire an MA to receive a mental health license from their state, and a PhD to become a licensed psychologist.Those who graduate from Kentucky Mountain Bible College after studying Christian Counseling will not be ready to be licensed or to practice mental health, but they will be well prepared to go on to the Master’s work to obtain the necessary license.
“The study of counseling helps one learn how to work with people; how to help others deal with their problems and work toward change.”
Ruth Darland has been teaching the Counseling and Pastoral Counseling classes at KMBC for some time. Every year, seasoned ministers going through the classes have expressed the wish that they had had the information at the beginning of their ministry, or that they had taken the classes earlier; what they are now learning about counseling is a great help to them in many of the different situations they face. Those just beginning their preparations to go into ministry are being equipped with counseling skills before they get into such situations, thus giving them a good foundation for their ministry.
A good foundation in the basics of mental health and counseling is not just for pastors.In any kind of ministry, one must know how to counsel people. Psychology or counseling can also be used in nearly any other field of work. The study of counseling helps one learn how to work with people; how to help others deal with their problems and work toward change.
