KANSAS CITY, Mo—Midwestern Seminary has announced For The Church Cohorts, a one-year training program designed to equip like-minded residential seminary students through enhanced discipleship, focused study, and intentional community.
FTC Cohorts exist for first year graduate-level students who desire to enhance their academic studies through hands-on ministry experience in one of five areas of focus: Timothy Track, Biblical Counseling, Fusion Masters, Women in Scholarship, and Spurgeon Fellows.
Each cohort will gather weekly on Midwestern Seminary’s campus for fellowship, presentations and discussion on topics related to their ministry fields, and to learn from world-class faculty and ministry leaders. Participants will also gain invaluable experience by leading discussions, presenting on ministry topics, managing events, and serving local churches.
All cohort participants receive a 50% tuition scholarship and are eligible to earn up to 12 hours of course credit through the program. Cohort scholarships are in addition to the discounted SBC tuition rate.
Learn more about each cohort below.
Timothy Track Cohort
The Timothy Track Cohort offers select residential Master of Divinity students in-the-field ministry training and mentorship within the context of the local church. In addition to their classroom studies and cohort fellowship, students in the Timothy Track will spend their first calendar year at Midwestern Seminary as intern/apprentice within a local partner church.
Biblical Counseling Cohort
The Biblical Counseling Cohort, involving counseling experts from the Kansas City-based headquarters of the Association of Certified Biblical Counselors, will help to comprehensively equip students in the Master of Arts in Biblical Counseling program at Midwestern Seminary. This cohort will be led by Dale Johnson, associate professor of biblical counseling at Midwestern Seminary and the executive director of ACBC.
Fusion Masters Cohort
The Fusion Masters Cohort, in association with the International Mission Board, will come alongside churches to help train future missionaries in the missionary task, culminating their experience with a summer mission assignment and qualification for long-term service with the IMB. This cohort will be led by Joe Allen III, assistant professor of missions at Midwestern Seminary and former missionary with the IMB.
Women in Scholarship Cohort
The Women in Scholarship Cohort will be led by Leslie Umstattd and Christy Allen. Umstattd has served in a variety of ministry roles for over 20 years, including teaching Bible studies, developing curriculum, and leading women’s retreats. She currently serves on the instructional faculty at Midwestern Seminary, where she received her Doctorate in Educational Ministry, and as the women’s ministry leader at her local church.
Allen served as a missionary with the International Mission Board in South Asia for 14 years. During her time overseas, she wrote and translated two books on the sanctity of life, developed discipleship curriculum, and hosted several conferences for women. In addition to her extensive training and experience in trauma healing, Allen received her ThM from Dallas Theological Seminary, and enjoys writing and teaching on the topics of missions and evangelism.
Spurgeon Fellows Cohort
The Spurgeon Fellows Cohort, affiliated with the Spurgeon Center at Midwestern Seminary, will give participants full access to the Spurgeon Library, the premier center of Spurgeon scholarship, housing nearly 6,000 volumes from Charles Spurgeon’s personal library. This cohort will be led by Geoff Chang, assistant professor of historical theology at Midwestern Seminary and curator of the Spurgeon Library.
Apply Today
To qualify for an FTC Cohort, individuals must be newly admitted graduate students at Midwestern Seminary with an incoming GPA of 3.0 or higher and must maintain a GPA of 3.0 or higher throughout their studies. Upon admittance to the seminary, students will need to apply for their given cohort prior to the academic year.
To apply to Midwestern Seminary, visit here. To learn more about FTC Cohorts, visit here.
