The story
Key institutional events
1942 Montgomery Bible School, founded by Rex Allwin Turner Sr., Calvin Leonard Johnson, and Joseph B. "Joe" Greer, offered both high school and first year college courses, and became a junior college with an elementary and secondary department
1949 Expanded curricula to include a third year of Bible and related courses
1953 Granted first baccalaureate degrees
1954 Institution's name changed to Alabama Christian College
1966 Discontinued upper‑level program in religious studies to satisfy accreditation requirements as a junior college
High school department became Alabama Christian Academy, a regionally accredited elementary and secondary school
Junior college department became what today is Faulkner University
1967 Alabama Christian School of Religion founded to assume the upper-level program, offering classes in the new facilities of the College Church of Christ at 5315 Atlanta Highway
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1972 Expanded curricula to include graduate degree programs
1974 Moved to new property jointly purchased with the Landmark Church of Christ at 6020 Atlanta Highway
1977 Expanded curricula to include a three‑year graduate program offering the Master of Theology degree
1985 Applied for accredited membership in the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
1988 Replaced the Master of Theology degree to conform to standard nomenclature and practice with the Master of Divinity degree, generally recognized as the first professional degree in ministry
1987 Sold its interest in the jointly owned property to the Landmark Church of Christ and built its own new campus on 9 acres (36,000 m2) of land on Interstate 85 alongside Auburn University at Montgomery. The School of Religion moved to this new campus at 1200 Taylor Road that summer.
1989 Received accreditation by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to grant degrees at the bachelor's and master's levels
1991 Institution's name changed to Southern Christian University to reflect the widened geographical area served by the institution and emphasized the academic level and the emerging direction of the institution
1992 Expanded curricula by adding the Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.) degree and the distance-learning program
1994 Reaffirmation by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools including the two aforementioned substantive changes
1994 Changes in Alabama state licensure law in Family Therapy grandfathered the institution to permit reconfiguration of its counseling program
1999 Selected by the US Department of Education to help pilot the Distance Education Demonstration Program
2002 Purchased 185 acres (0.75 km2) of land alongside Interstate 85, located 15 miles (24 km) from the main campus to accommodate future growth
2003 Southern Association of Colleges and Schools approved Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Family Therapy degree program
2005 Decadal reaffirmation by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools including the following substantive changes in its curricula
Bachelor of Science in Business Administration – General Business
Bachelor of Science in Business Administration – Information Communication
Bachelor of Science in Business Administration – Information Systems Management
Doctor of Philosophy in Biblical Studies degree
2006 Southern Association of Colleges and Schools approved Associate of Arts degree program
2006 Institution's name changed to Regions University
2008 Institution's name changed to Amridge University
2006-2008 name changes
On August 2, 2006, Southern Christian University's board of regents voted to change the institution's name to Regions University. They expected this would enhance the institution's opportunities, complementing its purpose and vision while expanding its scope of educational and religious heritage to all the regions of the world. The name change, however, sparked a civil lawsuit by Regions Financial Corporation filed on September 29, 2006, for trademark infringement. Consequently, on January 31, 2008, the board of regents resolved to change the institution's name again, this time to Amridge University, preserving its mission and vision to expand its operations worldwide.
Presidents
Rex Allwin Turner Sr., Ed.D. 1967 – 1983
Rex Allwin Turner Jr., Ed.D. 1983 – August 2008
Stanley Douglas Paterson, Ed.D. (interim) August 2008 - March 2009
Michael Clark Turner, D.O. March 2009 – present
From Wikipedia’s article on Amridge University, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.5