July 8, 2007
For Immediate Release

Pine Hill Divinity Hall Alumni Commemorates 100 Years of Theological Education

The Pine Hill Divinity Alumni Association have placed a plaque in the chapel of Mount Allison University commemorating both the 100 years of theological education at Mount Allison (1860-1960), and also the historic relationship between Mount Allison and Pine Hill Divinity Hall and its successor, Atlantic School of Theology.

In 1925, when the United Church of Canada came into being, there was a union between the Methodist Divinity Faculty at Mount Allison with the Presbyterian Divinity Faculty in Halifax to form Pine Hill as a United Church Theological College. Even after Pine Hill was formed there was an arrangement that allowed candidates for ordination to take their first year at Mount Allison and only two years at Pine Hill. This arrangement lasted until 1960. However, it remained a common practice for United Church students in the region to take their undergraduate degrees at Mount Allison and then proceed to Pine Hill to complete the qualifications for ordained ministry.

AST President Beresford, who was present for the unveiling of the plaque, commented, “Even today we have strong ties with Mount Allison University, although they are less formal. Last year we enrolled five new students in Masters Programs who had come to us with Undergraduate Degrees from Mount Allison."

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For further information, contact:
Katharine Berrington
Public Relations & Development Officer
Atlantic School of Theology
( 902) 496-7943