About Geneva

Geneva Identity

With deep roots in its Reformed Presbyterian heritage, Geneva has been providing academically excellent, Christ-centered and affordable education to students for over 170 years.

The Heart of Geneva College

Mission

Geneva College is a Christ-centered academic community that provides a comprehensive education to equip students for faithful and fruitful service to God and neighbor.

Geneva College′s mission is student-focused, emphasizing Christ, comprehensive education, and service to God and neighbor. This is consistent with the college′s charter, bylaws and Foundational Concepts of Christian Education, as well as Geneva′s historic motto, Pro Christo et Patria (For Christ and Country).

Vision

Geneva College will be known nationally for advancing integration of faith and learning under Christ and His word, preparing students for courageous engagement throughout their life’s work.

Values

With Christ as King and under scripture, we:

  1. Serve with grace
  2. Pursue Godly wisdom
  3. Foster academic strength
  4. Engage culture faithfully
  5. Inspire vibrant hospitality
  6. Honor one another

Our Purpose

To develop, provide and maintain a Christian Institution of higher education emphasizing the liberal arts and certain professional fields within the context of a Biblical view of life and the world as expressed in the Westminster Standards and the testimony of the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America, open to men and women of any race and faith.

Pro Christo Et Patria

(For Christ and Country)

Geneva’s motto conveys a committment to honoring Christ Jesus in every aspect of life, actively engaging our communities with his love and truth. It is another way of saying what Jesus taught His followers to pray: “Your Kingdom come, your will be done, in earth as it is in heaven.”

About Our Seal & Motto

The Meaning Behind our Seal

The open Bible at the center of Geneva’s seal signifies our belief that the inerrant Word of God can reveal a person’s thoughts, no matter how modern. At the heart of Geneva's curriculum is the conviction that the Word of God is truth and that all authority in heaven and earth belongs to Jesus. The Word of God is not bound; the Bible is always open.

Geneva’s seal also displays the college’s founding year of 1848 and our motto: Pro Christo et Patria (For Christ and Country).

The Geneva College Seal

A Heritage of Reformed Faith

RPCNA Logo

Geneva College was founded and is governed by the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America (RPCNA). Geneva’s worldview acknowledges Christ’s kingship over every aspect of His creation. Thus, a Geneva education emphasizes the connection between the Christian faith and every academic, athletic and student activity.

Foundational Concepts of Christian Education

What is Christian Education?

Christian education seeks to develop the students' abilities to know God and to relate themselves and the created universe to God through the study of His Word and Works. The philosophical basis on which Geneva College rests, referred to as the Foundational Concepts of Christian Education, was prepared by a joint committee of the Board of Corporators and Board of Trustees of Geneva College and adopted by the Board of Trustees at their meeting on October 26, 1967.

Reformed Faith Commitments

  • Jesus Christ: The only begotten Son of God, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead and buried. He descended into hell. The third day he rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty from thence He shall come to judge the quick and the dead. He, who is the only Redeemer of God's elect, being the eternal Son of God, became man, and so was, and continues to be, God and man in two distinct natures, and one person, forever.
  • Scripture: The Bible is the only infallible rule for faith and life
  • Divine Sovereignty: All of life unfolds according to God’s eternal counsel and will
  • The Covenants: God reveals progressively through the Old and New Testaments His promise and plan to redeem humanity and creation itself through Jesus the Christ
  • The Law of God: God’s moral law, summarized in the Ten Commandments, restrains societal evil, demonstrates everyone’s need for salvation in Jesus Christ and guides Christians in their growth in grace
  • The Church: The church is the redeemed people of God in the Old Testament and New Testament eras of history
  • The Kingdom of God: Jesus Christ reigns as the mediatorial King over all nations and peoples; He is Lord in every aspect of life

Sources: Rev. Rutledge Etheridge, Chaplain, and What is a Reformed Church? by Stephen E. Smallman (P&R Publishing, 2003)