The Council of Independent Colleges (CIC) has awarded Northwest Christian University (NCU) a grant from its fund for Humanities Research for the Public Good. The $10,000 grant was awarded to NCU to conduct research to trace the history of Pacific Christian Hospital, founded in 1924 by NCU predecessor Eugene Bible University, now PeaceHealth Sacred Heart Medical Center – University District. PeaceHealth is NCU’s official community partner on the CIC grant application.
NCU Associate Professor of Bible and History, Brian Mills, will lead the research team. In addition to research and writing, Mills will supervise two undergraduate students participating in the research project. An NCU student will explore archival records related to the hospital’s history located at NCU, PeaceHealth, and the Lane County Historical Society. A second NCU student, with assistance from the University instructional technology staff, will create a web-based exhibition from the research findings that will be permanently linked to the NCU and PeaceHealth web sites.
Mills will use his research and the student’s to develop a narrative describing the motivation of a Christian college to open a hospital in the 1920s that includes the exploration of faith and science in the broader context of science and religion. The history of the hospital’s founding offers a historical snapshot that will support new discussions about a topic that is still relevant today.
The research will be completed in the 2020-’21 NCU school year. Students will make presentations about their research during the University’s spring semester ACE Day event. An event celebrating the project’s completion, with the launch of the web-based exhibit, will be planned in collaboration with the PeaceHealth for spring 2021.