The Master’s University and Seminary Appoints Dr. Sam Horn President

“The Board of Directors of The Master’s University and Seminary in Santa Clarita, California, today voted to name Dr. Sam Horn their 9th president, succeeding Dr. John Stead, effective in May or June 2020.” - BJU Today

Discussion

I’m not sure I would want to follow MacArthur there, especially given the troubles (accreditation issues, etc..) at Master’s. Suffice it to say that Horn has his work cut out for him, and I wish/pray him well. How long had he been at BJU?

Aspiring to be a stick in the mud.

https://twitter.com/jrpeet/status/1366577782080364546

March 1, 2021. Special Update From the TMUS Board of Directors:

On Friday, February 26, the Board of Directors received a letter of resignation from our TMUS president, Dr. Sam Horn. The board is grateful for the several important institutional milestones that were reached this past year, including the school’s reopening during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the reaffirmation of accreditation by WSCUC. This past year has been one of the most challenging years in higher education and we are grateful for our entire leadership team during this unprecedented time. In the coming days, the Board of Directors will appoint an interim president and begin the process of looking for the next president. Pray for us as we seek what is best for the future of both TMU and TMS.

….hopefully it’s something benign, but…..

Aspiring to be a stick in the mud.

TMU is in trouble. JMac is The Man who cannot be gain said. The Big Man model of leadership is alive and well.

Tyler is a pastor in Olympia, WA and works in State government.

I don’t know why this happened and I’m not sure I want to know. It’s really too bad though. Sam Horn seems like a great guy. I pray that he and TMU are all honoring God at this time.

Having grown up in that sub-culture, I always thought it would be tough to make this work, but it seems he stepped into an almost impossible situation, and that’s not even considering the impact of the pandemic. I feel bad for him and the school. Short tenures like this can’t be good for either one.

OK, granted, not the world’s most authoritative source, but if Horn was shown the door after resolving a lot of the probation issues with the accrediting agencies, that is a seriously toxic work environment. Put differently, I hope Tyler is wrong and Andy is pessimistic—as I’m sure they do as well—but this is not good at all.

Aspiring to be a stick in the mud.

We really do not know why Sam Horn left TMU. It could be for a host of reasons. Let’s assume the best rather than the worst.

The man was on-board for less than one academic year, during a time when there has been significant public scrutiny on JMac and TMU/TMS for allegedly flouting COVID regulations, and TMU/TMS continues to deal with accreditation issues, while JMac has found new latter-day fame as the cool grandfather of the “theo-bros” who frame COVID as persecution (“I’m all outta Fresca!”).

It is certainly possible Horn left for perfectly innocent reasons. It’s also possible the Seattle Mariners will win the World Series this year.

Tyler is a pastor in Olympia, WA and works in State government.

Dr. Horn was very impressive. It is heart-breaking.

Abner Chou, a professor at TMU/TMS, reported during chapel today that Horn resigned because the administration felt he did not meet the requirements to be an elder. Chou explained, “we don’t exercise authority in a way that’s quick tempered or pugnacious.” You can listen to the relevant audio from the chapel session at the end of Julie Roys’ article here.

My default is to assume Horn was railroaded out. You’ve heard of meat-grinder churches that chew, pulverize and spit out pastors. Well, I suspect we have here a meat-grinder institution that will never be healthy unless or until JMac lets go. I doubt he will. Unless the President is content to be a figurehead, I suspect he will have problems.

Of course, it’s entirely possible Horn is disqualified from being an elder. I just don’t think it’s likely. I will never recommend anybody go to this school.

Tyler is a pastor in Olympia, WA and works in State government.

He was certainly stepping into a tough situation— the whole accreditation struggle, and then the Covid politics out there in Calif. It can’t have helped to have large numbers of folks of the denier/defier mindset.

Kudos for making it through three years and getting some things done.

Views expressed are always my own and not my employer's, my church's, my family's, my neighbors', or my pets'. The house plants have authorized me to speak for them, however, and they always agree with me.

Listening to the audio Tyler links to all we know is Sam Horn is accused of getting mad at someone… That is all we know. He might be being railroaded. He might not.

I agree it looks bad, but we just don’t know enough details at this point to legitimately say this is nepotism or a “meat grinder” institution’s actions.