Awards/Honors Archives - ��ĺ��

Cairn Online Degrees Ranked Among Most Affordable in PA

Lydia Garrison — Wed, 20 Aug 2025 17:27:15 +0000

��ĺ�� ranked #5 in most affordable online bachelor’s degree programs and #9 in master’s degree programs in the state of Pennsylvania. This ranking—created by the —assessed both public and private institutions. In both the bachelor’s and master’s degree categories, ��ĺ�� was the top-ranked Christian institution in the state.

Affordable Degree Guide provides tuition comparisons, financial aid insights, and curated degree rankings to help students find cost-effective, credible educational pathways. Cairn’s top ranking in the state of PA is a testament to our commitment to affordability.

“Cairn has a mission to educate students to serve Christ in the church, society, and the world, and making that education affordable is one of our chief commitments as an institution,” said Tom Sherf, vice president of marketing and enrollment. “To know that we are a top-ranking school as well as leading the charge of affordable Christian online education in Pennsylvania is very encouraging. We will continue to pursue new ways to make our distinctly biblical education affordable without sacrificing the quality of our academics or compromising on our mission.”

To learn more about Cairn’s affordable and biblical online education, visit cairn.edu/online. You can also .

Faculty of the Year Awarded to Dr. Debbie L. Wolf

Laura Rossi — Fri, 16 May 2025 11:42:48 +0000

This year, ��ĺ�� is pleased to congratulate Dr. Debbie L. Wolf, the School of Music’s Chair of Music Education, on being selected as the 2025 Faculty Member of the Year.

This award recognizes a faculty member who exemplifies the ideals of Christian scholarship and service that define the Cairn academic community. The selection is based on several criteria:

Extraordinary professional contribution,
Skillful and integrative educational contribution,
Meaningful investment in students, and
Collegiality and support within the academic community.

Over the course of her career at Cairn—beginning in 1989—Dr. Wolf has been recognized for her remarkable dedication to the University’s mission and to the students. Through national and international presentations, contributions to an ISME publication, service with the PMEA, and her leadership as chief reader for the PRAXIS Music Tests at ETS, she has brought distinction to her field and to Cairn. Dr. Wolf’s classroom teaching—spanning from private piano instruction to music education courses—is marked by creativity, rigor, and biblical integration.

Dr. Wolf also generously extends this expertise beyond the University through the Cairn Community Arts Academy. Her investment in students is deeply personal and formative, helping shape not just their musicianship but their character and faith. Finally, as Chair of Music Education, she models collegiality and leadership that is both gracious and wise, contributing significantly to the life of the faculty as a whole.

Congratulations, Dr. Wolf!

Cairn Graduate Jesse Rivera Accepted Into PCOM’s Physician Assistant Program

Lydia Garrison — Fri, 09 Dec 2022 18:34:20 +0000

Cairn graduate Jesse Rivera, who graduated from the Pre-Med program with his BS in Biology in August 2022, is the first Cairn graduate to be accepted into a Physician Assistant (PA) program.

Jesse was first introduced to the PA program during his freshman year, when a representative from visited his biology class. After four years of classroom instruction and lab experience that met the program’s prerequisites, Jesse applied to PCOM after graduation and recently heard of his acceptance into his program of choice.

Currently, Jesse is enrolled in the University’s MS in Organizational Development program while he completes his final year of eligibility on the men’s basketball team. He will begin PCOM’s 26-month program in Summer 2023. Upon completion of the program, Jesse will become a licensed Physician’s Assistant. He hopes to take this experience “to work in underserved communities where I can bring the biblically integrated education I have from Cairn to the medical field.”

In discussing how the Pre-Med program at Cairn prepared him for this new venture, he commented, “I am very thankful for how well Dr. Khushman, Professor Jensen, Dr. Bell, and Dr. Hixson have prepared me for a future in the health field.”

Additional Note:
��ĺ�� has a long-standing admissions agreement with the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. Up to three seats each year in PCOM’s Doctor of Pharmacy, MS in Biomedical Sciences, and MS in Forensic Medicine programs are reserved for students at ��ĺ�� who meet the admission criteria for the given program. Learn more at cairn.edu/PCOM.

Politics Major Josiah Hasbrouck Receives National Scholarship

Lydia Garrison — Thu, 17 Nov 2022 15:01:51 +0000

Senior Josiah Hasbrouck is one of only four undergraduate students in the nation to earn the 2022–2023 Initiative on Faith & Public Life Young Scholar Award. The award is a $5,000 scholarship from the Young Scholar Awards Program of the American Enterprise Institute’s Initiative on Faith and Public Life. The program seeks to award scholarships to students who “demonstrate significant promise in their field of research,” specifically “issues of economics, public policy, and society from a perspective of Christian faith, theology, and ethics.”

This program supports select students who conduct a year-long academic research project with a university advisor. Josiah, who is a student in the University’s Honors Program, has been working on his honors thesis under the guidance of Greg Schaller, assistant professor at ��ĺ�� and president of the John Jay Institute. His thesis explores the intersection of Christianity and politics and was well-suited for the scholarship parameters. More specifically, his topic is “The Applicability of Protestant Natural Law Theory in American Positive Law.” Josiah describes his research as such:

“Despite skepticism in the last century, Protestant thinkers throughout history have believed in natural law and considered it legitimate grounds for human law, as did the American Founders. My work is aimed at an audience of Protestants with questions about the relationship between moral law revealed in Scripture and nature, the relationship between moral and human law, and how these relationships are relevant in the United States, given the thought of the Founders. I am also writing on natural law to promote love of God and neighbor. Following God’s law is a key way we love him, and seeking the good of society through government is a key way we love our neighbors.”

Josiah will complete his thesis by the end of the academic year, when he will graduate from the politics program with minors in Bible and philosophy. Following graduation, Josiah will travel to Washington, D.C., to present and defend his paper. The final paper, as well as an op-ed summarizing the paper, will be published by American Enterprise Institute.

Former Employee and Military Veteran Eugene Vickers Passes Away at 106

Lydia Garrison — Fri, 19 Aug 2022 13:12:29 +0000

Gene celebrating his 104th birthday in 2019 at the Navy Museum in Washington D.C, where he received a plaque honoring his service in World War II.

Mr. Eugene Vickers passed into eternity in the early morning on Friday, July 15, 2022, at 106 years old. He is survived by four daughters, 11 grandchildren, and 19 great-grandchildren.

Eugene and his wife, Betty, had been married only two months when Pearl Harbor was attacked in December 1941 and the US entered WWII. Mr. Vickers enlisted and entered the navy as a lieutenant and was sent to Harvard for the training required to serve as a communications officer. He was also assigned to serve as chaplain when he arrived on the USS Ganymede AK-104.

Mr. Vickers began studying at ��ĺ�� before the war, but when he returned, he began faithfully serving the institution. He served for 45 years in various positions, including director of admissions, director of alumni, soccer coach, and director of evening school. His four daughters are alumni of the University, and several of his grandchildren are as well.

His favorite Bible verse was Proverbs 3:5–6, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not unto your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him and he will direct your paths.”

A memorial service to celebrate Mr. Vickers’ life will be held on Sunday, September 18, at 5 pm at Grace Chapel in Havertown, PA. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to ��ĺ�� in Langhorne, PA, Delaware County Christian School in Newtown Square, PA, and Grace Chapel in Havertown, PA.

��ĺ�� Ranks Among the Safest United States College Campuses

Lydia Garrison — Fri, 15 Oct 2021 13:06:55 +0000

��ĺ�� was ranked the 20th safest college campus in the United States according to ranking and review website .
Niche ranked colleges based on “key statistics and student reviews using data from the U.S. Department of Education,” including campus crime rate, the local crime grade, alcohol- and drug-related arrests, and residence hall date violence and rape rates. Highly ranked schools like ��ĺ�� are considered to “offer a safe and healthy environment with little or no campus crime, drugs, or alcohol usage.”
You can read the full report at .

Awards/Honors Archives - ���ĺ�������