college received a sizeable bequest that enabled the trustees to move toward making the college a reality. A Cincinnati pastor, Dr. David McKinney, was named first president, and Cedarville opened its doors to the first students on September 19, 1894. Cedarville College remained a Reformed Presbyterian school until 1928 when the General Synod released it to the trustees so the Board could seek financial assistance from the Presbyterian Church in the u.s.A. The latter body refused to consider support until such a break was made, and then rejected the request anyway! This left the college with no supporting constituency. Other difficulties e~erged in the '30s, and by late in the decade the trustees dipped into the endowment for a small "loan." This practice continued in the '40s, and by the early '50s the modest endowment had been depleted to keep the college alive. When the endowment was gone, the trustees realized they could no longer continue operation. Because of their great love for the traditions of their college, they looked for another Christian group that would bring new leadership to the struggling school and enable it to continue. Engle indicated to Jeremiah that the trustees of Cedarville College were seeking a merger. As Engle briefly outlined the plight of Cedarville College, Jeremiah's mind focused on the Baptist Bible Institute of Cleveland (B.B.I.). This institute had its inception on September 27, 1941, when several Bible-believing pastors attended a Bible conference at the Calvary Baptist Church in Cleveland, Ohio. These men held a special session to discuss the possibility of establishing an educational institution to train Cleveland area young people for the ministry. The nine pastors attending that initial session were George A. Bates, George G. Nika, Gerald V. Smelser, Gordon Anderson L.T. Merchant, D.E. Luttrell, Howard Kram~r, William S. Ross, and J.F. Guthriell. They selected Pastors Luttrell and Ross to contact Bible schools in Detroit and Grand Rapids for data that might be helpful in formulating their plans. A second meeting was held on October 20, 1941, at the Russett Cafeteria. George Bates was chosen as chairman, and the nine pastors received the material provided by the Michigan schools. The pastors then entered into a lengthy discussion regarding the feasibility of launching such a project. After reviewing all the data, the decision was to move forward as 8/Chapter I quickly as possible. 1 In less than a year, B.B.I. was ready to function. By July 1942, a course of study for the first year was adopted and officers were elected. The school was offered the use of the Educational Building of the Hough Avenue Baptist Church for classrooms, and on September 15, 1942, the Baptist Bible Institute opened its doors to Clevelanders. Two hundred and seventy-four enrolled for the first term. Z The initial curriculum was composed entirely of Bible courses, which were offered on Tuesday and Friday nights. The need for a full-time dean was discussed at the October 20 1941 meeting, but the institute was staffed by , pastors who "were required to be graduated from high school, to have Theological Seminary or accredited Bible School training, and to have membership in a fundamental Baptist Church"3 for the first several years. The first full-time employee of B.B.I. was Rev. Kenneth A. Amsler, who was called to the position of dean and director of promotion. "Under his able leadership, the institute moved forward ... The curriculum was strengthened, the faculty increased numerically and scholastically, the constitution was revised, a new Board of Directors elected and a Board of Reference appointed."4 In January 1946, B.B.I. incorporated in accordance with the laws of the State of Ohio. On June 4 of the same year, the first nine graduates received their diplomas. The following September the day school began with 28 students enrolled. Just one month earlier the institute gained initial government approval for qualified students to receive veterans' benefits. 5 The institute became an approved school of the General Association of Regular Baptist Churches (G.A.R.B.C.), and in October 1949, was accredited by the Accrediting Association of Bible Institutes and Bible Colleges in its intermediate division. By May 1951, the trustees revised the charter of the institute to permit the granting of theological degrees, and additional courses were added leading to the Bachelor of Religious Education degree. At the same time a Bachelor of Theology degree was approved, and the corporate charter was changed to read: To conduct a theological school for the teach– ing and training of ministers, missionaries, and teachers of the Gospel; for the granting of theo– logical degrees and diplomas which have value in religious ecclesiastical fields; to disseminate Christian knowledge and information' to re– ceive, collect, and disperse funds; and ;0 erect, acquire, own, manage or rent property all in furtherance of the above purposes. 6