NEBC History

Northeastern Baptist College was born from a burden that began decades before its doors ever opened. As a young preacher, Dr. Mark Ballard dreamed of establishing a college that would equip men and women for the work of the gospel. Years later, after planting a church in New England, that burden took on new urgency as he saw firsthand both the spiritual need of the Northeast and the shortage of trained Christian leaders willing to plant their lives there.

A Bible institute launched in 2000 became an early step toward meeting that need, and in 2009 the vision for a fully developed college was renewed. Project Launch 13 was formed, years of prayer, sacrifice, fundraising, planning, and construction followed, and in August 2013, Northeastern Baptist College opened its doors in Bennington, Vermont—the first four-year evangelical Christian college established in the state for the express purpose of advancing the gospel in New England. What began as an audacious step of faith has since then become an established Christian college, authorized by the State of Vermont to grant degrees, offering undergraduate and graduate programs, welcoming students from across the nation and around the world, and sending graduates into churches, schools, businesses, and the mission field.

Now, as NEBC enters its second decade and a new chapter of leadership, we do so with profound gratitude for those whose faith, sacrifice, generosity, and perseverance brought us this far. Still, we are convinced that the greatest chapters of this story have yet to be written. The mission that gave birth to NEBC has not changed; if anything, the need has become even more urgent. From our strategic home in New England, we have the opportunity to proclaim Christ, prepare pastors and church planters, equip Christian leaders for the marketplace and classroom, develop partnerships across the nation, and send a new generation into places desperately in need of the hope of the gospel. We honor the faithfulness of the past not simply by preserving what was built, but by building upon it. We embrace the future with a renewed determination to equip Christ-centered leaders who will carry the gospel from New England to the nations.