The Henan CC is planning to erect a new building on a piece of land already assigned for this purpose by the government. Rev. Wang stressed that the provincial RAB had been very helpful in finding a new site for the Bible School, completing the necessary paper work and assisting in funding for a new building. The Bible School, founded in 1989, has trained more than 250 students in one-year programs centering on Biblical knowledge. About 30 of them have been ordained pastors or elders so far. In 1994, the school switched to a two-year course, with the first class of 70 students to graduate in June 1996.
Emphasis is still on the Bible, but practical church work is also stressed.
The school has four live-in teachers, three of them young graduates of Nanjing Union Theological Seminary and Zhongnan Seminary in Wuhan. Additionally, twelve pastors from the Zhengzhou region also teach classes. Students at the Bible school are often experienced church workers, and their ages range from about 30 to 50 years. Women students slightly outnumber men. Rev. Wang told ANS that the Henan Christian Council hoped to enlarge the school as there were many more applicants than the school could accomodate.