A Message from the President

Welcome to Crandall University! I attended Crandall in the 1980s, and my experience as a student changed my life. It was at Crandall that I made significant life decisions about my future; I made lifelong friendships; I benefited from caring staff and faculty; and, I am committed to the continuation of our mission today.

We have experienced significant growth in our student population in recent years, yet we work hard at Crandall to make sure that we preserve a sense of family for our students. At many of the larger universities in Canada, classrooms are filled with hundreds of students. At Crandall, our classes are small; you get to know your professors, who are able to guide you through your program as you prepare for advanced study or your career.

We are also proud of the commitment of our excellent professors to scholarship, to teaching, and to serving their community. Faculty members have earned advanced degrees at some of the world’s most prestigious research universities including Notre Dame, Columbia, and Illinois in the US; Toronto, UBC, McMaster, Western, and Queens in Canada; and a variety of universities in the UK including Oxford, Cambridge, and St. Andrew’s. Our professors have traveled and lectured widely. They have published extensively and have worked in some exciting roles prior to joining our team.

Crandall’s mission is “transforming lives through quality university education firmly rooted in the Christian faith.” In addition to providing high quality academic programs, we achieve this mission through impactful co-curricular experiences such as athletics, chapel, cross-cultural mission experiences and service opportunities. These activities are supported by highly qualified Christian faculty and staff who care deeply about our students. They are fantastic; you will love them, and they will love you too!

I hope that you will contact our Admissions Office and set up a date to visit our beautiful campus. I’m confident you’ll be impressed by the quality educational and community experience we offer – both inside and outside the classroom. I look forward to meeting you!

Robert Knowles, DMin
Interim President and Vice Chancellor

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University Leadership

Crandall University was founded in 1949 by the Canadian Baptists of Atlantic Canada (CBAC) which continues to support the University and to elect and ratify appointments to its Board of Governors. The University is responsible to provide quality education for the leaders of tomorrow.

Crandall University, as a corporation, is led by a Board of Governors elected annually from among the supporters of the University.

The Senate of Crandall University determines all academic standards and is comprised of the President of Crandall University, the Vice-President for Academic Affairs, members of faculty, and the Academic Deans, plus representatives of the student body, the alumni, the Board of Governors, and the CBAC.

Chancellor

Don Simmonds has served as Chancellor, the honourary head of the University, since 2014. He is the Chairman of Blyth Group, a Family Office that invests behind ideas and human capital with global impact.

A seasoned executive leader and serial entrepreneur, Don has given leadership to enterprises spanning technology, telecommunications, renewable energy, financial services, agriculture, and media. In the early 90’s he was the National Youth Coordinator for Canadian Baptists which enabled him to forge strong bonds with youth leaders in Atlantic Canada.

Don is a member of the International Advisory Board of Unashamedly Ethical, an endeavour helping countries embrace ethical values, a Director of Baylin Technologies, a TSX listed company, a recipient of the Queen’s Jubilee medal, and in 2008 was inducted into the Canadian Telecommunications Hall of Fame.

Two new endeavours include CitiIQ, a measurement system for the health and wellbeing of cities, and VITALL, a service that consolidates a person’s health records to enable access anywhere.

The Simmonds family is best known for having established Clearnet, one of Canada’s wireless networks subsequently sold to Telus. Don was also the founding CEO of AirIQ, among the first to combine GPS and wireless technology together. Under his leadership AirIQ was named one of Canada’s fastest growing technology companies and Don was a finalist in the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year® Awards program.

Don and his wife Fay live in the small town of Uxbridge just outside of Toronto, where they met in high school. They have been married for 49 years and have four children and five grandchildren. Don has helped develop character in young men as a hockey coach in his local community over four decades and is the founding Head Coach of the Uxbridge High School Tigers. The Tigers motto is to “win at hockey and win in life.” Annually the Tigers deepen a community-to-community friendship with a remote indigenous community in Canada’s far north.

President’s Council

Board of Governors

Senate

2025-2026 Members

Observers

History

Following the second World War, the leadership of the United Baptist Convention of the Maritime Provinces felt the time was right to address their concern that young people who were leaving the region to train for vocational Christian ministry were not returning. To address this issue, the United Baptist Bible Training School was founded in Moncton, New Brunswick in 1949. The school began as a Bible institute and then a few years later added a residential high school program because many prospective students who wanted to attend were from rural areas where young people did not have access to a high school education. For the next two decades, students came from all over Atlantic Canada and beyond to learn in a Christian context and to live in a Christian community. Academic excellence very quickly became a hallmark of the new school, and many people gave sacrificially to help expand the facilities and the programs. By 1968, high schools were being established across rural Atlantic Canada and the school transitioned to a Christian Junior Liberal Arts College to meet the educational needs of a new era. In 1970, the name was changed to Atlantic Baptist College to reflect this new direction.

In 1983, the New Brunswick Legislature passed legislation granting Atlantic Baptist College a charter and gave the College the authority to offer baccalaureate degrees. By 1996, the growing College moved from its original Salisbury Road campus to a new 200-acre campus on the Gorge Road on land donated by Mrs. Ruth Colburne. In the same year, the original Act of the Legislature was amended to change the name of the College to Atlantic Baptist University. This was done to reflect the continued growth and development of the University which by then was granting undergraduate degrees in Arts, Business, and Science and in the following years added bachelor degrees in Education and Organizational Management.

In 2008, and again in 2010, slight amendments to the Act were made to permit the awarding of degrees beyond the baccalaureate level and to change the name to Crandall University in honour of Joseph Crandall, who founded several Baptist churches in the greater Moncton area during the mid 1800s. This new name was also intended to more clearly offer an invitation into the Crandall community to all prospective students and supporters who were not from a Baptist tradition. In 2010, the University opened the new Stultz Hall academic building, and in 2012 the new Mitton Court apartment building, to augment the existing Colburne House residence and Murray Hall in order to accommodate the continued growth of the student body.

In 2013, the University began to offer graduate degrees in Organizational Management and Education. By 2020, a Master of Management degree was added. Through these developments the University witnessed a significant increase in enrollment from both domestic and international graduate students. Along with the growth in the student body, the size of the staff continued to increase as did the size and breadth of the faculty. At the same time, the University has maintained small class sizes to preserve the individual attention and friendly and supportive spirit which it has always valued.  As the University entered the 2020s, over 300 undergraduate scholarships were added and the number of athletic teams increased as Crandall students travelled to compete in the region, the nation, and internationally.

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Mission & Faith Statements

Mission Statement

The mission of Crandall University is that of Transforming lives through quality university education firmly rooted in the Christian faith.

This mission is accomplished through:

Teaching in the disciplines of the liberal arts, sciences and professional studies that includes:

• A student-centered approach that focuses on learning rather than delivery of information only;
• a commitment to holistic growth of the person including spiritual, intellectual, social, and mental and physical well-being;
• the teamwork of outstanding and dedicated staff, faculty, administrators and Board members;
• the development of a unified and caring community that encourages character formation, fosters leadership skills, and facilitates the integration of faith and learning so that graduates are prepared for future positions of leadership and service in Canada and around the world; and
• openness to serving all people who apply to study at Crandall University.

Co-curricular transformation opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students that include but are not limited to:

• a vibrant chapel and spiritual life program designed to engage the heart as well as the mind that involves students, faculty, staff, and guests and is designed to point toward Jesus as Lord;
• organized off-campus service opportunities for students designed to cultivate empathy and compassion;
• intentional leadership training that equips students who serve as Resident Assistants and Housing Dons to serve and care for their peers;
• elected student government offices and other appointed leadership roles for students that foster the art of servant leadership;
• student- and university-initiated clubs and societies that foster informal learning, friendship, and relationships with faculty and staff that extend beyond the classroom;
• varsity, club, and intramural sports, as well as outdoor education adventures that champion the value of physical health in the context of an emphasis on integrity, excellence, and friendship; and
• on-campus employment opportunities that both provide a means to earn income to offset educational costs and provide opportunities for students to gain mentored work experience that provides greater clarity in one’s calling and life direction.

Faculty research that includes but is not limited to:

• expansion of knowledge within the scholar’s discipline;
• a standard of excellence that reflects the University’s commitment to academic integrity; and
• advancing the integration of faith and learning through academic presentations and publications that evaluate theories and conclusions in light of a Christian worldview.

Employee service that includes:

• a modeling commitment to active engagement in a local Christ-centered church;
• active membership in Crandall University committees or councils;
• appropriate and relevant engagement with Crandall student-led initiatives;
• volunteerism in local community service; and
• professional service in relevant and meaningful associations and agencies that goes beyond the immediate scope of what is covered through any teaching, research, or employment responsibility.

Statement of Faith

God: There is one God, eternally existent in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. In the Godhead these three persons are equal and united in essence and perfection. They execute distinct but harmonious offices in the great work of redemption.

• God is Father to all people in the general sense of Creator and Sustainer of the universe. He has fatherly compassion for all humanity. God is Father, in a personal sense, to all who profess faith in His only begotten and unique Son, Jesus Christ.
• Jesus Christ is God manifest in the flesh; we affirm His virgin birth, sinless humanity, divine miracles, vicarious death once for all time, bodily resurrection and ascension, mediatorial work before the Father, and the blessed hope of His personal return in power and glory.
• The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Godhead who proceeds from the Father and the Son. The Holy Spirit convicts humanity of sin, righteousness, and God’s judgement; calls people to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, indwells and enables the believer to live a holy life; and empowers the believer to witness and to work for the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Scriptures: The Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments have their authority from God alone and are given to us by divine inspiration. They are the only perfect, supreme, infallible, and sufficient standard for all matters of faith and conduct. They have been carefully preserved by the providence of God through the work of faithful believers.

Humanity: Humanity was created sinless. By the disobedience of the first man and woman, sin entered the human race. Through this disobedience all humanity is born sinful, under the curse of condemnation and death, in need of repentance and forgiveness.

Salvation: The salvation of lost and sinful humanity is possible only through the merits of Jesus Christ and His substitutionary death on our behalf. Salvation must be received through repentance and faith, and it is apart from works. It is characterized by regeneration by the Holy Spirit.

The Church: The Church consists of all true believers in the Lord Jesus Christ. The Bible also identifies the local Church as an assembly of baptized believers organized for worship, discipleship, outreach, and service to others for God.

Resurrection and Judgement: There will be a general resurrection of the bodies of the just and the unjust. God will judge all humanity. Those who are saved will live eternally in God’s presence. Those who are lost in sin will receive eternal condemnation.

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