Engineering department opens in downtown Mount Vernon

This year, MVNU has added an off-campus facility for the engineering program which was added mainly due to market demand. MVNU’s Dr. David Che said, “It was in response to the inquiry of the parents of prospective students who asked ‘Hey, do you have engineering?’”

The new facility opened on Sept. 7, and classes in the new building have since begun. “We’ve passed the state inspections, so everything is ready except for a few things here and there,” Che said.

The program entails a four-year education with a bachelor’s degree in science and engineering. Che said, “After four years, [the students are] ready to solve real world problems. I think it’s a good fit because MVNU fits the Nazarene tradition. The school motto is ‘To seek to

learn is to seek to serve,’ and how do you serve?” Che asked.

Che looks towards applying engineering to missions. “I’ve been talking to a retired MVNU professor who’s leading an outreach in Brazil,” He said. “We have churches there, but people don’t have jobs. How do we tap into their resources? How do you put them together and create business opportunities? That’s where engineering comes in.”

Looking toward the future, Che said, “The program has been growing. We have close to 60 students; of them we have roughly 20 freshmen. It’s growing, and we expect the program to bring in new students.”

Che hopes to keep the program going strong in the future, saying “Maybe in 10 years we can grow up to 200 students. There are more and more students who have a passion to serve the kingdom through engineering.”