Who We Are
Mission
The mission of North Park University, as the University of the Evangelical Covenant Church, is to prepare students for lives of significance and service through education in the liberal arts, professional studies, and theology.
Vision
Building on our core institutional identity—Christian, city-centered, intercultural—our vision is to create a university of uncommon character and enduring excellence, where faith, learning, and service meet.
Aspiration
North Park University will be distinguished as the nation’s leading city-centered Christian university during the coming decade and beyond.
The university’s learning community is differentiated by adopting the city as both subject and place of learning as a foundation for academic excellence. Within this framework, the university educates students from diverse backgrounds, cultures, and prior academic experiences, practicing Christian hospitality with students of all faith traditions while centering in the Affirmations of the Evangelical Covenant Church.
The university will be known through its graduates who are equipped in their respective careers to advance the vitality of the world’s people and their cities, prepared to cross cultures, and formed in Christian community for leadership and service in the church and the world.
Our distinctives
The university’s academic programs and learning environment are informed by three institutional values. Our community is:
Christian – We nurture faith, balancing commitment and freedom.
City-centered – We engage Chicago as a dynamic place of learning and service.
Intercultural – We embrace and value all people, celebrate the global cultural tapestry, and support the reconciling mandate of the Christian gospel.
The Evangelical Covenant Church and North Park University
Our roots
North Park University, founded in 1891, is deeply connected to the Evangelical Covenant Church (ECC), a diverse and growing Christian denomination with over 800 congregations in North America and ministries worldwide.
ECC mission and values
Since 1885, the ECC has fostered Christ-centered communities guided by these core values:
- The Bible is the Word of God, and the only perfect rule for faith, doctrine and conduct
- The necessity of new birth
- A commitment to the whole mission of the church
- The church as a fellowship of believers
- A conscious dependence on the Holy Spirit
- The reality of freedom in Christ
North Park’s connection
North Park integrates faith and learning, preparing students for lives of service. North Park Theological Seminary, the seminary of the ECC, equips leaders for ministry. Explore the ECC’s mission, history, and resources here.