Our Story

In September 1995, Pastor Wayne Cordeiro founded New Hope Christian Fellowship in Honolulu, Hawaii. His passion for nurturing church leaders led to creating the School of Church Planters (SCP) to address the need for leadership development. Graduates of the SCP program have gone on to establish churches in over twenty countries successfully. This is a testament to the impact of Pastor Cordeiro's vision and the effectiveness of the SCP program in equipping leaders to spread hope and faith worldwide.

In 1998, the School of Church Planters transformed and was renamed Pacific Rim Bible Institute. The institute's leadership was entrusted to Pastor Wayne Cordeiro as President and Dr. Randall Furushima as Dean. As time passed, the Bible Institute expanded its offerings and eventually became a full-fledged college. The college continued to grow and eventually added graduate programs, ultimately achieving the status of a university.

From 2011 to 2015, the college functioned as the Hawaii campus of New Hope Christian College in Eugene, Oregon. However, in 2015, both parties mutually agreed to end the merger, leading to the emergence of Pacific Rim Christian University as a new corporation with its board. Dr. Kent Keith was named President, while Dr. Furushima was appointed as President Emeritus and Dean of the Graduate School. In April 2015, the university, commonly called "PacRim," obtained its initial independent accreditation from ABHE.

Pacific Rim Christian University is dedicated to serving the Christian community in Hawaii and throughout the Pacific Rim. In Hawaii, the university is proud to support the John P.C. Makuakane Institute for Christian Leadership, offering valuable training to Native Hawaiian pastors on the Island of Hawaii. PacRim has partnered with institutes and colleges in Washington State, Japan, and Myanmar. The faculty and staff of PacRim have shared their expertise by teaching classes and giving presentations in Australia, Japan, Saipan, Singapore, and China. Additionally, PacRim students have embarked on meaningful mission trips to Japan, Costa Rica, and the Philippines. The PacRim campus community remains dedicated to its original mission of equipping lay leaders, ministers, and professionals throughout the Pacific Rim to make a positive impact for Christ.