Western Theological Seminary - Virtual Tour
Western Theological Seminary is a vibrant, nurturing academic community that will prepare you for a lifetime of vocational ministry. Founded in 1866 and completely renovated in 2018, the beautiful campus of WTS is a mix of tradition and innovation.
Set in beautiful downtown Holland, MI, and along the shoreline of Lake Michigan, the surroundings offer four-season beauty and outdoor opportunities galore. Metro Grand Rapids is less than 30 minutes away providing the best in small-town and urban-life experiences.
Welcome To Western Theological Seminary
Originally built in 1955, the seminary building was completely renovated in 2018. Our new, fully-accessible facility houses the state-of-the-art Cook Library and DeWitt Learning Center, classrooms, administrative and faculty offices, beautiful Mulder Chapel, the Hispanic Ministry program suite, Center for Disability & Ministry, and the Eugene Petersen Center for Christian Imagination. On-campus living provides easy access to all that WTS has to offer, with The Friendship House adjacent and the Redbrick Townhouse Apartments across the street.
Also housed in the front of the building is the Community Kitchen. Nearly 28 years ago, WTS and Holland’s Community Action House (CAH) came together to launch the Community Kitchen to provide meals seven days a week nearly every day of the year. Click on the hotspot to learn more.
The Ralph and Cheryl Schregardus Friendship House
In 2007, the Friendship House at Western Theological Seminary became the first seminary housing of its kind. Friendship House is a pod-style apartment complex where 18 students live alongside six young adults with cognitive and physical disabilities. We at Western Theological Seminary would be diminished without the presence of our Friendship House Fellows. They have enriched the lives of seminarians and given us a deeper appreciation of all people and a deeper understanding of what it means to be human.Learn about the Center for Disability and Ministry
Maas Hall - Mulder Chapel and the DeWitt Theological Center
Sharing campus space with Hope College allows for a beautiful setting with easy access to the resources of both communities. Relaxing outdoor sitting areas, walkways through the Pine Grove, and expansive views through the windows of Maas Hall provide peaceful (and sometimes, lively!) opportunities for entertainment and engagement with the community that surrounds Western. WTS holds weekday worship services in the beautiful Mulder Chapel.
Come On In
As you walk the brick entryway and enter WTS through the main entrance, you will pass by the President’s Office Suite, the Business Office, and the Admissions Office on the way to the welcome desk. Be sure to listen in on President Felix Theonugraha’s enthusiasm for all that happens here. The Admissions Team is eager to talk about your interest in ministry leadership. Whether or not our conversation leads you to Western, we can’t wait to learn about your interests and talk with you about the people and programs that make up Western’s community of faith and learning.
Welcome to the John R. Mulder Memorial Chapel
The corporate worship of God is at the heart of what we do at Western Theological Seminary. We gather as a community to regularly pray, to sing and to be silent, to confess and receive grace, to testify to God’s goodness and lament our world’s brokenness, to celebrate the weekly sacrament of the Lord’s Supper together, and to emerge from the experience ready to enact the love of Christ for the world.
Explore the Cook Library and DeWitt Learning Center
Cook Library was designed to be the intellectual center of campus and features the latest in technology and resources for learning and research. Learn collaboratively or study alone in any one of the small group spaces, individual study carrels, fireplace seating areas, the coffee nook, or specially outfitted lab in the Worship Arts Center. Moveable stacks and digital repositories house over 500,000 print and e-books with a particular strength in Reformed Theology.
Library Lower-level Stacks
The Library’s main book collection is located on the lower level in our state-of- the art moveable stacks. Come explore our collection with the touch of a button.
Community in the Atrium
Positioned between Mulder Chapel and Cook Library, students, faculty, and staff find their way to the Atrium each weekday after chapel for community time and prayers before they head into one of the nearby classrooms. Upstairs, behind the glass railing, faculty, staff, and academic offices encircle the Atrium space, allowing students easy access for conversation, questions, and advising.
Meet the Faculty
Western faculty are widely published and academically distinguished, with doctoral degrees from the likes of Duke, Harvard, and Princeton. As importantly, our professors are deeply involved in congregational ministry – and several offer the unique perspectives of having served as pastors. With a 14:1 student to professor ratio, Western students have the opportunity to connect personally with their professors both in the classroom and outside of it.Meet The Faculty
Maas Classroom
Each classroom has been recently renovated and provides a spacious, comfortable environment with plenty of natural light to enhance the learning experience.
Academic and Student Life Office
Western prepares you for real-world ministry and you can count on individual attention and invested relationships. Along with peer groups and faculty, the Student Services staff is committed to the thriving of each student. They will diligently work with you to develop a plan to ensure your success in the ministry field of your interest.
Garden Level
The garden level on the lower floor below the atrium provides more small conference rooms where students and faculty can gather, as well as a kitchenette for lunch and learn opportunities. Classroom 019 is also located in the Garden Level, where you can learn about sacramental worship from Dr. Sue Rozeboom, reenact the council of Nicaea in Dr. Komline's Church History Course, or look in on Dr. J. Todd Billings’s theology class shown here.
At Home - Redbrick Townhouse Living
The townhouses on campus are ideal for single students, couples, and families with young children. They encircle a commons area with picnic tables, a playground, and plenty of room for gatherings. The townhouses are available in 1, 2, and 3 bedroom units, and each includes air conditioning, a basement with storage capacity and a washer and dryer, and all major kitchen appliances. Handicapped accessible units are available.