Prospective Students

Institute for Creation Research

ICR Mission and Purpose

The mission of the Institute for Creation Research (ICR) is to study, teach, and communicate the works of God’s creation.

ICR has been established for three main purposes:

Research. As a research organization, ICR will engage in laboratory, field, theoretical, and library research on projects that seek to understand the science of origins and earth history.

Education. As an educational institution, ICR will offer formal courses of instruction, conduct seminars and workshops, present radio and television lectures, or any other means of instruction.

Communication. ICR will produce and/or publish books, films, periodicals, and other media for communicating the evidences and information related to its research and education to its own constituents and to the public in general.

Board of Trustees

The Institute for Creation Research (ICR) is administered by a Board of Trustees that consists of at least nine elected members plus the Chief Executive Officer and President, who serve Ex Officio. Members are elected by the members of the existing Board to serve for staggered three-year terms and are eligible for re-election to one additional term. At least three members are elected to serve on an Executive Committee that meets approximately bi-monthly. The entire Board meets at least twice annually. Current Board members are as follows:

Dr. David A. Wismer (Colorado Springs, Colorado), Chairman

Mr. Richard Bliss (Milwaukee, Wisconsin), Vice Chairman

Mr. Daniel Mitchell (White Oak, Texas)

Dr. Robert Armstrong (Belgrade, Montana)

Mr. Brian Bissell (Lakewood, Colorado)

Mr. Jack Brady (Dallas, Texas)

Dr. John Eckersley Jr. (Palm City, Florida)

Mr. Dan Manthei (Desert Hot Springs, California)

Dr. Henry Morris III (Irving, Texas)

Dr. John D. Morris (Santee, California)

Lt. Col. Charles C. Morse (Seoul, Korea)

The Board establishes general policies, approves budgets, and appoints the major administrative officers. ICR administration implements Board policies in day-to-day operations.

Technical Advisory Board

In addition to its regular professional staff, ICR has a Technical Advisory Board consisting of distinguished scientists and educators throughout the country who serve as consultants and advisors in various phases of ICR activities. These are as follows:

Edward F. Blick, Ph.D., Professor of Petroleum and Geological Engineering, Retired, University of Oklahoma

David R. Boylan, Ph.D., Professor of Chemical Engineering, Retired, Formerly Dean of Engineering, Iowa State University

Malcolm A. Cutchins, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus of Aerospace Engineering, Auburn University, Alabama

Raymond V. Damadian, M.D., Inventor and Professor, Woodbury, New York

Robert H. Eckel, M.D., Professor of Medicine, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, Denver, Colorado

Carl B. Fliermans, Ph.D., Microbial Ecologist, Westinghouse, Savannah River Company, Aikon, South Carolina

Joseph L. Henson, Ph.D., Chairman Emeritus, Director of Natural Sciences, Bob Jones University, Greenville, South Carolina

Gailen D. Marshall, Jr., M.D., Ph.D., Associate Professor of Medicine and Pathology, Director, Division of Allergy & Clinical Immunology, University of Texas (Houston)

David Menton, Ph.D., Associate Professor Emeritus, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri

John R. Meyer, Ph.D., Formerly Professor of Biology, Baptist Bible College, Clark’s Summit, Pennsylvania; Currently Director, C.R.S. Research Center, Arizona

John W. Oller, Jr., Ph.D., Professor and Department Head of Communicative Disorders, University of Louisiana at Lafayette

Ker C. Thomson, D.Sc., Professor of Geophysics, Retired, Baylor University, Waco, Texas

John C. Whitcomb, Jr., Th.D., Formerly Director of Doctoral Studies, Grace Theological Seminary, Winona Lake, Indiana; Currently founder of Whitcomb Ministries, Inc.

ICR Administration

  Chief Executive Officer Henry M. Morris III
  President John D. Morris
  Director of Research Larry Vardiman
  Dean of the Graduate School Eddy Miller
  Director of Communications Lawrence Ford
  Director of Administrative Services Eileen Turner
  Director of Donor Relations Henry M. Morris, IV
  Director of Internet Ministries Richard Pferdner
  Director of Information Technology Daryl Robbins

A Word from the Chief Executive Officer

The Institute for Creation Research Graduate School (ICRGS) is the educational arm of ICR and an integral part of the Institute’s broader mission. The ICRGS represents the finest educational effort of our research efforts, and has been granting Master of Science degrees since 1981.

Our faculty all have terminal degrees from prestigious universities around the United States, and are actively involved both in the design of the curricula and in cutting-edge technical and experimental research on the major issues of origins and earth history. ICRGS teaches experimental science as found in any standard university curricula, but maintains a different perspective when it comes to the historic or forensic science that interprets empirical data as it relates to those issues.

ICRGS students receive a rigorous and thorough education in the sciences, in which they are exposed to standard naturalistic and evolutionary theories found in secular universities, with the additional benefit that they are also challenged with evidences of the supernatural intervention of the Creator, thus ensuring a heightened ability and skill of critical thinking.

We are delighted that you are considering joining the ICRGS program. We stand ready to respond to your questions and trust that your decision—and your degree—will lead you to a fruitful and exciting life of service in the sciences.

Henry M. Morris III, D.Min.

A Word from the President

Thousands of scientists around the world contribute to an ever-deepening understanding of origins and earth history from a non-evolutionary perspective, and thousands of educators participate in efforts to disseminate that scientific knowledge. Polls of public opinion reveal that a majority of people question the veracity of the theory of evolution, which nonetheless holds a monopoly on discourse in the market place of ideas.

ICR Graduate School is known for its scientific research into and open advocacy of a creationist view of early earth history. The great world-altering events of Genesis inform our research, and is reflected in our teaching. Students have the rare opportunity to learn science from cutting-edge scientists, and education methodology from skilled educators. The online format facilitates the learning process, and the field and lab experiences increase practical knowledge.

All of us would encourage you to join us in the graduate school program, sharing with us as multitudes of trained colleagues join the ranks. May God lead you in the days ahead, and may He grant you multiplied fruit from your labors.

John D. Morris, Ph.D.

The Graduate School

Purpose and Goals

The Institute for Creation Research Graduate School (ICRGS) is the formal education arm of the Institute for Creation Research (ICR). The ICRGS program provides graduate-level training in science education through an online environment, with minors in the natural sciences that are particularly relevant to the study of origins.

The purpose of ICRGS is (1) to prepare science teachers and other individuals to understand the universe within the integrating framework of a biblical perspective using proven scientific data, and (2) to prepare students for leadership in science education. A clear distinction is drawn between scientific creationism and biblical creationism, but it is the position of the Institute that the two are compatible and that all genuine facts of science support the Bible.

The programs and curricula of the Graduate School, while similar in factual content to those of other graduate colleges, are distinctive in one major respect. ICR bases its educational philosophy on the foundational truth of a personal Creator-God and His authoritative and unique revelation of truth in the Bible.

Graduate School Administration

Dean of the Graduate School (Interim) Eddy Miller, Ph. D.
Admissions Secretary Mary Smith, B. S.
Registrar Jack W. Kriege, Ph. D.

A Word from the Dean

Thank you for considering the Master of Science degree in Science Education at ICRGS. Our calling is to partner with students who are committed to a view of science and education that is not restricted to naturalistic processes and who have the zeal and self-discipline required to excel in an environment that is both rigorous and rewarding. If you join with us, you will have the opportunity to study with several of the foremost scholars in origins research and education, a priceless experience for school teachers like yourself who are committed to providing your own students with a thoroughly balanced science education.

Eddy Miller, Ph.D.

Our Philosophy of Science

ICR is committed to conducting science research in the same tradition as the great scientists of past generations—including Newton, Kepler, Faraday, Maxwell, Pasteur, Pascal, Kelvin, and Steno—whose efforts proved instrumental in the foundation of every major scientific discipline. These men held a sharp distinction between two fundamentally different endeavors that are both called science today.

Experimental science, which deals with the observable present, employs the concept of the laboratory. There the chemist, for example, designs his controlled experiments and is able to confirm his observations by repetition. He allows no tampering in his laboratory, for unless it is a closed system all results are invalidated.

Historical or Origins science (sometimes called forensic science), on the other hand, is not at liberty to project the assumption of a closed system into the indefinite past. For example, the archeologist who seeks to understand the origin of a circular pattern of stones in a field must entertain at least two possibilities in order for his investigation to have validity. Either the arrangement was random, or it was intentionally arranged by an external intelligence. His is an open system. The better the archeologist understands the laws of physics, probability, etc., that operate in the ordinary, everyday world as revealed to him by experimental science, the better equipped he will be to spot the extraordinary in his historical science.

The very thing excluded from one endeavor (outside intervention) is, in fact, the focus of investigation for the other. One feeds the other. The great scientists of the past could appreciate these distinctions and tended to see both the ordinary and the extraordinary as having come from the same source. Their belief in Providence in no way hindered their passion for science in the truest sense of that word; it was the very thing that ignited and sustained it.

We at ICR seek to follow no less an example.

Our Philosophy of Science Education

Teachers influence and shape the values of an individual and society through what and how they teach. They understand the learner, have a depth of content knowledge, and implement and assess learning science content through a variety of teaching practices that ensure learning. Science teaching is unique because “science” is all about asking questions through scientific inquiry, understanding the nature of science, seeking the answers by “doing” science utilizing the scientific method and reflecting through assessment successful learning. ICRGS prepares teachers to teach science by engaging students in meaningful learning based on a strong foundation of scientific content-knowledge and skills in utilizing scientific inquiry.

To teach science with confidence, the teacher must possess a depth of knowledge. Science teachers with adequate content knowledge teach with authority, answer students’ questions, promote discussion, encourage inquiry and design appropriate instruction. During the acquisition process, graduate students must learn to distinguish between information that is derived from direct and formally structured observation and information that is inferred. There is a significant impact on the knowledge gained by students when the teacher skillfully interconnects understanding of the learner, content, curriculum, instruction and assessment. The faculty at ICRGS is committed to modeling these qualities.

The master teacher designs curriculum and instruction that is age-level appropriate to increase the scientific knowledge and to develop scientific reasoning and process skills. Appropriate instruction incorporates the following:

  1. minds-on: cognitive attention to the content;
  2. hands-on: utilizing physical senses to explore a concept; and
  3. hearts-on: enthusiasm for science and doing science

Engaging the students in doing science ensures all three. Students who are engaged in these aspects of learning science have a desire to learn science; furthermore, students are adequately prepared and aspire to continue their college education in science.

ICRGS faculty is committed to scientific inquiry and the scientific method. Doing science is an important aspect of learning science. Master science teachers utilize instructional tools and skills to help students design scientific experiments, analyze data, and draw conclusions from a variety of perspectives. These same skills help students solve problems and use higher level thinking skills throughout daily lives. Some of the skills of scientific inquiry include asking questions and proposing provable statements that help create enthusiasm for the subject matter; allowing students to ask questions and search for the answers through observation and analysis of data result in more highly-developed scientific minds.

Distance Education FAQ

Q. Which degrees are offered through ICRGS Online Distance Education?

A. Master of Science in Science Education.

Q. What are the goals of the ICRGS Online Distance Education program?

A. The overall goals of our distance learning community are to:

  • create a network of science teachers who desire to teach scientific truths about biblical creation;
  • learn the most effective ways to teach scientific truths about biblical creation;
  • unite teachers and learners in a meaningful learning endeavor to grow spiritually as well as intellectually;
  • carry course content through the use of electronic educational media;
  • establish two-way communication between instructors and students, or student and students, although they are separated in space and time;
  • explore together the scientific truths of biblical creation and biblical concepts of teaching those truths, while allowing students to pursue their own interests in these areas; and
  • establish an active learning environment through logging on and contributing to conversations that show evidence of discernment and critical thinking when confronted with various philosophies of science and science education.

Q. Why should I get my degree through distance education?

A. There are several advantages to participating in an online degree program. Advantages include that the learner:

  • does not have to give up his or her family responsibilities to get a degree;
  • can maintain his or her professional responsibilities providing financially for himself or herself;
  • can go to class and study within his or her own weekly time frame rather than having to set aside particular hours every week (flexibility);
  • does not waste time driving to and from the location of classes;
  • encumbers no expenses (such as a place to live, gas for a car, etc.) outside of the cost of tuition and books;
  • does not have to take time out of his or her summer to go to a college or university to take courses; and
  • develops synergy working with other like-minded individuals throughout the country and the world.

Q. How is ICRGS’s Masters in Science Education Online program unique?

A. The Institute for Creation Research Graduate School’s program in Science Education:

  • teaches science from a creationist perspective;
  • grounds the learner in a biblically-based program in the sciences with science and teaching science as the focus;
  • educates the learner to discern the biblical perspective in science and science teaching;
  • provides the learners (science teachers) a chance to network with other science teachers so they can develop a network of Christian educators who support creation science (research shows that students in interactive online programs know each other better than those in face-to-face classes);
  • assists the learner in developing creation apologetics in his or her science classroom;
  • teaches the learner how to develop curriculum, instructional strategies, and classroom activities related to creation science;
  • uses a quarter system with all the students in the course learning the same material at the same time; and
  • implements due dates for learner accountability and to help manage and organize the courses.

Q. Is distance education right for me?

A. The distance education learner is active and creative in the learning process. He or she is a successful learner in a computer-mediated environment. To help facilitate active and creative learning, asynchronous (posting comments to a discussion area) and synchronous (logging on to a discussion at the same time) discussions may be used, and collaborative projects are encouraged.

The individual learner who participates in a distance learning community:

  • is self-motivated
  • has higher expectations of themselves
  • is more self-disciplined
  • takes education seriously
  • takes responsibility in helping create a learning community (unity of believers). This is done by displaying the following characteristics:
    • upholds honesty when working with others and in what is produced
    • expresses responsiveness to others’ needs
    • demonstrates respect to others – whether teacher or student
    • exhibits a work ethic

Q. What is the role of the Instructor in a distance education learning community?

A. The instructor in the ICRGS Online Distance Education program functions in a variety of roles in order to help create a learning community and to model the qualities that the learners should exhibit in their own classrooms.  These roles include:

  • Instructor/Teacher: determines the content in science and science education (and how it is delivered) that the learner must know and apply in order to be a master teacher of creation science.
  • Mentor: shares knowledge and experiences that are in the learner's best interests; is a role model; and provides feedback to individuals and small groups, frequently defining, explaining, or modeling the standard for good work.
  • Facilitator:  makes things easier for the learner by answering his or her questions, organizing the content and time frame of its delivery so the learner’s knowledge and understanding build.
  • Encourager:  promotes trust within the learning community; emphasizes the essential habits of mind (critical thinking, doing one’s best, respect for each other).
  • Guide/Manager:  leads or directs the learner to his or her destination.
  • Assessor/Evaluator:  provides feedback to individuals and small groups, frequently defining, explaining, or modeling the standard for good work; uses a variety of tools to measure and evaluate learner progress.

Q. How do I start the admission process?

A.  Click on Apply Today.

Foundational Principles

The Institute for Creation Research Graduate School has a unique statement of faith for its faculty and students, incorporating most of the basic Christian doctrines in a creationist framework, organized in terms of two parallel sets of tenets, related to God's created world and God's inspired Word, respectively. Reproduced below are the ICR Tenets of Scientific Creationism and Biblical Creationism.

Principles of Scientific Creationism

  • The physical universe of space, time, matter, and energy has not always existed, but was supernaturally created by a transcendent personal Creator who alone has existed from eternity.
  • The phenomenon of biological life did not develop by natural processes from inanimate systems but was specially and supernaturally created by the Creator.
  • Each of the major kinds of plants and animals was created functionally complete from the beginning and did not evolve from some other kind of organism. Changes in basic kinds since their first creation are limited to "horizontal" changes (variations) within the kinds, or “downward” changes (e.g., harmful mutations, extinctions).
  • The first human beings did not evolve from an animal ancestry, but were specially created in fully human form from the start. Furthermore, the "spiritual" nature of man (self-image, moral consciousness, abstract reasoning, language, will, religious nature, etc.) is itself a supernaturally created entity distinct from mere biological life.
  • The record of earth history, as preserved in the earth's crust, especially in the rocks and fossil deposits, is primarily a record of catastrophic intensities of natural processes, operating largely within uniform natural laws, rather than one of gradualism and relatively uniform process rates. There are many scientific evidences for a relatively recent creation of the earth and the universe, in addition to strong scientific evidence that most of the earth's fossiliferous sedimentary rocks were formed in an even more recent global hydraulic cataclysm.
  • Processes today operate primarily within fixed natural laws and relatively uniform process rates, but since these were themselves originally created and are daily maintained by their Creator, there is always the possibility of miraculous intervention in these laws or processes by their Creator. Evidences for such intervention should be scrutinized critically, however, because there must be clear and adequate reason for any such action on the part of the Creator.
  • The universe and life have somehow been impaired since the completion of creation, so that imperfections in structure, disease, aging, extinctions, and other such phenomena are the result of "negative" changes in properties and processes occurring in an originally-perfect created order.
  • Since the universe and its primary components were created perfect for their purposes in the beginning by a competent and volitional Creator, and since the Creator does remain active in this now-decaying creation, there do exist ultimate purposes and meanings in the universe. Teleological considerations, therefore, are appropriate in scientific studies whenever they are consistent with the actual data of observation. Furthermore, it is reasonable to assume that the creation presently awaits the consummation of the Creator's purpose.
  • Although people are finite and scientific data concerning origins are always circumstantial and incomplete, the human mind (if open to possibility of creation) is able to explore the manifestations of that Creator rationally, scientifically, and teleologically.

Principles of Biblical Creationism

  • The Creator of the universe is a triune God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit[1]. There is only one eternal and transcendent God, the source of all being and meaning, and He exists in three Persons, each of whom participated in the work of creation.
  • The Bible, consisting of the thirty-nine canonical books of the Old Testament and the twenty-seven canonical books of the New Testament, is the divinely-inspired revelation of the Creator to man. Its unique, plenary, verbal inspiration guarantees that these writings, as originally and miraculously given, are infallible and completely authoritative on all matters with which they deal, free from error of any sort, scientific and historical as well as moral and theological.
  • All things in the universe were created and made by God in the six literal days of the Creation Week described in Genesis 1:1-2:3, and confirmed in Exodus 20:8-11. The creation record is factual, historical, and perspicuous; thus all theories of origins or development that involve evolution in any form are false. All things that now exist are sustained and ordered by God's providential care. However, a part of the spiritual creation, Satan and his angels, rebelled against God after the creation and are attempting to thwart His divine purposes in creation.
  • The first human beings, Adam and Eve, were specially created by God, and all other men and women are their descendants. In Adam, mankind was instructed to exercise "dominion" over all other created organisms, and over the earth itself (an implicit commission for true science, technology, commerce, fine art, and education), but the temptation by Satan and the entrance of sin brought God's curse on that dominion and on mankind, culminating in death and separation from God as the natural and proper consequence.
  • The biblical record of primeval earth history in Genesis 1-11 is fully historical and perspicuous, including the creation and Fall of man, the Curse on the Creation and its subjection to the bondage of decay, the promised Redeemer, the worldwide cataclysmic deluge in the days of Noah, the post-diluvian renewal of man's commission to subdue the earth (now augmented by the institution of human government), and the origin of nations and languages at the tower of Babel.
  • The alienation of man from his Creator because of sin can only be remedied by the Creator Himself, who became man in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ, through miraculous conception and virgin birth. In Christ we are indissolubly united perfect sinless humanity and full deity, so that His substitutionary death is the only necessary and sufficient price of man's redemption. That the redemption was completely efficacious is assured by His bodily resurrection from the dead and ascension into heaven; the resurrection of Christ is thus the focal point of history, assuring the consummation of God's purposes in creation.
  • The final restoration of creation's perfection is yet future, but individuals can immediately be restored to fellowship with their Creator on the basis of His redemptive work on their behalf, receiving forgiveness and eternal life solely through personal trust in the Lord Jesus Christ, accepting Him not only as estranged Creator, but also as reconciling Redeemer and coming King. Those who reject Him, however, or who neglect to believe on Him, thereby continue in their state of rebellion and must ultimately be consigned to the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels.
  • The eventual accomplishment of God's eternal purposes in creation, with the removal of His curse and the restoration of all things to divine perfection, will take place at the personal bodily return to earth of Jesus Christ to judge and purge sin and to establish His eternal kingdom.
  • Each believer should participate in the "ministry of reconciliation" by seeking both to bring individuals back to God in Christ (the "Great Commission") and to "subdue the earth" for God's glory (the Edenic-Noahic Commission). The three institutions established by the Creator for the implementation of His purposes in this world (home, government, church) should be honored and supported as such.

In addition to a firm commitment to creationism and to full biblical inerrancy and authority, the ICR Graduate School is committed to traditional education and to high standards of academic excellence. The ICRGS M.S. program is offered in an online environment, with interaction between instructors and students, and includes a research investigation approved by each department chair (in lieu of a thesis). ICR's highly qualified and experienced faculty is in itself assurance of a rigorous and creative educational experience for its graduates, equipping them both for productive careers in their chosen fields and for making a significant contribution to the ongoing worldwide revival of theistic creationism.

Notice of Non-Discriminatory Policy as to Students

The Institute for Creation Research Graduate School admits qualified students of any race, color, sex, national and ethnic origin or handicap to all the rights, privileges, programs and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. Pursuant to applicable law, it does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, national, ethnic origin, or handicap in the administration of any of its policies or programs.

Terms of Website Use

The information in this catalog accurately represents the ICR Graduate School at the time of publication. However, the Graduate School reserves the right to make changes in policies, procedures, calendar, faculty, curriculum, and costs.

[1] The Holy Spirit is one of the three divine Persons of the Holy Trinity, one God in three persons. His ministry is to convict, regenerate, indwell, instruct, and guide all believers in Christ.

 

* Pursuant to California and Federal law, ICRGS currently offers an M.S. in Science Education, mostly online, to qualified students who are not Texas residents. ICR is currently examining its legal options regarding how it can best serve the educational "gaps" of Texas residents.