Alumni Spotlight: Andrew and Julie Halbert

Andrew and Julie Halbert are both graduates of Columbia Biblical Seminary. Julie graduated from the Biblical Certificate program in 2008 and Andrew graduated from the MDiv program in 2010. In 2012 Andrew and Julie joined United World Mission as missionaries with the desire to serve in theological education. Andrew grew up on the mission field in Honduras and later served two years as a missionary in Peru, so Latin America seemed like the best place for them from the perspective of language and culture. After exploring and praying about several opportunities, they decided on ESEPA Seminary in San José Costa Rica. ESEPA (Escuela de Estudios Pastorales – School of Pastoral Studies) was established over 35 years ago to serve the church through the education and preparation of pastors and lay people for ministry. They currently offer Undergraduate and Graduate degrees to a population of about 200 students, many of which are already heavily involved in ministry.

In June of 2013 the Halberts arrived in San José. The first year on the field was full of learning and adjustment. Julie attended a local language school in order to learn Spanish while Andrew was lightly involved at ESEPA teaching certificate level courses. Julie devoted her time after language school to caring for their two young children (Ann Renee – 8 and Bryan – 6). In 2017 the children both began school and Julie began to look for opportunities to serve while the kids were away.

Before moving to Costa Rica, Julie developed an interest in dance-based aerobic exercise programs. She was certified as a Jazzercise instructor in 2011 and in 2017 she became a certified REFIT instructor. The Lord provided an opportunity for Julie to offer aerobics classes at a gym near their home. She has become close friends with the woman who owns the gym and together they are hoping to reach women in the neighborhood for Christ through offering a variety of exercise classes. Julie’s time at CIU was very valuable as it gave her the necessary basics to put together devotional material that she shares after her classes.

In 2014 Andrew officially joined the faculty of the seminary and taught several courses that year including Acts and Old Testament Survey (both at the undergraduate level). In 2015 Andrew was asked to take on the role of Academic Dean, a role which he continues to serve. Since taking over as the Dean, Andrew has felt an increasing need to pursue a terminal degree. He became fascinated with the Hebrew language and the Old Testament during his time in seminary but really fell in love with teaching the Old Testament once he reached ESEPA. Teaching courses helped Andrew to realize that, while his MDiv from CIU was very helpful, he needed additional training to better prepare courses and answer questions in the classroom. He began looking into various programs both in the US and in Europe that might allow him to pursue a terminal degree in Old Testament.

He quickly came to the realization that there simply were not any feasible options for him. Most schools in the US required coursework that either had to be completed on campus during the regular semester or through various modules that could be attended in an intensive format. Both of these options required a time commitment (several week-long intensives per year) and a financial commitment (travel to and from the US several times a year) that he simply could meet. Europe, on the other hand, would require a cross-cultural move for full-time study that meant uprooting his family (again) and, essentially, setting ministry aside for the time necessary to acquire the degree. Neither of these options were feasible.

During his time exploring possible terminal degrees and locations, the Lord brought Andrew back to CIU. He enrolled in (and recently completed) a Post-Graduate Certificate in Advanced Biblical and Theological Studies. As he was working on this program the new PhD program at CIU was announced and it turned out to be exactly what he needed. The coursework, being seminar-based, could be completed online over the course of one year and the dissertation could be written over the next several years. The program delivered a European model of study through an online platform to a missionary who could not leave his job in order to complete a degree. This fall Andrew will begin his PhD in Biblical Studies with CIU and will continue serving ESEPA Seminary as the Academic Dean. Both Andrew and Julie are excited about this opportunity and are grateful for the Lord’s provision. They pray that this degree will contribute to their efforts to serve the rapidly growing Latin American church!