The Latino/Latina Studies Program (LLSP) Turns 15!
LLSP has come of age! In the Latino culture, turning 15 is a momentous occasion. It is a time to remember the first 15 years of life, and to anticipate the future. Last month, we celebrated 15 years of service.
It was a night full of joy and excitement as professors, students, alumni, and friends gathered to commemorate LLSP and all its work in Central Florida. The room was elegant, the food was delicious, and the fellowship was sweet. It truly was a time to express our gratitude to God for all he has done through the Latino/Latina Studies Program.
Over 15 years ago, a leading Hispanic pastor in Orlando walked into the Florida Dunnam Campus with great concern for the Latino community, and asked if a program might developed to educate Hispanics. Several months later a pilot class was held with great success. It was evident to the Asbury administration that the need was great for theological education in Spanish among the Latino community. This marked the birth of LLSP. These few classes evolved into a robust program that features a curriculum with 90 credits, and two concentrations (pastoral studies and counseling). LLSP was the first program to be certified by AETH and ATS to offer a 60-credit diploma that is recognized by seminaries as a bachelor equivalent, thus opening a pathway to graduate school for the Latino community.
It is no exaggeration to say that the Latino/Latina Studies Program has had a life-changing effect on its students. Time and again, students speak of the trans-formative experience that LLSP has been for them. For many, the program has provided far more than theological education. Students have experienced the healing of old wounds, restored relationships, and in many ways, hope. Listen to a few testimonies.
“Asbury has been a God-send for my life. I just finish spending time with my mother who – in her words – had one of the greatest Mother’s Days ever. Today I took another huge step in the process of restoration. And along with God, I owe a great part of that to the healing and tools that I’ve received since I started attending LLSP.
On top of that, I’ve formed friendships that have been a huge blessing.”
“In the relatively short time that I’ve been in the program, I have discovered a treasure trove of biblical truth. I leave every class inspired to search the Scriptures deeper, to seek God more closely, to reach out to my community more earnestly, and to share God’s love more readily… I pray more and more of our people will answer God’s call to prepare. I pray they turn to Asbury’s LLSP for that preparation. The education they receive will be invaluable as they reach out with God’s authority to powerfully impact our city’s families, churches, schools, workplace, and government. I certainly want to be a part of that!”
“Thank you for the invitation to be a part of history–a history filled with love, with caring arms ready embrace, and with professors who are committed to their students but above all, to God. LLSP was more than a learning experience. It was sharing with professors who did not limit themselves to imparting knowledge, but shared from their heart, thus opening my own heart and mind to new dimensions. I am grateful to Asbury for allowing LLSP to shape and form us.”
It is right that we should be grateful for LLSP. Indeed, thank you Asbury, for blessing the Latino community, nay, the church at large, with this program. Thank you God, for all you have done through LLSP. We look forward to the next 15 years!
Congrats! I was not part of the Latino/name program but the first Hispanic who graduated in the first Orlando Campus graduation of 2003.