The mission of Malone University is to provide students with an education based on biblical faith in order to develop men and women in intellectual maturity, wisdom, and Christian faith who are committed to serving the church, community, and world. A Christian university for the arts, sciences, and professions, Malone grounds its educational mission in the biblical call to seek Christ's Kingdom First in all things.

The EFC-ER is a movement of connected churches intentionally working together to fulfill a common mission, vision, and core values based on the person and redemptive message of Jesus Christ. The mission of the EFC-ER is to equip its member churches to make disciples and the vision of the EFC-ER is to produce healthy, Christ-centered churches that produce disciples.

Our Story

The roots run deep when it comes to the historic partnership between Malone University and the EFC-ER. Its origins can be traced all the way back to the late 19th century, when a young pastoral couple from the Cleveland Monthly Meeting of Friends received a clear and compelling vision from God to offer practical ministry training for a growing number of young people they worked with who were sensing a call to Christian service. In humble and prayerful obedience to this vision, Walter and Emma Malone opened the doors to the Christian Workers Training School for Bible Study and Practical Methods of Work in a rented house on the east side of Cleveland on March 17, 1892.

There was a grand total of six students in attendance on the first day of class, but by the end of the first school year, there were more than 50 students enrolled. In the early days, many of these students were called to serve as evangelists and social workers in some of the darkest corners of the inner city, including a myriad of saloons, brothels, and opium dens surrounding Cleveland's Public Square, an area once known as "the devil's throne." Other students were called to serve as overseas missionaries in some of the most remote regions of the world, including Africa, India, and China. Still others were called to answer the call to serve as pastors and church planters throughout North America.

While its name and location have changed over the years, the school that is now known as Malone University continues to hold fast to its historic mission as a ministry training center for those devoted Christ followers who are sensing a call to take their place in the Lord's harvest field. And this continues to be done in close cooperation with Malone's founding faith community, the EFC-ER.

The Practical Ministry Certificate (PMC) was established in 2021 as a tangible expression of this vital, ongoing, strategic partnership between Malone and the EFC-ER, as together we continue to seek "Christ's Kingdom First" in all things.