Fresno Pacific University

Fresno Pacific University is a private Christian university in Fresno, California. Affiliated with the Mennonite Brethren Church, it serves undergraduate and graduate students through programs in liberal arts, professional studies, education, business, and seminary studies. The university operates a main campus in southeast Fresno and additional regional sites in California’s Central Valley. Fresno Pacific University emphasizes a faith-based educational framework that integrates Christian perspectives with academic study. It offers traditional undergraduate degrees as well as adult degree-completion and graduate programs designed for working professionals. Students who are interested in a Christian-centered learning environment and service-oriented leadership are often drawn to the institution.

Fresno Pacific University was founded in 1944 as Pacific Bible Institute by the Pacific District Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches in Fresno, California. The institute began with 28 students in a residential home before relocating to downtown Fresno in 1946. In the 1950s, the school expanded its curriculum and moved to its current Chestnut Avenue campus in 1959. It became Pacific College in 1960 and introduced a four-year liberal arts program in 1963, earning full accreditation in 1965. The institution added graduate programs in the 1970s and was renamed Fresno Pacific College in 1976. Reflecting continued growth in undergraduate, graduate, and professional studies, Fresno Pacific University adopted its current name in 1997. Today, Fresno Pacific University serves students across the Central Valley through traditional and adult education programs.