As one of Arkansas’ most affordable institutions of higher education, the College strives to attract students who desire a personal approach to their education with smaller classes, dedicated instructors, a sense of community, and spiritual values and principles integrated throughout their collegiate experience.

Arkansas Baptist College, originally named the Minister’s Institute, was founded in 1884 by the Colored Baptists of Arkansas during their annual convention at Mount Zion Baptist Church in Little Rock. The primary objective of the institute was to raise the educational level within the Negro Ministry. The secondary objective was to aid the state in making higher education available to young Negro men and women. Most of the school’s students were trained in the ministry and today, Religious Studies continues to be one of the College’s major areas of matriculation.