The Jooan Methodist Church, a global leader in missionary work based in South Korea,
extended its outreach to Mindanao by sponsoring the establishment of a seminary on the island
in partnership with the Davao Episcopal Area of the United Methodist Church. In early 2004,
Korean missionary Rev. Dr. Jeong Doo Hai collaborated with Rev. Samuel Miguel, District
Superintendent of the Northwest Mindanao Philippines Annual Conference. Together, they
facilitated the purchase of land and the construction of seminary buildings.
On October 26, 2004, a groundbreaking ceremony was held at an ideal location
surrounded by towering mountains along the national highway, seven kilometers from Malaybalay
City. Periodically, groups of men, women, young adults, and youth from South Korea joined work
camps to support the project.
The seminary, initially established as a Bible College, was inaugurated on June 20, 2005.
The event was marked by the presence of Rev. Dr. Han Sang Ho, the senior pastor of Jooan
Methodist Church and the seminary’s founder and first president, as well as his father, Bishop Han
Kyung Soo, after whom the seminary was named. Rev. Samuel Miguel was appointed as the
seminary’s director, and Mrs. May A. Barrera was named Dean. The seminary welcomed twelve
freshmen students into its Bachelor of Theology (B.Th.) program in June 2005. By March 2008,
enrollment had grown to twenty-seven B.Th. students ranging from first to third year.
In February 2007, a plan was proposed to transition from the B.Th. program to a graduate
theological study program, the Master of Divinity (M.Div.) program. Rev. Chang led this shift
Sun Lee, the new BHTS missionary, involved the cooperative efforts of an ad hoc committee
under the supervision of the University Senate of the Philippine Central Conference. The curriculum was designed with a focus on Filipino, Ecumenical, and Global Christian perspectives. With divine blessing, the Master of Divinity Program commenced in June 2009, enrolling eight
students in its pioneer batch.