Brewton-Parker is a small Georgia Baptist school in the pine country between Mount Vernon and Ailey. It opened in 1905 as a boarding school because the area had no public high schools, spent most of the 20th century as a junior college, and became a university in 2025 as Brewton-Parker Christian University. Its rural campus centers on a five-acre lake. It is home to an NAIA baseball national title and a full slate of Barons teams.
About this site
Brewton-Parker College is a college & university in Mount Vernon, Montgomery County. It is one of 47 historic sites cataloged in Montgomery County on Georgia Roam.
The site sits at 32.1843, -82.5832 near Mount Vernon. The nearest cataloged historic site is McKinnon Cemetery (cemetery), about 0.6 miles away. Others within a short drive include Montgomery County Courthouse, Montgomery County Confederate Monument, and Montgomery County.
This record is drawn from Georgia Roam. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.
What makes Brewton-Parker College different
Mount Vernon and Ailey won the school by pooling their offer, which is why the campus sits between the two towns instead of in either one. en.wikipedia.org
Gates Hall, the original academic building from the school's first years, is the one founding-era building still standing. georgiaencyclopedia.org
The campus arch, built in 1934, marks the partnership between the Telfair and Daniell Baptist associations that backed the school. georgiaencyclopedia.org
The Barons won the 1997 NAIA World Series, beating Bellevue 8–4 in the final. en.wikipedia.org
Its athletics roster goes well beyond the usual, with bass fishing, competitive cheer, esports, women's wrestling and beach volleyball. bpcuathletics.com
Before it was a college, it taught every grade from first through eleventh. The elementary grades lasted until 1929 and high school until 1948. georgiaencyclopedia.org
In 1904 John Carter Brewton, pastor of the McRae Baptist Church, and Charles Benton Parker, a McRae businessman, set out to build a Baptist boarding school for the children of Montgomery County and nearby areas, which had no public high schools. Mount Vernon and Ailey together made the best offer of land and money, so the Union Baptist Institute was chartered in 1904 on a site between the two towns. It opened in September 1905 with 160 students in grades one through eleven, and enrollment more than doubled the next year. In 1912 it was renamed Brewton-Parker Institute to honor its founders.
College classes arrived in 1923 and 1927, turning the institute into a junior college. It dropped elementary grades in 1929 and high school classes in 1948, when it became Brewton-Parker Junior College under the Georgia Baptist Convention. The campus grew in the 1960s with a library, a science hall and a student center. On December 9, 1986, the school became a four-year institution, Brewton-Parker College.
The college weathered hard times. A federal financial aid case in the late 1990s ended in a $4 million settlement. In 2014 its accreditor voted to remove it, a decision reversed later that year when the college proved compliance. Steve Echols became its 17th president in 2015. In June 2025 the school gained university status and the name Brewton-Parker Christian University. It now offers undergraduate, online and graduate programs, including seminary training.
#87–95 Regional Colleges South — U.S. News & World Report, 2026source
#69 (tie) Top Performers on Social Mobility (Regional Colleges South) — U.S. News & World Report, 2026source
Majors & programs
Brewton-Parker's undergraduate majors are grouped into divisions of business, Christian studies and fine arts, education and behavioral sciences, humanities, and mathematics and natural sciences, plus a School of Nursing. It also runs online and graduate programs and Temple Baptist Theological Seminary. The list below reflects the university's undergraduate degrees page in September 2026.
Known for
Christian Studies and Ministry
As a Georgia Baptist university, it offers pastoral ministry, missions, worship ministry and worship arts majors, plus seminary training through Temple Baptist Theological Seminary.
Known for
Nursing
Offered through its own School of Nursing, bringing nurse training to a rural part of the state.
Known for
Education
Early childhood, middle grades, special education and secondary education majors prepare teachers for south Georgia's rural schools.
Known for
Forensic Science
Offered as a stand-alone major and as a biology concentration in the Division of Mathematics and Natural Sciences.
All degree programs at Brewton-Parker Christian University (31)
Division of Business
Accounting
Computer Information Systems
General Business
Management
Marketing
Division of Christian Studies and Fine Arts
Christian Studies
Ministry
Missions
Music
Music Education
Pastoral Ministry
Worship Arts
Worship Ministry
Division of Education and Behavioral Sciences
Criminal Justice
Early Childhood Education
Middle Grades Education
Psychology · BA, BS
Secondary Chemistry Education
Secondary English Education
Special Education
Sport Management
Division of Humanities
English
General Studies
History
Division of Mathematics and Natural Sciences
Biology (concentrations in forensic science and health professions)
NAIA World Series champions, 1997 (8–4 over Bellevue in the final) en.wikipedia.org
Men's track & field won the 2022 SSAC indoor championship, and Brandon Schultz won back-to-back NAIA indoor 60-meter hurdles titles (2021, 2022) en.wikipedia.org
Home venues: Gillis Gymnasium (basketball, volleyball) · On-campus baseball, softball and soccer fields
BPCU: Why the name change? · Brewton-Parker Christian UniversityCommencement - 5.09.2026 · Brewton-Parker Christian UniversityNo. 2 Life University vs RV Brewton Parker College Wrestling Dual Highlights 12/6/23 · Lifeuwrestling
Yes. In June 2025 it gained university status and changed its name to Brewton-Parker Christian University. The campus, in Mount Vernon, is the same.
Is Brewton-Parker a Baptist school?
Yes. It is affiliated with the Georgia Baptist Convention, and weekly chapel is part of campus life.
How big is Brewton-Parker?
About 1,300 students. The Department of Education counted 1,338 in fall 2024, including online and graduate students.
What division is Brewton-Parker in athletics?
The Barons compete in the NAIA, mainly in the Southern States Athletic Conference.
Has Brewton-Parker won a national championship?
Yes. The baseball team won the 1997 NAIA World Series.
Where is Brewton-Parker located?
In Montgomery County, on the stretch between the towns of Mount Vernon and Ailey in southeast Georgia. The address is 201 David-Eliza Fountain Circle, Mount Vernon.
When was Brewton-Parker founded?
It was chartered in 1904 as the Union Baptist Institute and opened in September 1905. It became a junior college in the 1920s and a four-year college in 1986.
Get Georgia Roam — 12,000+ historic sites in your pocket
See this site and every marker, cemetery, courthouse, museum, battlefield and landmark across Georgia on one live map — find what's near you, get directions, and collect sites as you roam.
Georgia