Meet Dr. Sam Horn New President of the Master’s University

Since the late 1920s, The Master’s University has prepared students for a lifetime of eternal influence. In recent years, the university has established itself as a premier Christian institution that draws students to Santa Clarita from around the United States and across the world. It strives to produce men and women who hold firm to the sufficiency and inerrancy of Scripture. TMU not only trains students for academic and professional excellence, it also fosters wisdom, establishes convictions, and produces strong leaders. At the helm of this organization is a new president, Dr. Sam Horn. In February, the TMU board of directors unanimously appointed him to lead the university.
Dr. Horn was born in Auckland, New Zealand to medical professionals. They taught him a strong work ethic and unwavering faith in God. “My parents worked very hard to provide for us, while living, modeling and embodying Christian values,” Dr. Horn said. He is the oldest of four siblings. While growing up on a ten-acre farm in Texas, he had a passion for connecting with youth and teaching them the Word of God. “I ended up going into ministry and that has been a big part of my life, along with my career in higher education,” Dr. Horn said.
Along with his bachelor’s degree from Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina, Dr. Horn also has a master’s degree in Bible, and a Ph.D. in theology from Bob Jones. In 2007, he completed his doctor of ministry in expository preaching from The Master’s Seminary. While in college, Dr. Horn met his wife, Beth, and they married soon after graduation. Because of his extensive education in Bible and theology, Dr. Horn was invited to teach at Bob Jones University. “That sort of began my unexpected pathway into higher education” Dr. Horn said.
Eventually, Dr. Horn was asked to be the Executive Vice President of a small college in Wisconsin. “Here I was able to do a lot of traveling, representing the school and ministry and was involved in the start-up of several international Christian universities in South American and Africa. This was a very enriching time,” he said. He believes the education he received as a young man has really made a profound impact. “As a young man, I saw education as transactional. I wanted a degree to get a job and to do it as quickly as possible. What I got from my liberal arts education transformed every part of me.”
Throughout his career, Dr. Horn has held several positions in higher education that have prepared him for the presidency of TMU. At first, it wasn’t an easy choice for he and his family to come to the Santa Clarita Valley after being offered his new position as President of The Master’s University. “At first my wife and I had opposite feelings regarding moving our family from South Carolina to the west coast. But we prayed about it and decided to make the next step,” Dr. Horn recalled. After the strenuous vetting process and meeting John MacArthur, the man who sat in the president’s chair for the past 35 years, he was selected. Dr. Horn started his new job during the COVID-19 pandemic. He came in with an attitude to serve and was in awe of the amazing individuals and community of the Santa Clarita Valley. “Nobody is perfect, but God has a way of using people to do majestic things when they have a vision and mission that is true and drives them. The community at and around The Master’s University has just that.”

photos by Joie de Vivre photographie

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