The college, which expected to have 100 students in its first year, was originally located on a 7-acre site at Lake Shore Boulevard and Dixie Road leased from the federal government that was formerly a Canadian Army arsenal.
In 1981, when Richmond College closed, custody of student records was assigned to Trinity Western University in Langley, British Columbia.
[9] The revocation followed allegations from provincial officials that BA and MA degrees offered by Canada Christian College were "misleading" because they implied a general arts education.
According to Elmer McVety, most of the college's courses were prepared by the Christian International University in Phoenix, Arizona,[6] an unaccredited institution[6] whose programs were considered "academically substandard" by the state of Texas.
[15] Additionally, the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations stated in a letter to Premier Ford that they are "alarmed that your government is intending to discreetly pass legislation that would allow the Canada Christian College to call itself a "university" and award degrees," adding that "The Ontario government should not grant accreditation and degree-granting privileges to institutions that do not meet the anti-discriminatory and anti-hate speech principles outlined in the Ontario Human Rights Code,"[16] McVety responded to these objections, saying that "the college, its president, staff, and faculty value all individuals, including the LGBTQ community.
"[15] He further said that "it is sad that the NDP and MPP Kathleen Wynne would recklessly damage the lives of hundreds of students and thousands of graduates with mindless, hateful name calling, all while reading directly from a disreputable source, Wikipedia.
"[15] The Ontario government was also criticized for introducing the bill without the Postsecondary Education Quality Assessment Board (PEQAB) having completed review of the college's request to create new Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degree programs or its request to change its name to the Canada University and School of Graduate Theological Studies.
[18] Liberal leader Steven Del Duca said "it certainly looks suspicious, which is troubling" that the government would introduce enabling legislation before the college has even been approved by the PEQAB.
"[21] On October 27, 2020, the Legislative Assembly of Ontario passed a motion to "condemn the extreme and hateful invective of Charles McVety and oppose any efforts to make Canada Christian College into an accredited university.
"[25] In response to the decision by Romano, McVety stated that it is the students at Canada Christian College who will suffer because of the "political corruptness" of the university proposal process.
Across these departments, the college offers 14 Bachelor, Master and Doctoral degrees as well as 3 one-year certificates (Worship Leadership, Bible, or Christian Counseling).
[31] In 1998, the Canadian Jewish Congress opposed a private member's bill that would have conferred degree-granting status on Canada Christian College.
[34] In 2008, Frank Dimant, executive vice-president of B'nai Brith Canada, was appointed the Chair of the newly inaugurated Department of Modern Israel Studies; he was promoted to dean in 2015 and remained with the college until 2019.
The college houses the Canadian seminary outreach program of the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews, one of the foremost humanitarian organizations operating in the Middle East.
Former Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper received the Israel Allies Award at a gala dinner at Canada Christian College Thursday, October 20, 2022.
The IAF event was held in partnership with Canada Christian College and was attended by more than 600 people, including members of the Canadian parliament, local rabbis and pastors.
[42] In December 2017, the auditorium of Canada Christian College was rented to host Pamela Geller, who is known for her anti-Muslim views, to speak at an event.