Independent Student Enrollment

If you’re not enrolled in one of our affiliated schools, but are interested in taking one of our classes you can register here. The Independent Student application fee ($50) is non-refundable. Tuition for the 2023-24 academic year will be $2000 per course, due prior to the beginning of each term. Tuition must be paid in full for students to receive access to the course on Canvas. Students may request a tuition scholarship of up to 50% of tuition at the time of application.

CCS does not participate in the Title IV federal education loan program. Students enrolled at other graduate theological institutions may consult with their home schools about whether it will be possible to use Title IV loans for CCS courses.

Independent Student Handbook

Spring 2024 Courses

Introduction to Chaplaincy Studies

This course introduces the field of chaplaincy studies. Chaplains are rooted and accountable to their religious tradition, but they serve people and communities who may have different religious backgrounds or have no religious affiliation. How does one develop a ministry resilient in the face of pluralistic religious demands, complex human suffering, and institutional cultures that may conflict with human flourishing? This course will engage five contexts of chaplaincy ministry including hospital, military, prison, campus, and hospice.

Instructor: Zachary Moon, PhD.

Zachary Moon, Ph.D., currently serves as Professor of Theology and Psychology at Chicago Theological Seminary. He has published widely including four books, Coming Home: Ministry That Matters with Veterans and Military Families (Chalice Press, 2015), Warriors between Worlds: Moral Injury and Identities in Crisis (Lexington Books, 2019), Goatwalking: A Quaker Pastoral Theology (Brill, 2021), and Doing Theology in Pandemics: Facing Viruses, Violence, and Vitriol (Pickwick, 2022). He has served as a chaplain in multiple contexts including the United States Navy Reserve (2011-2019) and the Pathway Home, a residential treatment program for combat veterans diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (2011-2012), and as a chaplain resident in the VA hospital system (2010-2011).

Restorative Justice, Prison Ministry & Faith Communities

The course describes and critiques issues and realities in the American criminal justice system and the underlying ideology of retribution in light of the theories, theologies, and practices of restorative justice and the mission of a person of faith as an agent of reconciliation in the midst of structures of race and class. Models of restorative justice, prison ministry, and the role of a chaplain and faith communities in forming such ministries are explored.

Instructor: Louis Threatt, DMin.

Rev. Dr. Louis Threatt is a pastor, activist, entrepreneur and educator. He is a veteran of the United States Air Force where he was an Electrician on the Fighter Jet F-15E. Dr. Threatt has a bachelor’s degree in Physics, with a minor in Mathematics from NC Central University, a Master of Divinity degree from Duke Divinity School with a focus on Prison Studies and a Doctor of Ministry from Drew University concentrating on Pastoral Care and Incarceration. Dr. Threatt teaches, studies, and ministers at the intersection of prisons, Restorative Justice, Practical Theology, and Biblical Studies. He is the Senior Pastor of Cities of Refuge Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), and serves as a faculty member at Duke Divinity School.