2010 Recipient: Dr. Judy TenElshof

Hebrews 13:7
“Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you.
Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith.”

The Anna Horton Award for Student Mentoring is designated for a woman, who, like Mrs. Horton, the wife of Biola founder T.C. Horton and Biola’s first dean of women, plays a vital and dynamic role in the lives of current students at Biola.

Anna Horton was very much “ahead of her time” in valuing the education and discipleship of women. In 1907, Mrs. Anna “Mother” Horton founded the Lyceum Club for young women working at the Fifth Street Department Store in downtown Los Angeles. Mrs. Horton had a heart for the young women in the department store especially since her husband, T.C. Horton, had already started a Bible class for young men called the Fisherman’s Club. Mrs. Horton chose the name Lyceum because it brought to mind the idea of teaching without reflecting the Biblical nature of the classes. She thought this would entice those who might not otherwise attend.

Attendance of the meetings grew rapidly causing store executives to provide the Lyceum Club with their own room fully equipped with a kitchen, dining and classroom facilities. Yet Anna Horton’s teachings were too popular even for these quarters and soon both the Lyceum Club and the Fisherman’s Club occupied a room on Main Street over a pool hall—the location from which the Bible Institute of Los Angeles was born.

In 1909, Horton selected three women to be “Bible Women,” whose job it was to teach Bible classes. What began as three leaders eventually grew into 17 full-time and 5 part-time teachers as well as clubs for Jr. high and high school girls. Mr. and Mrs. Horton’s dedication to the youth of Los Angeles began the foundation for what was to become the Bible Institute of Los Angeles.

The purpose of the award is to honor a woman who, like Anna Horton, displays a commitment to living life alongside Biola students, caring for their spiritual development and lending support for them in their journeys.