Bethlehem Moravian College was established in 1861 at Bethabara in Newport, Manchester, by the Moravian Church in Jamaica and the Cayman Islands. It began with the expressed intention of training female teachers. The institution started with three (3) students and was administered by the Minister of the Congregation.

Bethlehem remained a female teacher training institution until 1980 when males were admitted for the first time. Prior to this period; however, males attended some classes at Bethlehem as registered students of The Mico College. The programmes offered and the status of the College continued to evolve until in 1998 it became a multidisciplinary institution.

This meant that, in addition to the College offering the Teachers’ Diploma Programme as a member of the Joint Board of Teacher Education (JBTE), it began to offer other programmes as well. These are:

• The Associate Degree in Hospitality, Tourism Management (HTM) and Business Studies under the auspices of the Council of the Community Colleges of Jamaica (CCCJ.
• A Franchisee of the University of the West Indies to offer the Certificates in Public Administration and Management Studies. (These programmes have since been discontinued).
• Continuing Education for persons seeking entry qualifications for tertiary programmes.

The name of the College was also changed from Bethlehem Teachers’ College to Bethlehem Moravian College to reflect this multidisciplinary status.

The College’s main offerings then were the Teacher’s Diploma in Primary Education, the Teacher’s Diploma in Secondary Education specializing in Business Studies, Business/Computer Studies, Office Systems and Administration and English and Reading. With the renewed emphasis by the Ministry of Education on the importance of the Teaching of Literacy, in 2003, Bethlehem was selected as one of two colleges to offer the Primary Diploma with a concentration in Literacy Studies.

As programme expansion continued, the Bachelors Degrees in Primary and Secondary Education, in collaboration with the Consortium of Institutions for Teacher Education (CITE), and in Literacy Studies, in collaboration with the University of the West Indies were introduced in 2007 and 2009 respectively.

In 2014, a Heads of Agreement was signed between the Teacher’s Colleges of Jamaica (TCJ) and the University of the West Indies (UWI) authorizing the institution to award Bachelor of Education degrees (B.Ed) on their behalf. In November 2015, the College graduated its first cohort in the Bachelors in Education Programme.

The College has built a reputation as one of the country’s finest educational institutions, having produced countless distinguished individuals who have excelled nationally and internationally. Over the decades, the College has played major roles in shaping the educational landscape through its graduates who are integrated in all facets of life in Jamaica and beyond its shores.

Bethlehem Moravian College is as dedicated today as it was in 1861 when it was founded. We continue to uphold the principles that humanity rests in the hands, hearts and minds of those who will accept responsibilities for themselves and others in the society where education is an overriding priority. Our Motto, “Mihi Cura Futuri-My Care is for the Future” reflects our commitment to share in shaping the educational prospects of our nation.