• FORM FOR RECOMMENDATIONS TO THE NOMINATING COMMITTEES
    of The Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada
    and The Commission on Accrediting of The Association of Theological Schools
    for the 2024–26 Biennium

    Please respond by November 20, 2023.

  • COMMISSION ON ACCREDITING

  • Institutional Commissioners Class of 2030

  • Board of Commissioners of the Commission on Accrediting
    The Board of Commissioners conducts the work of accreditation on behalf of the Commission on Accrediting. The board consists of up to 20 members and is charged with the responsibility of maintaining the list of accredited schools, implementing the Standards of Accreditation across the membership of the Commission, and undertaking regular accrediting reviews of member schools. Institutional Commissioners are elected to six-year terms and then are ineligible to serve for a year; Public Commissioners serve two-year terms (renewable for one additional term) and then are ineligible to serve for a year.











  • Public or Ministry Practitioner Commissioners

    Public or Ministry Practitioner Commissioners may not currently be enrolled as students in, be employed by, or serve on the board of a member school of the Commission.










  • Board of Commissioners continuing members
    Class of 2026 Joe Harrod, Associate Professor of Biblical Spirituality; Associate Vice President for Institutional Effectiveness, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, KY
    Rebecca Maloney, Academic Dean; Director of Institutional Effectiveness, Notre Dame Seminary, New Orleans, LA
    Mark Morozowich, Associate Professor of Liturgical Studies/Sacramental Theology, Catholic University of America School of Theology and Religious Studies, Washington, DC
    Dwight Perry, Senior Vice President, Provost, and Dean of Education, Moody Theological Seminary, Chicago, IL
    Jeff Straits, Vice President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer, Wesley Theological Seminary, Washington, DC
     
    Class of 2028 David Cassady, President, Baptist Seminary of Kentucky, Georgetown, KY
    Christopher Ciccarino, Associate Dean for Seminary and Academic Studies; Assistant Professor of Biblical Studies, Immaculate Conception Seminary, South Orange, NJ
    Shively Smith, Assistant Professor of New Testament; Director, PhD Program, Boston University School of Theology, Boston, MA
    James Thames, Academic Dean; Professor of Educational Ministries and Leadership, Dallas Theological Seminary, Dallas, TX
     
    Board of Commissioners public members eligible for second two-year term
      Elizabeth Bennett, Vice President of Finance and Administration, Pennsylvania College of Art and Design, Lancaster, PA
    Elmo Familiaran, Executive Minister (Retired), The American Baptist Churches of New Jersey, Bordentown, NJ
    Michael Higgins    , Parochial Vicar, St. Joseph Catholic Church, Herndon, VA
     
    Board of Commissioners members completing their service
      Esther Acolatse, Professor of Pastoral Theology and World Christianity, Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary, Evanston, IL
    Mitzi Budde, Head Librarian; Arthur Carl Lichtenberger Chair for Theological Research, Virginia Theological Seminary, Alexandria, VA
    Betty Holley, Academic Dean; Director, MDiv Program; Full Professor of Ecological Theology, Payne Theological Seminary, Wilberforce, OH
    Christine Mitchell, Academic Dean; Professor of Hebrew Bible, Knox College, Toronto, ON
    Alvin Padilla, Dean of Latino and Global Ministries Program; Professor of New Testament, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, South Hamilton, MA

     

  • Commission Appeals Panel

    The Appeals Panel convenes only under circumstances described in the Commission Bylaws, Section 5.8 Appeals Panel. The five members of the Appeals Panel must be former Commissioners or former Directors of ATS.










  • Commission Audit Committee

    The three to five members of the Commission’s Audit Committee make recommendations to the Board of Commissioners regarding the selection of the Commission’s auditors, oversee the auditor’s activities, set rules and processes for accounting and internal control, and assume other appropriate responsibilities.










  • Association nominations on next page.

  • THE ASSOCIATION OF THEOLOGICAL SCHOOLS

  • The officers of the Association shall consist of a President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, and such other officers and assistant officers as the Board may, from time to time, designate. Each officer shall serve for a term of two (2) years and until the officer’s successor is duly elected and takes office. In addition, the President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer of the Association shall serve as ex-officio voting Directors for as long as they hold such offices.

  • Officers









  • Current Officers
    President Mary McCormick, Academic Dean; Professor of Systematic Theology, St. Mary Seminary and Graduate School of Theology, Wickliffe, OH
    Vice President Margaret Mwenda, Chief Operating Officer, Calvin Theological Seminary, Grand Rapids, MI
    Secretary Javier Viera, President, Garrett-Evangelical Seminary, Evanston, IL
    Treasurer Nathan Helling, Chief Financial Officer and Vice President of Operations, Kairos University, Sioux Falls, SD

  • The Association of Theological Schools Board of Directors
    The affairs of the Association are under the direction of the Board of Directors, including (but not limited to) oversight of the Association’s assets and financial management, employment policies, and planning and evaluation processes. The board consists of 12 to 16 members. Institutional Directors and Public Directors are elected to four-year terms; they may be re-elected to a second term and then are ineligible to serve for a year. The officers of the Association also serve on the Board of Directors.

  • Institutional or Public Directors Class of 2028











  • Association directors eligible for election to second four-year term 
    Class of 2024 Kent Anderson, President, Providence Theological Seminary, Otterburne, MB
    Charisse Gillett, President, Lexington Theological Seminary, Lexington, KY
    Maria Liu Wong*, Provost, City Seminary of New York, New York, NY
     *Public Member 
     
    Association continuing directors in first four-year term
    Class of 2026 Melinda Contreras Byrd*, Psychologist, Princeton, NJ
    Terry LeBlanc    , Director Emeritus, North American Institute for Indigenous Theological Studies, Montague, PE
    Denis Robinson, President-Rector, Saint Meinrad School of Theology, St. Meinrad, IN
    Steven Schweitzer, Academic Dean and Professor, Bethany Theological Seminary, Richmond, IN
    José G. Zúñiga*, Secretary of Christian Education, Apostolic Assembly, Grand Prairie, TX
    *Public Member 
     
     Association continuing directors in second four-year term 
     Class of 2026 Ekron Chen, Associate Professor of Systematic Theology, Logos Evangelical Seminary, El Monte, CA
    Ann Garrido, Associate Professor of Homiletics, Aquinas Institute of Theology, St. Louis, MO
    Anna Robbins, President; Dean of Theology; Director of the McRae Centre, Acadia Divinity College, Wolfville, NS
    Emilie M. Townes, Dean, Vanderbilt University Divinity School, Nashville, TN
     
    Board of Directors officers and members completing their service
      Vergel Lattimore, President, Hood Theological Seminary, Salisbury, NC
    Sharon M. Tan, Vice President and Dean of the Biblical Seminary, Fresno Pacific Biblical Seminary of Fresno Pacific University, Fresno, CA
    Jay Trewern*, Financial Consultant, Waxahachie, TX
    Mark Young, President, Denver Seminary, Denver, CO
    *Public Member

     

  • Association committee nominations on next page.

  • ATS Audit Committee

    The three to five members of the Association’s Audit Committee make recommendations to the Board of Directors regarding the selection of the Association’s auditors, oversee the auditor’s activities, set rules and processes for accounting and internal control, and assume other appropriate responsibilities.










  • Committee on Race and Ethnicity in Theological Education

    In collaboration with the Advisory Committee for Leadership Education, this committee plans programs in support of both racial/ethnic persons in theological education and institutional capacity building to serve those populations and equip graduates to function effectively in a multicultural world.










  • Faculty Development Advisory Committee

    The committee plans and implements faculty development events, such as programs for new and mid-career faculty in ATS schools and larger faculty conferences.










  • Research and Data Advisory Committee

    This committee assists ATS staff in identifying and planning research agendas that respond to the changing landscape of theological education and serve the Association and its membership.










  • Student Data and Resources Advisory Committee

    The committee assists the work of the Association in areas related to student information, focusing on the Entering, Graduating, and Alum Questionnaires.










  • Women in Leadership Advisory Committee

    This committee identifies issues of particular importance to women in theological education, plans programs in support of women in ATS member schools, and seeks strategies to cultivate women for positions of leadership in theological education.










  • Persons for other committees as may be needed or as vacancies may occur











  • Please complete and submit this form by November 20, 2023, and recommendations will be forwarded to the appropriate nominating committee.
    If you have any questions, please contact Marissa Dechant at The Association of Theological Schools.

     

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