September marks two years since the Seminary announced the creation of an endowment dedicated to the payment of reparations, and the intent to research, uncover, and recognize Black people who labored on campus during slavery, Reconstruction, and segregation under Jim Crow laws. The Office of Multicultural Ministries has created a TEDTalk-style video explaining the work […]
I have enjoyed the summer of reading the contributions of others in the community in the Dean’s Commentary. The spread of thoughts and views has been fascinating. Perhaps the highlight was the return of the Bishop Payne Library into a newly renovated building (read here: 1, 2, 3), but that was a highlight among many […]
One of the many aspects I appreciate about Virginia Theological Seminary is its focus on education. Well, right, this is a Seminary, and our mission is training ordained and lay leaders for the church, so one might say “duh!” about VTS’ focus on education. Here though, I’m addressing the educational needs of the staff and […]
Ten years ago this week I began my role as the Director of Alumni and Church Relations. I felt then and continue to feel that it is a privilege to work with the remarkable group of individuals who are the VTS alumni. Over 3,300 strong, they are the heart and soul of the Seminary. They […]
On my bookshelf is a book my grandmother gave me titled Spring Is A New Beginning. However, for most of my life, because I have been in school or in situations where an academic calendar determined my schedule, fall has always heralded new beginnings. When I arrived at the Seminary nine-and-a-half years ago, I quickly […]
Here in Institutional Advancement, summer is always a time to review and prepare. The fiscal year ends on June 30, and on July 1 we turn our thoughts to how we can make our new year even better for our donors and our whole community. Lately, I have especially been thinking about all the donors […]
Sometimes we need to set busyness aside and take time to go deep. Last week, we in Institutional Advancement did just that by placing a hold on work and gathering for a planning day to discuss what went well this past fiscal year and where we need to focus our attention now. The Dean kicked […]
This week, we are looking at the new initiatives TryTank is launching to get more people involved in innovation. We have looked at our experiment managers and our new Innovation Hubs. Today, we’ll finish off by looking at our new Try Dollars program. Here’s a bit of good news: there is no shortage of good […]
This week, we are looking at the new programs TryTank is launching to decentralize our efforts to make our church more innovative. Yesterday we looked at our experiment managers. Today, let’s explore our new effort to create Innovation Hubs. If there’s one thing I have learned in my time doing this work, it is that […]
This week, we are looking at the new programs TryTank is launching to decentralize our efforts to expand innovation in the Church. Today, let’s explore our new effort utilizing experiment managers. TryTank is pretty much a staff of one (with some excellent assistance from Br. Luis Hernandez Rivas ’23 as our student worker!). Size will […]