Date: August 7, 2026
ALEXANDRIA, Va., August 7, 2026 – Lisa Kimball, Ph.D., Vice President for Lifelong Learning and the James Maxwell Professor of Lifelong Christian Formation, has retired after 17 years of service to Virginia Theological Seminary (VTS). During her tenure, Dr. Kimball served on the Practical Theology faculty and established the seminary’s Lifelong Learning department, building it into a nationally recognized resource for continuing education, research, innovation and leadership development for lay and ordained leaders across The Episcopal Church and beyond.
Dr. Kimball joined VTS in 2009, as director of the Center for the Ministry of Teaching, which later became part of Lifelong Learning, and Professor of Christian Formation. Under her leadership, the Lifelong Learning secured more than $13 million in grants from Lilly Endowment Inc. and other foundations for initiatives ranging from inter-generational faith transmission, to the relationship between science and faith, to empowering congregations to preach Good News in word and action.
She anticipated the importance of digital literacy, launching eFormation, a churchwide learning exchange for research-informed best practices in ministry, coined the term ‘digital missioner,’ and hired the first person to serve in that role in The Episcopal Church at VTS. She also brought Building Faith to the Seminary, developing it into one of the Church’s leading online resources for Christian formation, attracting more than one million visitors. Under her leadership, Lifelong Learning also became home to TryTank Research Institute, an initiative at the forefront of ecclesiastical innovation, and Forma, a churchwide membership network for Christian formation leaders.
A passionate advocate for lay ministry and formation, Dr. Kimball’s teaching, research and writing have focused on lifelong, life-wide, and life-deep discipleship and leadership development in contemporary, global, and post-institutional contexts. Through her scholarship, teaching, mentoring, and leadership, she has influenced generations of church leaders and shaped conversations about formation and discipleship throughout The Episcopal Church.
The Very Rev. Ian S. Markham, Ph.D., Dean and President of VTS, said: “Lisa Kimball is a yes person. Her instincts are to make things work so that we can support the Church. With a deep passion for Jesus and the centrality of Baptism in her theology, she create program that will ripple out for decades and generations to come. We are grateful for everything Lisa has done and what she will do in the years to come.”
The Rev. Shawn Strout, Ph.D., Associate Dean of Chapel and Associate Professor of Worship at VTS, has been appointed Interim Associate Dean for Lifelong Learning for the coming year.
Notes to editors:
For media inquiries, please contact Nicky Burridge, Senior Vice President for Communications and Institutional Advancement at VTS.
Tel: (703) 461-1782
Mobile: (703) 300-2876
Email: [email protected]
Photo caption: Lisa Kimball, Ph.D., Vice President for Lifelong Learning and the James Maxwell Professor of Lifelong Christian Formation.
About Virginia Theological Seminary:
Virginia Theological Seminary was founded in 1823 and has a long tradition of shaping faithful women and men, lay and ordained, for leadership in The Episcopal Church and beyond. It is the strongest seminary in the Anglican Communion and provides more than 25 percent of the clergy of The Episcopal Church.