Date: May 11, 2026
ALEXANDRIA, Va., May 7, 2026 –Virginia Theological Seminary (VTS) today graduated the first member of its descendant community at its 203rd Commencement. Elwood Jones received a Master of Arts degree, marking a significant milestone in VTS’ Reparations Program.
The program, which was created in 2019 as part of the Seminary’s commitment to recognizing its participation in oppression in the past and working towards healing and justice in the future, offers annual cash payments to the descendants of Black people who labored at the Seminary during slavery and Jim Crow. It also prioritizes building relationships with descendants, including offering scholarships to study at VTS.
In total, 51 students were awarded degrees and diplomas at the Seminary’s 203rd Commencement across its Master of Divinity, Master of Arts, Doctor of Ministry, Doctor of Educational Ministry, Diploma in Theology and Diploma in Anglican Studies programs.
VTS also awarded three honorary degrees in recognition of the recipients’ significant service to God in the Church and the world. The following people received a Doctor of Humane Letters, honoris causa:
- David Hurd, Jr., Mus.D., Organist and Music Director, Church of Saint Mary the Virgin, New York City
- tink tinker, D., Clifford Baldridge Emeritus Professor of American Indian Cultures and Religious Traditions, Iliff School of Theology.
A Doctor of Divinity, honoris causa was awarded to:
- The Rev. Nathan Dwight Baxter, D.Min., 10th Bishop (retired), Diocese of Central Pennsylvania (now the Diocese of the Susquehanna).
The Seminary also conferred the Dean’s Cross for Servant Leadership on David H. Charlton, Ed.D., chair of the Board of Trustees of Virginia Theological Seminary and The General Theological Seminary, in recognition of his work in Episcopal education, which spans more than three decades. Dr. Charlton was the first lay chair of the Board in VTS’ history.
The Very Rev. Ian S. Markham, Ph.D., Dean and President of VTS, said: “Commencement is a moment when every educational institution looks forward. We are sending out graduates to make a difference in the world. However, in addition to looking forward, this was the commencement when the Seminary also engaged with the past.
The sin of racism haunts the present, and it is a joy to see a descendant from our Reparations Program graduate from VTS. Along with the other voices that we honored on this occasion through the honorary doctorates and Dean’s Cross, this was truly a commencement of hope.”
The Class of 2026 requested tink tinker, Ph.D., Clifford Baldridge Emeritus Professor of American Indian Cultures and Religious Traditions, Iliff School of Theology, to be their commencement speaker. Dr. tinker, a citizen of the Osage Nation (wazhazhe udsethe), is a speaker and writer on American Indian cultures, history, and religious traditions, cross-cultural theologies; and justice and peace studies both in the U.S. and internationally.
In his address, Dr. tinker warned the Class of 2026 that the world was radically out of balance. He said after 500 years of colonialism, the world was no longer seen as a relative, a grandmother, but as a resource to be exploited for profit, while native peoples lived in the highest degrees of poverty.
“I want to ask you to become our ally. Begin to think of grandmother earth as your close relative and not a resource – not something that can be taken at will and used for the betterment of a few human beings. What we do should work for the good of all our relatives, the four-leggeds, the wingeds, the living moving things, the mountains, trees, everyone… but it is not a done deal until you convince the military-industrial complex to go along with you, that is how difficult the charge is that I’m giving to you, and I wish you the best in doing that,” he said.
The Class of 2026 has made a gift of resources for baptismal formation to the seminary to assist future students in learning the gestures, rhythms, and attentiveness required in the baptismal rite, particularly when baptizing infants and young children. By providing a more realistic means of practice, the gift seeks to deepen students’ confidence and care as they prepare to welcome new members into the Body of Christ.
The full Commencement Service can be viewed here.
Prizes and Awards:
Nonhlanhla Shezi received The Anglican Communion Prize, which recognizes a graduating student who has shown an outstanding commitment to discerning the mission of God through world Anglicanism.
Karen Klein received The Woodward Award for Reading of Scripture and Liturgy. The award recognizes a graduating student who, in the opinion of the faculty, has demonstrated excellence in the public reading and interpretation of the Scriptures and the Liturgy.
Lauren Wineland-Breeden received The Bishop Mark Dyer Prize for Theological Reflection. The award recognizes a graduating senior who has developed theological skills and insights to support preaching and service.
Katherine Johnston Mumey received The Episcopal Preaching Foundation Award. Sponsored by the Episcopal Preaching Foundation, the award is bestowed upon a graduating Masters-level student who has demonstrated excellence in preaching.
James Holcomb III received The Greene Chair, a gift of a seminary chair that recognizes a member of the graduating class who has exhibited a strong commitment to the community life and mission of the Seminary.
Ellen Singer received The Charles and Janet Harris Award that is given each year to a candidate for Holy Orders who has demonstrated academic excellence and leadership ability.
Garth Wingfield received The Ronnie A. Yoder Scholarship Award, which aims to advance the study of love as an appropriate center of Christian theology, life, preaching, and practice, and to explore love as an ecumenical theme unifying all of humankind’s religions.
Tyra Lockhart received the Master of Arts Thesis and Capstone Award, given to graduating Master of Arts students who have researched and written an exceptional and original thesis or capstone project with clarity, depth, and integrity.
Fabio Salguero and Christine Voreis Hides received The Doctoral Thesis Award that is given to a graduating doctoral student who has written an exceptional
thesis with clarity, depth, and boundedness that addresses a higher aim of Christian life, service, and leadership.
Notes to editors:
For media inquiries, please contact Nicky Burridge, Senior Vice President for Communications and Institutional Advancement at Virginia Theological Seminary and The General Theological Seminary.
Tel: (703) 461-1782
Mobile: (703) 300-2876
Email: [email protected]
Photo caption: The Class of 2026; honorary degree recipients; Elwood Jones receiving his degree; Dr. David Charlton receiving the Dean’s Cross.
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.