Dr. Walsh attends Biennial Meeting of the Association of Theological Schools (ATS)

Dr. Thomas Walsh represented HJI at the Biennial Meeting of the Association of Theological Schools (ATS). ATS is an accreditation body for seminaries and schools of theology from across the USA and Canada. HJI is an affiliate member of ATS.

The Biennial Meeting convened in Chicago from June 23-25, 2026, and covered a wide range of topics of relevance to seminaries and schools of theologies, not least of which was concern about strong headwinds that challenges many smaller schools, related both the demographic decline in higher education and the growing impact of younger populations who no longer affiliate with traditional denominations, referring to as the “nones”, derived from marking “none” on surveys when asked about religious affiliation. While challenges were identified and backed up by data, there was an overall atmosphere of hope and strong encouragement for increased collaboration among schools, forming an ecology of support and shared opportunity. The next Biennial Meeting will convene in Vancouver, Canada in 2028.