Dr. Winings (UTS’87), Vice President for Academic Affairs, Director Doctor of Ministry, Professor of Religious Education attended the Annual Conference of the Association for Doctor of Ministry Education (ADME) held March 31–April 2 at Trinity School for Ministry, Ambridge, PA. ADME is in partnership with the Association of Theological Schools (ATS) for the purpose of advancing theological education. “The conference brings together directors of DMin programs who openly share their best practices,” said Dr. Winings. “We shared recruitment strategies; we discussed the changing nature...

Highlights from the 2015–2016 Entering Student Questionnaire Who are today’s theology students? What type of church experience do they have? How were they prepared academically? What compelled them to attend a theological school? What compelled them to choose your school? What are their hopes and dreams for the future? The results of this year’s Entering Student Questionnaire (ESQ) are in, and they reveal some trends to consider. Continue Reading Jo Ann Deasy is Director, Institutional Initiatives and Student Research for The Association of Theological Schools.

On Saturday, April 2, 2016, Mr. Idris Ena Kone (UTS’12 M.Div.) [photo: front row third from left] held a peace conference with civic and religious leaders of the Ivory Coast diaspora community in New York City at the Unification Theological Seminary (UTS) in Manhattan, at the 4West43 building. “Drissa” Kone is in his final year of a Doctor of Ministry program in peace and justice at UTS, where his desire to understand and to resolve conflict led him to research the impact of the First and Second Ivorian Civil Wars on the Ivorian diaspora community in New York City. It has taken almost...

This year, UTS graduation will again be held at UTS Barrytown, NY in the chapel on Saturday, May 28, beginning at 2:00 PM. Graduating students will be recipients of Doctoral and Master degrees. In addition to the graduates, their relatives and guests, all alumni and friends, near and far, are invited to attend and celebrate with the graduating Class of 2016. This continues a very special year in UTS history as it is the 40th Commencement at UTS. UTS was founded in 1975. The first commencement was for the incoming class of that year, the Class of 1977. UTS celebrated 2015 as the...

As seminaries reverse a 10-year enrollment decline, what does the future hold? Thoreau reminded us to “never look back unless you are planning to go that way.” But if theology teaches us anything, it is to look back—with regularity and with great benefit. In the midst of our present challenging times, it can be beneficial to look back at some key data that illustrate the changes of the last decade and to highlight a few areas where those changes might take us in the coming decade— a look back to our future. Enrollment growth by degree categories: For fall 2015, the overall head count...

I recently had the privilege of participating in the annual 2016 Global Humanitarian Summit in Marietta, Georgia. In its fifth year, the summit is the brainchild of Dr. Neil Shulman, Associate Professor of Internal Medicine at Emory University School of Medicine. Dr. Shulman or “Doc Hollywood” is a prolific writer and he co-produced the Warner Brothers’ movie “Doc Hollywood” starring Michael J. Fox which was based on his book, “What? Dead Again?” But it is his amazing ability of bringing together people to collaborate, create connection and community that gives the Summit its life. The...

To lead with courage and pastoral wisdom in the twenty-first century requires ministers to make a transition from simply imagining ministry to embodying pastoral imagination. The relational and embodied capacity for ministry, what Craig Dykstra first called pastoral imagination, emerges over time and remains indispensable for effective pastoral leadership in congregations and community ministries. We find through listening to ministry leaders across the country that ministry today is less about exercising the authority of an office or role and more about embodying an authentic...

Opportunity may be knocking for Unification Theological Seminary (UTS) alumni seeking paid internships in the primary care medical industry, according to Dr. John Paul James, UTS Maryland Satellite director. Primary Care and other services which includes holistic health coaching, weight management, nutrition consultation, Kinesiology, Cardiovascular/ Oncology Rehabilitation and counseling for patients with chronic illness and acute illnesses and psychological issues such as depression, anger, addiction or anxiety, all specialties of the new field of Integrated Medicine. “We are training...

ATLANTA – It’s not easy to pack up and move 2,000 miles from the home you’ve known and raised your children in for 24 years. That’s exactly what Michael and Myrna Lapres found themselves doing last July when Michael’s employer deemed it necessary to transfer him from California to work out of their main office in Atlanta. Giving up their home was one thing, but the Lapres had been involved in a variety of activities in their community and their church, and were such an integral part of both that to sever the many relationships they had fostered would be an even bigger...