Dear Friends,

I am pleased to have this – my first – opportunity to communicate via the President’s Newsletter with you who have supported Louisville Seminary with your time, talents, or prayers. The Seminary has required all three throughout its 150-year history, and certainly in this time of transition for this community, your support is both needed and valued.

The resignation of John Mulder from the presidency came unexpectedly for all of us last fall, and I am sure that you are curious about the Seminary’s efforts to find a new president. So let me begin by outlining the progress made thus far in the presidential search.

The Seminary’s Board of Trustees has appointed a search committee with representation from a variety of constituencies within the Seminary and the Church. The committee’s chairperson, Robert Reed, has been a member of the Board since 1984, and he moderated the Board from 1990 to 1998. Six other members of the Board will join him on this committee. They are Barbara Barnes, the chair of the Board’s Executive Committee, Mary Lou Friesen, Wayne Kramer, Toney McMillan, Charles Ping, and William Young. From the faculty, Dianne Reistroffer, the Seminary’s Academic Dean; Nancy Ramsay, professor of pastoral theology; and Scott Williamson, associate professor of theological ethics, will serve on the committee. In addition, Laura Fleetwood, the president of the Alumni/ae Board; Will Houts, a middler M.Div. student; and Lisa Kolb, alumni/ae relations and annual fund secretary, will provide representation from the alumni/ae, students and staff of the school. We are grateful to these members of our community who have generously offered their time and insight to the work of discerning that person who God is now calling to be Louisville Seminary’s next president.

The committee has already reviewed the Seminary’s Strategic Plan for the years 2000 to 2005 and an updated version of the Seminary’s 1999 Self-Study. These documents provide the Seminary’s own assessment of its strengths, weaknesses, priorities, and areas for potential growth. The committee intends in the next few months to conduct a “perception study” in order to determine how interested constituencies off campus view the Seminary. By various means, alumni/ae, congregations, church leaders, theological educators and donors will be consulted for their perceptions of where Louisville Seminary has been successful in its training future leaders for the church and where it has not fully realized its potential in this work.

Obviously, the committee will also be engaged in identifying possible candidates for the presidency. The committee welcomes suggestions of individuals whom you consider appropriate for such a position of leadership. If you wish to suggest someone, you can contact Bob Reed, chair of the search committee, by e-mail