Friends,

I am pleased to greet you on behalf of our seminary community and to express my appreciation for the myriad ways you support and extend our work and give witness to the purposes and principles we share. Our nation is in the midst of a difficult season, making all the more important our mission of theological education and leadership in pursuit of a just, sustainable, and generative world.

I want to share with you an upcoming transition. After a tremendously rewarding run as President of Methodist Theological School in Ohio, I will retire in June of 2027. While I am quickly coming to understand how difficult it will be to step away from this wonderful institution and all it stands for, I believe this is the right time.

It is the right time for me. I will turn 65 this year, and by the time I leave I will have served in this role for 21 years. It has been the honor of a lifetime and the clear highlight of my ministry and career. Additionally, Kristen accepted a department chair position at the University of Arizona four years ago, and we’ve been balancing a cross-country life for long enough. It’s time for me to get to Tucson full time.

It is also the right time for MTSO. Like people and communities, institutions have their own cycles and rhythms. We have superb governance, with an experienced and committed board of trustees. We have extraordinarily talented faculty, administrators and staff. With an endowment approaching $65 million, we are positioned to support our students well, assuring us graduates who will lead churches and communities forward in a world very much in need of what they are preparing to do. And we have deep gratitude for alumni and friends whose generosity makes this possible. While currently as strong as we’ve ever been, I believe we can grow even stronger with the energy and innovation that can accompany change. I have great confidence in our future.

One of the reasons I’m announcing this now is to allow for a thorough and inclusive process of discernment about the future of the seminary. The board has appointed a transition committee that is already meeting. A search committee to select a new president will be assembled following a time of listening with stakeholder and constituent groups. That process will begin with a day together on campus March 2. Members of the board will meet with students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends. You can read more about that in the story below.

While I will be thoroughly engaged in the life of the school for the next 17 months, I won’t be involved in the search process for my successor. After today, the next you will hear about this process will be from Trustees Chair Jeff Taylor.

I am so very grateful for the support and encouragement you’ve offered over the years. I love this place and all we’ve been about together, as well as that which is yet to be and become of this most worthy venture.

We invite all alumni and friends of MTSO to a unique gathering Monday, March 2. We will come together in the newly refurbished Dunn Dining Hall for dinner and important conversation.

With President Jay Rundell planning to retire in the summer of 2027, alums and friends will have an opportunity to share thoughts around the future of the school with the Board of Trustees, led by Board Chair Jeff Taylor.

“I know the board joins me in thanking President Rundell for his service to the school,” Taylor said. “Before we begin the search for a new president, it’s vital that we hear the thoughts and wisdom of those prepared for ministry and service by MTSO, as well as the friends of the school. Our conversation March 2 will help to shape the trustees’ work in preparing for this transition.”

The evening's schedule:

4:45 p.m.: Gathering of alumni and friends
5 p.m.: Worship music and devotional, led by Acting Dean Lisa Allen-McLaurin
5:30 p.m.: Dinner
6:15 p.m.: Conversation guided by Board Chair Jeff Taylor

There is no charge to attend this gathering. We ask that you RSVP here.

MTSO’s will hold its next traditional Alumni Day, including presentation of the Mount Alumni Awards, in the fall.

Scholar, author and preacher HyeRan Kim-Cragg will share her approach to speaking about the ecological crisis from the pulpit when she leads the 2026 Schooler Institute on Preaching at MTSO.

Under the theme “What on Earth? An Urgent Call to Ecologically Sound Preaching,” the Schooler Institute will take place March 3 and 4 (Tuesday and Wednesday) on the MTSO Campus.

In addition to Kim-Cragg’s lectures and sermons, two members of MTSO’s faculty will bring their worship experience and expertise to Schooler. Associate Professor of Theology, Ecology and Race Christopher Carter will lead a conversation about preaching in these challenging days. Associate Dean Lisa Allen-McLaurin, who also serves as professor of worship, music and spirituality, will address music and worship leadership that fits the current moment.

While selected portions of Schooler will be streamed live, it will include some sessions limited to those attending in person.

Thanks to the generosity of the Schooler Family Foundation, the Schooler Institute is offered to the public without cost. One continuing education unit is available for $30. Advance registration is required and available at mtso.edu/schooler. The registration deadline is Feb. 17.

HyeRan Kim-Cragg leads Emmanuel College, a theological college of Victoria University in the University of Toronto, where she earned her Doctor of Theology degree. She also holds a Master of Divinity from the Hanshin Graduate School of Theology in Osan, South Korea. In addition to her role as Emmanuel’s principal, she serves as professor of preaching.

Read more and register here.

Taylor Walters Denyer, a fully affiliated faculty member at MTSO, recently became a full member of the United Methodist Judicial Council, the denomination’s top court. Elected as an alternate at General Conference in 2024, she has been elevated to a full member, serving out the term of the council’s former vice president, Øyvind Helliesen, who died in November.

“I feel honored and privileged to be joining the council at this moment in our denomination's unfolding history,” said Denyer, who specializes in United Methodist Studies. The Judicial Council is made up of nine people, both lay and clergy.

Denyer was originally nominated to the council by the Council of Bishops. “To be honest, I had never considered the possibility until my bishop, Rev. Dr. Mande Muyombo, approached me with the idea,” she said.

“Bishop Mande offered a persuasive pitch, pointing out how my academic knowledge of UM polity, history and doctrine combined with my unique experiences in the denomination would provide valuable insights to council discussions, especially as much of my globally itinerant ministry involves being a communications bridge – helping people from different parts of the church better understand each other.”

A self-described “Metho-nerd” and global nomad, Denyer has lived in nine countries and is an elder in the North Katanga Conference in the Democratic Republic of Congo. She’s currently based in Cairo, Egypt, with her husband, a foreign service officer.

The General Board of Higher Education and Ministry of the United Methodist Church has chosen MTSO as the new academic home of the Center for Integrative Pastoral Practice, its Clinical Pastoral Education program. MTSO assumed operation of the center, now known as CIPP@MTSO, in September.

CIPP@MTSO uses students’ existing ministry settings for the clinical assignments required for Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) certification. The program is a vital component in the preparation of future chaplains, spiritual care providers and pastoral counselors, integrating theological knowledge with practical clinical training.

Fully accredited by the Association for Clinical Pastoral Education Inc., CIPP@MTSO will build on the school’s existing collaborative efforts with OhioHealth.

To learn how CIPP@MTSO can help individuals, religious groups and institutions achieve their goals around CPE, visit mtso.edu/cipp.

MTSO is holding a Graduate Theological Education Discernment Retreat in early March for aspiring faith leaders.

Guided programming takes place March 4 from 1 to 4 p.m. Eastern time. Participants are invited to create a customized 1- to 3-day retreat that can also include sitting in on classes and attending the Schooler Institute on Preaching lectures and workshops.

If you or someone you know wants to explore the possibility of graduate theological education, get more details and apply here. MTSO provides free on-campus housing and meals, and travel assistance may also be available.