MTSO is offering appointed clergy an opportunity to participate in Cultivating Racial Resilience, a year-long training program designed to help them develop an anti-racist conscience and act as change agents within their institutions.

Cultivating Racial Resilience will take place both virtually and in person over three phases, beginning in April and concluding in May 2026. Travel expenses for in-person meetings, including flights, lodging and food, will be covered by MTSO. The goal is for accepted participants give their time and effort to this process and for MTSO to bear the financial costs.

MTSO is currently accepting applications for 10-15 appointed clergy who are eager to learn more about anti-racism from a theological perspective and desire to apply these principles to an existing or new ministry project.

The deadline for applications is Monday, March 10. An application and complete information, including a program timeline, are here.

Jeff Jaynes, who retired from the faculty as professor in the Warner Chair of Church History in 2024, is now serving MTSO in a new role. He has been appointed alumni relations liaison, effective Feb. 3.

Jaynes will strengthen and support alumni connections to the school, focusing on individuals who graduated between the early 1990s and mid-2010s. He also will serve in a fundraising capacity.

“Dr. Jaynes is a natural at building relationships and sharing the value of investing in our mission,” said MTSO President Jay Rundell. “Even while he was a full-time faculty member, he helped to encourage alumni to support the school that shaped their vocations. We’re fortunate to have him continuing in that work now.”

Ralph Basui Watkins, the Peachtree Professor of Evangelism and Church Growth at Columbia Theological Seminary in Decatur, Georgia, will deliver two lectures on ministry in the visual age at MTSO’s Williams Institute.

Watkins’ first lecture, “Imagining a Ministry: The Power of the Image in Envisioning a Future,” will take place at 7 p.m. Eastern March 25. The second lecture, “Seeing the Future of the Church: Use What’s in Your Hand,” begins at 10 a.m. Eastern March 26. Both lectures are in the Alford Centrum on the MTSO campus. They are open to all. No registration is required.

Watkins also will preach at MTSO’s weekly chapel at 1 p.m. Eastern March 25 in the Alford Centrum. Inspired by Exodus 4:1-5, the sermon title is “What Is in Your Hand?” All are welcome.

The Williams lectures will be accompanied by Portraits of Faith, an exhibition of 20 images produced by Watkins, who is known as “the scholar with a camera.” Based on the six colors of the rainbow flag, the portraits depict people of faith, LGTBQ+ people of faith and allies of the LGBTQ+ community.

Read more.

To equip the next generation of leaders with the ability to navigate complexity with resilience and adaptive leadership skills, MTSO has developed the Liturgy and Leadership Field Education Cohort Program.

Funded with an Innovative Institutional Development Grant of $295,538 from the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry of the United Methodist Church through the Ministerial Education Fund, the program is presented by United Methodist pastors Rachel Billups and Matt Rawle, built upon their deep-rooted dedication to creativity and innovation within the church.

Over the course of three academic years, we will convene three cohorts of seven promising ministry candidates to immerse them in the methodologies that foster church growth and community impact. The program’s first two cohorts will consist of MTSO students. The third cohort may include students from another United Methodist seminary or theological school.

Phase 1 of the Liturgy and Leadership Field Education Cohort Program will run from March 2025 through May 2026, with phases 2 and 3 following similar timelines starting in 2026 and 2027. Unless otherwise indicated, gatherings will be online. For on-campus events, MTSO will cover participants’ travel expenses.

Learn more.

Methodist Theological School in Ohio will host a Graduate Theological Education Immersion Event for aspiring faith leaders March 26 from 1 to 4 p.m. Eastern. It will take place on the MTSO campus, 3081 Columbus Pike in Delaware, Ohio.

Participants will explore graduate theological education and discern its potential role in helping them to become change agents in their communities.

The event is part of MTSO’s project “Connecting Pathways: A Multi-Faceted Approach to Strengthen and Sustain Current and Future Faith Leaders,” funded through Lilly Endowment Inc.’s Pathways for Tomorrow Initiative.

This Immersion Event is offered at no cost to participants. Free on-campus housing is provided, and travel expenses will be covered.

Advance registration is required by Monday, March 10. Learn more and apply to participate here.

Shirley Dewire, who was married to former MTSO President Ned Dewire, died March 2. She was 89.

During the Dewires’ time at MTSO from 1986 to 2006, Shirley was deeply involved in the life of the school. In addition, she volunteered and served as a trustee for a number of church and charitable organizations.

A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. March 15 at Friendship Village of Dublin, 6000 Riverside Drive, Dublin 43017. An obituary is here.