for the president

President Wardlaw gives David Jensen a congratulatory hug at the party to honor his service as dean.

What makes for a good seminary president? There are countless ways to assess presidents during these extraordinary—and often difficult—times in theological education. One way is to consider the people a president has gathered. People, after all, make a place. By this measure, President Wardlaw’s record is stunning. Of the current twenty-one faculty members, seventeen were hired during Ted’s presidency. It’s a remarkably strong faculty: committed to teaching, the church, and the value of theological education in our conflicted age. Ted has also hired all current cabinet members: an extraordinarily competent, creative, and committed Jensen a congratulatory hug team of administrators. This list of people goes on: all current trustees who give at the party given to honor his generously of their time and resources; nearly all the current staff who sustain and service as dean. enhance the Seminary’s mission. President Wardlaw has a knack for bringing together the right people.

Perhaps it’s the impact that a president makes on the physical campus. Again, on this score, Ted’s leadership has been transformative. The Austin Seminary campus is more physically welcoming and aesthetically inviting than when he began his service in 2002. Anderson House, McCoy House, and the Mary B. and Robert J. Wright Learning and Information Center all came about, in large part, because of Ted’s leadership. Maybe it’s the way a president expands a broader constituency of donors, students, and committed collaborators. The Seminary, by this measure, is in the best shape it’s ever been. Maybe it’s the way a president nurtures a seminary’s rootedness in Gospel, by reminding all that we are a school of the church tasked with proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ. This has been a constant refrain of Ted’s presidency. Or maybe it’s the way a president provides an effective voice for the Seminary in a world that often questions the value of theological education. Ted, by this measure, has been tireless in his advocacy for seminaries and a winsome messenger for the distinctives that make Austin Seminary such a special place.

But I think, in the end, what has made Ted’s presidency such a good one is his strength of character. I have learned much about his character over the past twenty years, especially during the past eight years when he and I shared offices in the Seminary administrative suite. These have been the best eight years of my career. Ted is compassionate. He cares deeply about this Seminary, the future of the church, and the people in it. Ted is resolute. During difficult times (an economic downturn, a global pandemic), Ted has been a steady hand on the tiller. He has faced multiple challenges, the occasional malcontent, and all manner of disruptions, without losing focus on the core Seminary mission. He has kept at it, year in and year out. Ted has integrity. He has spoken the truth when a half-truth would have been easier. Ted shows reverence: for the life of the mind, the spirit, and the heart, knowing that we belong to the living God of Jesus Christ. Ted is funny. His sense of humor is contagious. It invites people with a hearty welcome. Ted knows that a good laugh can make managing nearly anything a bit easier and even joyful. And Ted is generous: his warmth of spirit has made this Seminary a more welcoming and inviting place to study, to work, and to be.

The essays in this issue of Windows celebrate the distinctive character of President Wardlaw. They mark a character formed, at its root, by patterns of Reformed worship. They demonstrate that Ted has not only been a good president of this seminary, but a remarkable one for such a time as this. Thank you, Ted, for being you.

– David H. Jensen, Academic Dean (2014-2022)