Black Church Studies Brochure (rev. Aug 2022)

BLACK

Dear Prospective LPTS Student,

Allow me to be among the first to welcome you to the possibilities of Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary! I am excited to know that you are considering Louisville Seminary for your theological education. Where you choose to do your graduate theological studies and how you understand the meaning of the call that God has placed on your life is of profound importance. Here at Louisville Seminary, we are a people in progress, a place where the life of the spirit and the life of the mind are wonderfully engaged. We are a part of the company of the faithful, called into a “whosoever” witness for love and justice, goodness and peace in our times. We are a community of students, scholars, and staff committed to anti-racism, equity, and inclusion. We are a seminary that strives to respect the inherent dignity of every person and the very sacredness of creation. At LPTS, Black Church Studies matters. You matter to us. We are ready to journey with you!

In the Presence, Alton B. Pollard, III (President of Louisville Seminary)

CORE VALUES

Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary:

• Believes in God, follows the example of Jesus as a model for our lives, and relies on the Holy Spirit;

• Celebrates the rich traditions of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and Reformed Christianity;

• Achieves excellence through academic rigor, creativity, and critical thinking;

• Commits to anti-racism academically and throughout the LPTS community;

• Models, expects, and promotes gender equity;

• Supports the full inclusion of LGBTQIA+ persons;

• Embraces diversity of ministries including pastors, chaplains, therapists, community leaders, and more;

• Engages our community in action and reflection beyond the classroom;

• Respects the dignity and gifts of all;

• Creates community for one another in worship, celebration, sorrow, and success;

• Values accessibility and inclusivity;

• Welcomes inter-faith and ecumenical study and dialogue;

• Commits to responsible, sustainable care for God’s Earth.

OVERVIEW

The Black Church Studies (BCS) program at Louisville Seminary educates and prepares students for positions of significant leadership in a wide variety of congregations and communities including African American institutions. We are committed to teaching students to understand issues of power, powerlessness, community organizing, and interdisciplinary study. Students enrolled in the Master of Divinity, Master of Arts in Religion, or Master of Arts in Marriage and Family Therapy degree programs may complete a concentration in Black Church Studies. Upon graduation, students will receive both a Master’s diploma and a Certificate in Black Church Studies. For our Doctor of Ministry program, we offer a track in Black Church Studies.

BCS PROGRAM CONCENTRATIONS

Master of Divinity, Master of Arts in Religion, and/or Master of Arts in

Marriage and Family Therapy

Students enrolled in one or more of these degree programs take graduate-level courses in history, theology, ethics, homiletics, Bible, pastoral care and counseling, and practical theology. Students can choose four elective courses from the Black Church Studies curriculum. While our students currently learn in-person on our campus, beginning in the 2024-2025 academic year, our master’s programs will also be offered online.

Doctor of Ministry Pastors, counselors, chaplains, denominational and para-church officials, and other individuals who have significant ministry experience, including experience before and during a Master of Divinity program, are invited to apply for the Doctor of Ministry (DMin) degree program at Louisville Seminary. The DMin degree with a Black Church Studies focus consists of four required seminars and three advanced professional (elective) seminars taken in Black Church Studies.

CHURCH STUDIES

COURSES

INTERPRETATION AND PROCLAMATION (IP)

WISDOM AND WITNESS (WW)

OF MINISTRY

AND NURTURING

(CR)

All half-time and full-time master’s level students receive a minimum of a 100% tuition scholarship. This tremendous gift is made possible through the gifts of people in the church and society, and Seminary investments of those funds.

In addition to full tuition scholarships, each year there are a limited number of Presidential Scholarships awarded based on academic achievement and/or a promise for ministry. Current Presidential Scholarships are for $20,000 a year, and a student’s full-time tuition costs are paid from the scholarship.

While we currently do not offer scholarships for our Doctor of Ministry program, our DMin tuition is affordable at $14,500 for the entire program.

AFFORDING SEMINARY

FULL TIME BLACK FACULTY & ADMINISTRATORS

For more information about our faculty members including their publications, visit www.lpts.edu/faculty.

TRINA ARMSTRONG

Director and Associate Professor of Marriage and Family Therapy and Associate Professor of Pastoral Theology

Golden Gate University, BA Fuller Theological Seminary, MDiv California Southern University, MA Claremont School of Theology, MA, PhD

Dr. Trina Armstrong, affectionally known as Dr. Trina, joined the faculty of Louisville Seminary in August 2022 as Director and Associate Professor of Marriage and Family Therapy. She previously served as Director of Pastoral and Clinical Mental Health Counseling, Assistant Professor of Pastoral Theology at Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary, and the founder and inaugural Director of Interreligious Chaplaincy and Assistant Professor of Pastoral Care and Counseling at United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities.

ANGELA COWSER

Associate Dean of Black Church Studies and Doctor of Ministry Program and Associate Professor of Black Church Studies

Brown University, BA University of Chicago, MA Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary, MDiv Vanderbilt University, PhD

Angela Cowser began her service at Louisville Seminary in August 2018. She previously served as Director of the Center for the Church and the Black Experience and Assistant Professor of Sociology of Religion at GarrettEvangelical Theological Seminary. She is an ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), and she is a member of the Association of Black Sociologists, the National Center for Faculty Development and Diversity, the American Academy of Religion, and the Chicago Organizers Guild.

KILEN GRAY

Dean of Community Life and Adjunct Professor for the Doctor of Ministry Program and Black Church Studies

Kentucky State University, BS Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary, MDiv, DMin

A native of Memphis, Tennessee, Kilen serves as Dean of Community Life and as an adjunct professor. Kilen also serves as interim pastor of First Baptist Church of Jeffersontown, and is the co-founder, chief operating officer, and program director of the batterer intervention program for Creative Spirits Behavioral Health Center, a state-licensed, outpatient mental health facility in Shelbyville. Kilen previously served as senior pastor of New Mt. Zion Baptist Church of Shelbyville, Kentucky for 35 years, Human Resources & Community Coordinator for the Shelby County Public School district, and as a systems engineer for Humana Inc.. Dr. Gray and his wife, Rev. Cassandra Harris-Gray, have two daughters.

DEBRA J. MUMFORD

Seminary Dean and Frank H. Caldwell Professor of Homiletics

Howard University, BS American Baptist Seminary of the West, MDiv Graduate Theological Union, MABL and PhD

Debra J. Mumford is an ordained minister in American Baptist Churches, USA and affiliate minister with the Alliance of Baptists. She joined the Louisville Seminary faculty in 2007. She majored in mechanical engineering at Howard University and worked in engineering before answering her call to ministry. Mumford served as a youth pastor, associate minister and church administrator in several congregations in the San Francisco Bay Area. Her scholarly interests include African American prophetic preaching, prosperity preaching, eschatology and the reign of God, and preaching and health.

ALTON B. POLLARD III

Seminary President and Professor of Religion and Culture

Fisk University, BA Harvard Divinity School, MDiv Duke University, PhD

Rev. Dr. Alton B. Pollard III is Louisville Seminary’s tenth president. He began his service with Louisville Seminary in September 2018. A scholar, author, consultant and speaker on the subject of African American and U.S. religion and culture, Pollard was previously dean of the School of Divinity and professor of Religion and Culture at Howard University in Washington, D.C. Prior to his eleven years at Howard University, Pollard served as director of Black Church Studies and chair of American Religious Cultures at Emory University, and taught at Wake Forest University and St. Olaf College. A native of St. Paul, Minnesota, Pollard and his wife Jessica have two children and three grandchildren.

JUSTIN REED

Assitant Professor of Old Testament/Hebrew Bible

Stanford University, BA Harvard Divinity School, MTS Princeton Theological Seminary, PhD

Justin Michael Reed joined the faculty at Louisville Seminary in 2018. Among his contributions to the life of the seminary has been his involvement in various efforts at building up our ability to become an antiracist institution. This includes his leadership on multiple committees dedicated to the implementation and assessment of antiracist pedagogy and policies. Reed is ordained as a Progressive National Baptist minister. He and his wife Catherine, who is a Louisville Metro Public Defender, have two children.

SCOTT C. WILLIAMSON Robert H. Walkup Professor of Theological Ethics

Bates College, BA Yale Divinity School, MDiv Yale University, PhD

Scott C. Williamson, a New York City native, joined the Louisville Seminary faculty in 1997 to teach theological ethics, and he helped to build the seminary’s Black Church Studies program. Williamson has a penchant for humor and storytelling in teaching, a talent for building community, and a passion for social justice. Williamson was selected by Leadership Kentucky as one of forty future leaders in the Commonwealth under the age of 40, and was selected as a member of Leadership Louisville Class of 2015. He has served the city of Louisville as a Big Brother, commissioner on the Louisville Metro Human Relations Commission, a volunteer firefighter, and children’s advocate.

STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS

WOMEN AT THE WELL

Women at the Well (WATW) is a student-led group that supports women of color who are studying at Louisville Seminary, and helps to educate the community about minority experiences as it affects how minorities see the world and the larger society. WATW hosts brown bag lunches, services projects, and brings speakers to campus to present on social justice issues.

PURPOSE

To support one another

To educate one another, campus, and community

To teach one another, campus, and community

MISSION

encourage

be a place of refuge

GAYRAUD WILMORE SOCIETY OF BLACK SEMINARIANS

According to inaugural SBS President and Master of Divinity student John Randolph, the formation of the group was inspired by three separate factors. First, seminary alums laid the groundwork in developing an organization that centered on shared cultural experiences. Second, the “three-headed monster of 2020 (sickness from the global pandemic; fascism from a disastrous presidential administration; and violence from the injustices inflicted on Sis. Breonna Taylor)” inspired the need to understand the fallen world in which students would minister. Lastly, the desire to honor Dr. Gayraud Wilmore, a paramount figure in Black Theology who died in 2020.

“We wanted to build an organization that centered on our Black experience in faith, social justice, and healing during this tumultuous season,” said Randolph. “While the focus is on Black students, we seek to provide a safe space for all people of color, those seeking community, and those who authentically want an opportunity to learn about the Black experience. The SBS will create an environment that acknowledges the distinctiveness of the Black experience, values Black students, and recognizes the importance of community among the Black student body.”

BLACK CHURCH STUDIES CONSULTATION

The Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary Black Church Studies Consultation is designed to build scholarly and practical resources for African American ministers, ministries, and congregations in order to help them thrive. The Consultation, which usually occurs in February and March, provides resources, education, interdisciplinary dialogues, and support for neglected and understudied areas of ministry. As part of the year-round work of the Consultation, we work to build relationships of trust, reciprocity, and power between ministers, chaplains, counselors, and Louisville Seminary faculty and students. The Consultations are presented by the Louisville Seminary Black Church Studies Program with partial funding provided by the Lilly Endowment, Inc. Thriving Congregations Initiative.

“Iam eternally grateful to Louisville Seminary and its Black Church Studies program and the BCS Consulation for its impact on my ministry as a pastor in the CME Church and a representative of the school. The persons who have facilitated BCS Consultations have given me necessary tools to improve my preaching, teaching, and leadership to the congregations I serve.”

Rev. Dr. Amariah McIntosh (MDiv ‘01, DMin ’14)

Senior Pastor, Phillips Temple CME Church, Toledo, Ohio and Bishop’s Assistant to the Presiding Elder