Episcopal Divinity School Pursues Union Merger

Two progressive seminaries are on the road to merging following a financial shortfall and dropping enrollment at a historic Boston-area institution affiliated with the Episcopal Church.

The Board of Trustees of Episcopal Divinity School (EDS) today voted to pursue an affiliation with Union Theological Seminary. According to an announcement from EDS, such a merger would create an EDS entity to provide Episcopal theological education at Union’s New York City campus. The merger would entail the closure of the EDS campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and its programs.

A corresponding vote was cast by Union trustees in support of the move.

One of ten seminaries educating students for ministry in the Episcopal Church, EDS announced in July that it will cease granting degrees at the conclusion of the current academic year, citing “unsustainable” levels of spending. At the same time, the school’s dean tendered his resignation. In November, trustees from the school released a letter revealing staggering financial losses at the troubled progressive seminary.

According to the Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada, EDS has four full-time faculty and 35 full-time enrolled students. EDS investments are currently valued at approximately $53 million plus the real estate value of its campus, which is adjacent to Harvard University. More than half of the endowment is restricted. In a statement made available by the school, Board Treasurer Dennis Stark stated, “We are spending six million a year from our endowment, and 30 percent of that is above a reasonable amount.”

Union was one of three finalists considered by a committee tasked with reviewing proposals for EDS’s future. Both schools emphasize progressive political advocacy. EDS describes itself as “leaders in educational programs that are enlivened by theologies of liberation, especially the many voices of feminist, congregational, ecumenical, and global studies.”

UPDATE [4:30 p.m.]: Union President Serene Jones has released a letter about the proposed merger.

“EDS will exist inside Union in such a manner as to deepen Anglican studies and to allow our Episcopal students to get their Union degree from a seminary recognized by the Anglican tradition. This is great news for our already large contingent of Episcopal students and our many Anglican alumni/ae who made their way through Union without this incredible level of support. It is even better news for future generations of Episcopal students who will enter a fully formed program. There are also enormous gifts that EDS and the global Anglican Communion promise to bring to Union as a whole; the programs designed in Anglican studies and ministerial and spiritual formation will enrich the education of every student here, including those of us who are not Anglican and those who are not Christian. Moreover, the significant funds EDS will bring to Union will allow us also to strengthen scholarship aid and to deepen faculty support and infrastructure capacity.”

Jones also specifically notes the closing of EDS’s programs and campus, which was not mentioned in the EDS announcement.

UPDATE [3/28/2017]: General Theological Seminary Dean and President Kurt Dunkle has written about the EDS merger with Union Seminary and how it may affect nearby GTS:

“For at least several decades, EDS has pursued a particular formational track with a unique educational focus. Union has similarly refined itself since its original founding, now self-describing as a multi-religious seminary embracing religious and humanist values (their words). Both EDS and Union have been clear about their identity and direction.
 
General Seminary  is now similarly clear about identity and direction. As our opening website page declares, “this is a Christian place open to all people. Our language is Jesus and our accent is Episcopalian.”

UPDATE [5/22/2017]: EDS and Union Theological Seminary have signed an agreement that will allow EDS to continue as an Episcopal seminary through a collaboration with Union at its campus in New York City beginning in the fall of 2018. EDS appointed the Rev. Dr. Kelly Brown Douglas, Susan D. Morgan Professor of Religion at Goucher College in Maryland and canon theologian at Washington National Cathedral, as the first dean of EDS at Union. Her academic work focuses on womanist theology, sexuality and the black church.

The EDS statement is below:

Episcopal Divinity School Votes to Pursue Affiliation with Union Theological Seminary in New York

Cambridge, MA – February 24, 2017 – The Board of Trustees of Episcopal Divinity School (EDS) today voted to pursue an affiliation with Union Theological Seminary that would create an EDS entity to provide Episcopal theological education and other programs at Union’s campus in New York.

The Board of Trustees of Union Theological Seminary has voted enthusiastically to support Union’s leadership in bringing negotiations with EDS to a successful conclusion.

“We are excited to begin negotiations toward an agreement that will allow EDS to achieve the three goals we set for ourselves when we began the process of assuring the seminary’s future,” said the Rev. Dr. Gary Hall ’76, chair of the board. “EDS will continue to provide theological education within an accredited and degree-granting program, we will carry out our historic mission to place gospel-centered justice at the center of that education, and we will provide financial strength and stability for EDS’s future.”

“We are thrilled that EDS’s trustees have made this momentous decision and we are excited about all it portends for the future,” said the Rev. Dr. Serene Jones, president of the faculty and Johnston Family Professor for Religion and Democracy at Union. “The mission alignment between our two institutions is clear and strong. You can’t miss it!  This alignment assures that the deepest commitments of both institutions will be honored and strengthened in the years ahead.”

The two seminaries will begin negotiations immediately in the hope that both boards can vote on an agreement when they meet in May, before EDS’s final commencement at its Cambridge campus.

“I am optimistic that this proposed affiliation will provide great benefits for both parties,” said Bonnie Anderson, Hon. D.D. ’06, vice chair of the EDS board. “An Episcopal entity at Union would be positioned to leverage resources for mission and attract new partners in New York City and beyond.”

Spurred by financial challenges that were depleting EDS’s endowment, its board voted last July to stop granting degrees at the seminary’s Cambridge location after the 2017 commencement in May, and to explore new ways of providing post-secondary theological education that emphasized the centrality of social justice in the Christian tradition.

The board’s New Directions Committee, chaired by the Rev. Anne Howard ’85, reviewed proposals from nine seminaries and divinity schools, and selected three finalists. After making site visits with the Rev. Dr. William C. Nelsen, EDS interim president, and Anthony Ruger, an expert on financial sustainability in theological schools, the committee recommended exploring an agreement to affiliate with Union.

“The quality and creativity of the proposals we received was gratifying,” said Howard. “After extensive research, we became clear that Union offers the best fit for EDS’s mission and historic commitment to justice.”

Union already has a strong Episcopal presence. Four of its 22 faculty members are Episcopal priests and five members of its board of trustees are Episcopalians, including the board chair, Wolcott Dunham, senior warden of St. James’ Episcopal Church in New York City and former trustee of the Episcopal Diocese of New York.

“I look forward to the amazing possibilities of bringing an affiliation between Union and EDS into reality,” said Union Board Chair Dunham. “Our work together will surely expand the ways we serve the world and the church.”

EDS has adopted a generous severance plan for its faculty and staff, and all of its students are being “taught out” at other seminaries with EDS financial support to avoid additional costs for those students. Seven of the teach-out students are Episcopalians in an ordination process; they come from three dioceses. A number of the students included in the teach-out, which has been approved by the Association of Theological Schools, are international students, and EDS has retained an immigration lawyer to advise the students about maintaining their visas in the transition.

The seminary’s investments are currently valued at approximately $53 million plus its campus.