Montreal Diocesan Theological College (JAY BLOSSOM)

Montreal Diocesan Theological College has sold its century-old neo-Gothic building to McGill University for an undisclosed amount. The college will lease the north wing of their former facility from the university and will continue to use its chapel in the building's south wing, which it will share with McGill as a multipurpose teaching facility.

The theological college says it can no longer afford to maintain the building. Founded in 1873 and affiliated with McGill since 1880, the college enrolls 35 students studying for the Anglican ministry.

"Anglicans today represent less than one percent of the city's population," said the college's principal, the Rev. John Simons. "And while the church still owns valuable real estate, the question as to how long we can maintain our buildings is one that won't go away."

M.Div. in women's studies

Trustees at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary have approved a master of divinity degree track in women's studies. According to Gary D. Myers, director of public relations for the school, the new program is designed to "help women minister to women and to address the needs and concerns of women from a biblical basis." The 95-hour degree program will include an emphasis on biblical languages, biblical exegesis, and theological and historical reflection, as well as an internship in women's ministry.

Founded in 1917 as the Baptist Bible Institute, the school was the first institution created as a direct act of the Southern Baptist Convention. In addition to the main campus in New Orleans, Louisiana, the school has 16 extension centers in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and Mississippi as well as in other cities of Louisiana, enrolling more than 3,000 full- and part-time students.

The school holds to the "complementarian" view of gender roles. Complementarians believe that women are restricted from holding the teaching office of the church and from spiritual leadership in the home and in marriage.

Changes at the top

Paul Martin (AMERICAN BAPTIST SEMINARY OF THE WEST)

The Rev. Paul Martin has been appointed interim president at the American Baptist Seminary of the West following the retirement of the Rev. Keith Russell.

Dr. Martin is a graduate of Pepperdine University, Samuel DeWitt Proctor School of Theology at Virginia Union University, and the California Graduate School of Theology. He is chaplain for the Colorado senate and for 17 years was senior pastor of Macedonia Baptist Church in Denver.

The American Baptist Seminary of the West, in Berkeley, California, is a charter member of the Graduate Theological Union and is affiliated with the American Baptist Churches USA and the Progressive National Baptist Convention. The school was formed by a 1968 merger of the Berkeley Baptist Divinity School and California Baptist Theological Seminary.

Alice Hunt (CHICAGO THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY)

Chicago Theological Seminary has named the Rev. Alice Hunt as its 12th president. She succeeds Dr. Susan Thistlethwaite, who will return to teaching after 10 years as seminary president. Dr. Hunt is a graduate of Vanderbilt University and is an ordained minister in the National Baptist Convention.

The seminary is planning a 2012 move from its Hyde Park home to a yet-to-be constructed building nearby. The University of Chicago announced that it will purchase the seminary's buildings and renovate them to house the new Milton Friedman Institute, a research center for economics. At the same time, the university will build a new facility for the seminary, leasing it to the seminary for $1 per year.

Founded in 1855, Chicago Theological Seminary is the oldest institution of higher education in Chicago. A seminary of the United Church of Christ, the school enrolls students from more than 20 denominations.

Mark G. Toulouse (VICTORIA UNIVERSITY IN THE UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO)

Mark G. Toulouse has been named principal of Emmanuel College, a founding member of the Toronto School of Theology and the largest theological school in the United Church of Canada.

For 22 years, Dr. Toulouse was professor of American religious history at Brite Divinity School of Texas Christian University, where he also served as dean and executive vice president. He is a graduate of the University of Chicago. An ordained minister of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), he succeeds Peter Wyatt, who is completing seven years as principal of Emmanuel College.

Emmanuel College was founded in 1928, when Union College united with the faculty of theology of Victoria University. It is one of seven federated theological colleges within the Toronto School of Theology.

Dr. Toulouse and his wife, Jeffica, have three children.

Michael Sigman (HUDDLE IMAGES)

The Rev. Michael Sigman has been appointed acting president of Evangelical Theological Seminary in Myerstown, Pennsylvania, following the announcement that President Dennis Hollinger has been selected to lead Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in Massachusetts.

Sigman, a graduate of Evangelical Theological Seminary, is a minister of the Evangelical Congregational Church and has most recently served as vice president of continuing education and executive director of Evangelical's newly established Center for Servant Leadership.

Evangelical Theological Seminary was founded in 1953 under the auspices of the Evangelical Congregational Church. It enrolls more than 200 students from more than 20 denominations.

Dennis Hollinger (GORDON-CONWELL THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY)

Dennis P. Hollinger has been named president of Gordon-
Conwell Theological Seminary, succeeding interim president Haddon W. Robinson, who will continue teaching at the seminary.

Dr. Hollinger has been president of Evangelical Theological Seminary in Myerstown, Pennsylvania since 2004. He is a graduate of Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and Drew University.

Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary was established in 1969 when Gordon Divinity School in Massachusetts merged with the Conwell School of Theology in Philadelphia. Today its main campus is in Massachusetts, with additional campuses in Boston and in North Carolina and Florida. The seminary enrolls more than 2,000 students representing more than 90 denominations.

Dr. Hollinger and his wife, Dr. Mary Anne Hollinger, who is a dean and assistant professor at Messiah College, have two daughters.

Justyn Terry (TRINITY EPISCOPAL SCHOOL FOR MINISTRY)

The Rev. Justyn Terry has been named dean and president of Trinity Episcopal School for Ministry in Ambridge, Pennsylvania, succeeding the Rev. John Rodgers, who left retirement to serve as interim dean and president in 2007-08.

Dr. Terry is an ordained Church of England clergyman. He is a graduate of King's College, London, and has been an associate professor of systematic theology at Trinity School for Ministry since 2005. Previously he was rector of St. Helen's Church in London. Dr. Terry and his wife, Cathy, have two daughters.

Founded by leaders of the evangelical wing of the Episcopal Church in 1976, the school enrolls more than 500 full- and part-time students in residential, extension, and online programs.

Luce Fellows in Theology named

The Association of Theological Schools (ATS) and The Henry Luce Foundation Inc. have named seven scholars from ATS member schools as Henry Luce II Fellows in Theology for 2008-2009.

The new fellows constitute the 15th class of scholars to be appointed since the program's inception. They include Douglas E. Burton-Christie, Loyola Marymount University Department of Theological Studies; Margot E. Fassler, Yale University Divinity School; Carol R. Fontaine, Andover Newton Theological School; Arun Wayne Jones, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary; Demetrios S. Katos, Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology; Elizabeth Newman, Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond; and Allen D. Verhey, Duke University Divinity School.