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Phillips Theological Seminary invites applications from and nominations of visionary and strategic leaders prepared to serve as their next President.

Phillips Theological Seminary is a graduate seminary, affiliated with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), dedicated to learning the way of Jesus in order to cultivate vital congregations, communities, conversations, and the public good. At its core, Phillips is a community of teachers and learners seeking to be faithful to God through disciplined, reasoned and reflective study of the biblical witnesses, religious tradition, and human experience.

The seminary’s primary purpose is to serve the church’s need for educated leaders – ordained and lay. Located in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Phillips offers an uncommon brand of progressive theological education in this region of the country – welcoming all who seek to explore the way of Jesus. Phillips has 25 trustees, 110 current students seeking graduate credit, 42 students who have recently taken courses for personal enrichment, approximately 1,700 living alumni, about 800 individuals and congregations that donate annually, and a dedicated faculty (full-time, affiliate, and adjunct) and staff. The seminary is committed to diversity, interculturality, and justice with attention to the social realities of race, class, ethnicity, gender, and queer expressions of the human experience. Attending to its social location, Phillips seeks to educate and prepare persons to be bearers of the way of Jesus in today’s culture.

Phillips Theological Seminary is accredited by the Commission on Accrediting of the Association of Theological Schools (ATS) in the United States and Canada. The ATS is Phillips’s gatekeeper with the U.S. Department of Education. Phillips is also accredited to offer a Comprehensive Distance Education Program and is in the process of accreditation with the Higher Learning Commission (HLC).

As the chief executive officer of the seminary, the President will be responsible for ensuring that the institution has the plans, personnel, culture, material assets, systems, and relationships necessary to fulfill its mission and to achieve the excellence for which Phillips strives. The President will exercise strategic and visionary leadership for the seminary while ensuring its continuing spiritual, academic, fiscal, and operational effectiveness.

The ideal candidate who will serve as the seminary’s next President possesses:

• The ability to work with a diverse community including the board, faculty, staff, students, alumni, and donors.
• A commitment to the ministry of the local and global church.
• Demonstrated administrative and financial acumen.
• Demonstrated abilities in oral and written communications with employees and students of the seminary and external constituencies.
• Demonstrated abilities in nonprofit fundraising.
• Strong capacity to work with people of diverse backgrounds, races and ethnicities, sexual orientations, educational experiences, and socioeconomic statuses.
• Strong interpersonal, oral, and written communication skills.
• Excellent people and leadership skills.
• Knowledge of theological education and emerging issues affecting and driving change within the churches and denominations today and the synergy between the two.

Experience working with and maximizing the contributions of a governing board.

Required Education and Experience

• An earned doctorate with teaching or administrative experience in a higher education setting sufficient to warrant the respect and confidence of the academic community or a compelling alternative background and experience.
• Full participation in a church affiliated with a mainline denomination, i.e., the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), the United Church of Christ, the United Methodist Church, etc.

Preferred Experience

• Experience as a pastor or theological leader in churches affiliated with Phillips, including the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), the United Methodist Church, and other denominations that have presence in the faculty or student body.
• Demonstrated desire and willingness to create external relationships and partnerships and cultivate new and steward existing supporters to advance Phillips.

More information, including an institutional profile with a full list of responsibilities, can be found at the link above.

How to Apply

Applications should consist of a substantial letter of interest, a curriculum vitae, and a list of five professional references with full contact information. No references will be contacted without the explicit permission of the candidate. Applications, nominations, and expressions of interest can be submitted electronically, and in confidence, to:

PhillipsPresident@academicsearch.org

The position is open until filled but only applications received by Thursday, September 19, 2024, can be assured full consideration. The Seminary is being assisted by Academic Search. Confidential discussions about this opportunity may be arranged by contacting consultants Ann Hasselmo at Ann.Hasselmo@academicsearch.org and Chris Butler at Chris.Butler@academicsearch.org. Further information about Phillips Theological Seminary is available at https://ptstulsa.edu/.

Phillips is an ecumenical seminary of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). We are approved by the University Senate of the United Methodist Church. Phillips Theological Seminary is an equal employment opportunity employer who complies with all federal, state, and local equal employment opportunity laws, including Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Seminary does not discriminate against employees or applicants base on race, color, national or ethnic origin, alienage and citizenship status, marital status, age, sex, gender (including gender identity and expression), sexual orientation, genetic information, pregnancy, disability, military status, or religion. The Seminary’s commitment to equal opportunity extends to all aspects of the employment relationship, including hiring, promotions, training, working conditions, compensation, and benefits.