The Atlanta-based Turner Theological Seminary is forging a new path as an independent institution apart from the Interdenominational Theological Center.
President Ammie L. Davis said Turner is currently seeking accreditation as a stand-alone institution. The seminary is affiliated with the African Methodist Episcopal Church and one of four nationwide supported by the denomination, she said.
It has a long history of preparing students for the field of ministry or to work with community- and faith-based institutions.
Turner Theological Seminary, which began in 1894 as a department within Morris Brown College, became a seminary in 1900. It became one of the charter schools in the ITC consortium in 1958, according to the Turner website and Davis.
Turner Theological Seminary has just 12 students enrolled for the fall semester, said Davis, who is a graduate of ITC. She said with the changes the school plans to make, that number could reach 150 students by the end of 2029. The largest enrollment in the last 65 years has been 90 students.
She described Turner’s relationship with ITC as great, but said after ITC declared a financial crisis in 2023, the thinking among Turner administrators and its board changed. She said the question was “What If this goes downhill because of the financial exigency? Are we able to protect the institution?”
Those concerns set in motion steps to become independent, Davis said.
ITC said in a press release last year that the pandemic had exacerbated other long-standing challenges such as building maintenance, preexisting debt, decreasing enrollment, reduced revenue and increased expenses.
A spokeswoman for ITC did not respond to calls and emails from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution seeking comment for this report.
Davis told the AJC, “We’re starting over at 130 (years). The first 65 years was with Morris Brown. And over 60 (years) have been with ITC. We’re creating history by not depending on another institution for our accreditation,” she said.
Davis, the first female president of Turner and a retired Navy chaplain, is a former student of the Rev, Maisha I.K. Handy, who was named interim president of ITC last year. She praised Handy for taking the helm of the institution and launching an aggressive fundraising campaign.
Bishop Reginald T. Jackson, presiding prelate of the 6th Episcopal District of Georgia, said Turner has the structure in place to gain accreditation “and will have a strong means of financial support. I think those are the two main things.”
Recently, ITC announced Handy’s resignation from the consortium, effective Aug. 30. She will become the first Black president of McCormick Theological Seminary in Chicago.
“While we are deeply saddened at her departure, we are excited for the opportunity that lies ahead for Dr. Handy,” said Calvin Booker, chairman of ITC’s board said in a news release announcing her departure posted on the institution’s website earlier this month. “Dr. Handy’s achievements during a 10-month period as interim president have been remarkable and she is commended across ITC’s community and beyond for bringing a collaborative leadership style, a positive work environment, and excellent relations with ITC’s constituents.”
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