Southwestern receives Lilly Endowment grant

Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary has been named a recipient of a grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. through its Pathways for Tomorrow Initiative. The $871,074 grant will be used over the next five years.

“Southwestern Seminary is deeply grateful to Lilly Endowment for this generous expression of support to strengthen our efforts to resource pastoral ministry in the Southwest,” Southwestern President David S. Dockery said. “I know that our faculty and academic leaders, who worked so hard on this grant application, will offer outstanding oversight for this project as they steward faithfully these resources.”

The Pathways intiaitive, which aims to help theological schools in their efforts to support and prepare pastoral leaders, launched in 2021. This year, Lilly Endowment approved grants of up to $1 million each to support efforts at 58 theological schools.

“Theological schools have long played a central role for most denominations and church networks in preparing and supporting pastoral leaders who guide congregations,” said Christopher L. Coble, Lilly Endowment’s vice president for religion. “These schools are paying close attention to the challenges churches are facing  today and will face in the foreseeable future. The grants will help these schools engage in wide-ranging, innovative efforts to adapt their educational programs and build their financial capacities so they can better prepare pastors and lay ministers to effectively lead the congregations they will serve in the future.”

Provost Madison Grace said he and Southwestern leadership are “pleased to receive this grant as it provides greater support to Southwestern’s work on equipping and training pastors to engage in local church ministry. Through this funding we will be able to develop more avenues for students as well as increase our partnerships with Southern Baptist Churches.”

Chandler Snyder, vice president for institutional relations, said Southwestern had previously receive a $50,000 planning grant from Lilly Endowment that was used to conduct an assessment process, which included surveys and meetings with Southwestern alumni in pastoral roles around Texas. Those regional meetings gave Southwestern an opportunity to hear from pastors directly about their continuing needs.

The findings led to a long-term strategy that will help the seminary prepare and support pastors through continued education in a certificate program, which will uniquely stack within the Master of Divinity curriculum. Also, the strategy will guide seminary efforts to provide pastoral engagement as it remains available to alumni in need of support.

“When we prayerfully built this grant proposal, it was with the eye of leading and helping Southwesterners and others flourish where God has called them in their place of service,” Snyder said. “And through the survey findings, we found that they need continued support. In addition to their local body, they need connection that will continue to develop their abilities and capacity. We need to continue to provide to them, in addition to the brotherhood of the Southern Baptist Convention, a partnership of Southwesterners who are helping to equip them in their field of service, and that’s what’s led us to this.”

In addition to the curricular change through the certificate program, the second goal of the proposal includes building a pastoral support network that would encourage alumni engagement through listening sessions and annual mentoring gatherings.

Southwestern will use funds from the grant to renovate a recording studio that will be used to produce digital learning content.

Snyder said Southwestern is grateful for the grant, promising “we’re going to steward it well and we’re going to report well on it. The grant is truly in service of Southwesterners and their churches and their communities.”