SEBTS trustees affirm doctrinal statements, new president's direction

By Tony W. Cartledge and Steve DeVane

BR Staff

WAKE FOREST - Southeastern Seminary trustees endorsed or affirmed several initiatives of new president Danny Akin, including curriculum changes, higher fees, changes in faculty policies, and affirmation of two doctrinal statements. The trustees met on the Southeastern campus April 19-20.

Akin made it clear that he had hit the ground running after his arrival in January as he reported on his first 100 days in office. He said former president Paige Patterson had "laid a great foundation" and had the school heading "in the right direction." Akin said his goal is to "take it to the next level."

Akin noted that the seminary catalog has for several years included the "Chicago Statement on Inerrancy" and the "Danvers Statement" produced by the "Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood," which is associated with Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. But, he said, the trustees had not previously "had the opportunity" of affirming the statements.

The Chicago statement, issued by a "summit" of conservative evangelical scholars in 1978, consists of 19 articles containing affirmations and denials promoting a belief that the Bible is inerrant. The SEBTS catalog also includes a companion statement on hermeneutics that was issued by a follow-up meeting in 1982. That statement consists of 25 articles affirming a literal interpretation of the Bible, describing what the writers consider to be acceptable limits of biblical interpretation.

The Danvers Statement was issued following a meeting of the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood in Danvers, Mass., in 1987. It contains 10 affirmations based on the belief that God has ordained "the principle of male headship in the family and in the covenant community."

Coy Privette, a trustee from Kannapolis, N.C. moved that the trustees affirm the statements, and the motion passed without opposition.

Akin recited a series of curriculum-related initiatives he has already begun, including a partnership with the Olford Institute to bolster course offerings in expository preaching, development of distance learning opportunities via the Internet, a 48-hour Master of Arts in Christian Education program for laity, and an upgrading of the school's seven extension centers to enable them to offer two-thirds of the courses necessary for a degree.

Akin said he is revising the Master of Divinity (M.Div.) program to have a "true and honest" requirement of 90 hours. The school currently requires six hours of "baby Greek" and other prerequisites for which students received no credit toward their degrees, so that some students have been completing more than 100 hours of course work for a 90-hour degree, he said.

Keeping the M.Div. requirements at 90 hours would make it easier for more students to remain an additional year to pursue a new 24-hour Master of Theological Studies (Th.M.) degree, he said.

Trustees later approved the "non-thesis" Th.M. degree. School officials said the program will help increase the amount of Southeastern's full-time equivalent (FTE) students. Some seminary funding from the Southern Baptist Convention is based on FTEs.

Akin said he wants to grow the Doctor of Ministry program from its current 60-70 students to 250 students, with focused tracks in expository preaching, missions and evangelism, worship leadership, and biblical counseling. These would make the program appealing to other evangelicals besides Southern Baptists, he said.

Akin announced that he has reached reciprocal agreements with three colleges to allow children of their faculty to attend SEBTS tuition free, while children of SEBTS faculty can receive a 50 percent discount at the colleges, which charge higher tuition rates. The participating colleges are Union University in Jackson, Tenn., North Greenville College in Greenville, S.C., and Baptist College of Florida in Graceville, Fla.

A school policy that has prevented SEBTS faculty from holding permanent staff positions in local churches is a "bad policy," Akin said, noting that some faculty members have served as "permanent interims" to get around the policy. "'Permanent interim' is an oxymoron," he said. Faculty member should be allowed to accept permanent part-time ministry positions, he said, as long their work for SEBTS is not negatively affected.

Such a policy would help the professors by increasing their income, help the churches by allowing faculty members to share their ministry gifts, help students who could see their professors in action, and help keep the faculty in touch with the local church, Akin said. Akin said the president has authority to make the polity change, and reported it as a matter of information.

Akin thanked the trustees for their record of granting annual salary increases to the faculty, and said he hopes the practice will continue.

The seminary did not lose any faculty members due to the transition between presidents, Akin said. "The vultures were out for a while," he said, but all professors had remained on board.

In other matters, the trustees voted to re-elect the same slate of officers that are currently serving, and adopted a resolution of appreciation to Bart Neal, vice-president for institutional advancement, for his service as interim president.

Trustees approved higher fees and tuition payments in adopting a $18.42 million budget for 2004-2005, a 2.58 percent increase of the previous year's budget of 17.95 million.

The budget includes a 2 percent increase in salaries and a 15 percent increase in health care costs.

The new budget also calls for an increase in expenditures for the seminary's public relations office, which Akins said "is not nearly where it should be."

The largest tuition hike is for the undergraduate program, which jumps more than 20 percent from $145 per hour to $175 per hour. Seminary officials said the increase will be offset for most students by a state grant of $1,800 per year which undergraduate students from North Carolina can now receive.

The trustees met for 50 minutes in closed session to interview, discuss and elect four faculty members. Brad Reynolds, Russell Woodbridge, Scott Kellum and Bruce Ashford, who all teach undergraduate courses, had been appointed by former president Paige Patterson.

Trustees changed their fall meeting till Oct. 25-26 so they will be able to attend Akin's inauguration Oct. 27. Patterson is scheduled to speak.

During chapel after the trustee meeting April 20, Akin honored Russ Bush for his 15 years of service to the school. Akin said Bush came to Southeastern when the faculty voted almost unanimously not to welcome him.

"What Southeastern is today is in many ways a reflection of who you are and what you've done," Akin told Bush.