Board of Trustees of the Episcopal Divinity School Resolution in Recognition and Appreciation of the Distinguished Service of Dean Kelly Brown Douglas
Unanimously approved by the Board of Trustees of Episcopal Divinity School:
WHEREAS, the Very Rev. Dr. Kelly Brown Douglas was named the inaugural Dean of the Episcopal Divinity School at Union (EDS at Union) in 2017, and will retire as Dean of the Episcopal Divinity School at Union and as the Bill and Judith Moyers Chair in Theology at Union Theological Seminary in New York City at the conclusion of the 2022-2023 academic year;
WHEREAS, Dean Douglas is a visionary and dynamic leader in and beyond The Episcopal Church, serving as a celebrated author, professor, and well-respected speaker in today’s print, broadcast, and virtual public square, speaking on racial and social justice, and other pressing theological matters, as well as serving as Canon Theologian at the Washington National Cathedral and Theologian in Residence at Trinity Church Wall Street;
WHEREAS, in collaboration with her colleagues, Dean Douglas is committed to fostering transformative and rigorous theological education as well as creating a diverse curriculum to help prepare students to meet the evolving and growing needs around the Church and local communities to address racial justice and reconciliation and other social justice issues;
WHEREAS, during Dean Douglas’s tenure, EDS at Union’s database contacts have grown by more than 300%, its social media has tripled, and Annual Fund donations and grant funds have significantly increased; moreover, in Fall 2021-Spring 2022, EDS at Union’s Master of Divinity (M.Div.) and Master of Sacred Theology (STM) programming reached 20 full-time students and 63 lifelong learners through its Anglicanism and Social Justice Pilot Program (ASJ), and in January 2022, all three EDS at Union students passed all six areas of the General Ordination Exams.
WHEREAS, under Dean Douglas’s leadership, EDS at Union has created a space for Episcopal and other faith leaders to respond to social justice issues within their local contexts and around the world; and,
WHEREAS, this innovative and important work is evidenced by the development of the Anglicanism and Social Justice Pilot Program (ASJ), a collaboration with the Episcopal Dioceses of Michigan and Bethlehem, that has brought together clergy and lay leaders to participate in critical study, conversation, and reflection around issues related to faith, racial justice, and reconciliation, which in its inaugural year in 2021-2022 welcomed 63 participants from across The Episcopal Church.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED: That the Board of Trustees of Episcopal Divinity School expresses appreciation for the exceptional and distinguished service of the Very Rev. Dr. Kelly Brown Douglas as the inaugural Dean of EDS at Union;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED: That the Board of Trustees of Episcopal Divinity School extends deep gratitude to Dean Kelly Brown Douglas for her scholarship, expertise, life-long passion, extraordinary leadership, faithful service, and generous contributions to advancing the quality of theological education at EDS at Union; and,
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED: That a copy of this Board Resolution be spread upon the minutes of the Board of Trustees of the Episcopal Divinity School and presented to Dean Douglas as a token of respect, recognition, and deep gratitude.