• Women of Color Scholars’ Series: Lee Works for Trauma-Informed Pastoral Counseling
    Published On: September 25, 2020

    By Jessica Love Hee Jin Lee Growing up in Seoul, South Korea, Hee Jin Lee’s love for music drew her to the church. “I loved music and singing songs,” she said. “I was raised in a non-Christian family, and one of my friends asked, ‘Hee Jin, do you want to...

  • Women of Color Scholars’ Series: Sun-Ah Kang Breaks Gendered Barriers in Theology
    Published On: September 18, 2020

    By Jessica Love Sun-Ah Kang South Korea native Sun-Ah Kang vividly remembers the moment God called her to be a champion for women in ministry. “When I was in high school, I went to this retreat and the guest speaker was a male, very old, retired pastor,” Kang recounted. “He...

  • Women of Color Scholars’ Series: Kang Finds God’s Love in the ‘Layers’
    Published On: September 11, 2020

    By Jessica Love Hayoung Kang The daughter of a single mother with breast cancer, Hayoung Kang’s own traumatic experiences inspired her call to ministry. Now, as an Angella P. Current-Felder Women of Color (WOC) Scholar, she is empowered to create political theology and philosophy to help others navigate trauma. The...

  • Women of Color Scholars’ Series: Bonilla Closes Gaps in Seminary Education
    Published On: September 4, 2020

    By Jessica Love Rev. Patricia Bonilla Rev. Patricia Bonilla learned at an early age how important it is to see color and acknowledge differences. “In high school, I was one of two Mexican students in my whole grade,” she said. Now Bonilla, who is an ordained deacon in the Northern...

  • Women of Color Scholars’ Series: Dellinger ‘Writes the Book She Wants to See’
    Published On: August 28, 2020

    By Jessica Love Dr. Lisa Dellinger Dr. Lisa Dellinger recently earned her Ph.D. in theology, history and ethics from Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston, Illinois, making her the 49th graduate of the Angella P. Current-Felder Women of Color Scholars program. Dellinger, who is working toward ordination as a United Methodist...

  • #ColortheConversation Campaign Makes Space for Dialogue
    Published On: August 20, 2020

    On August 20, 2020, the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry (GBHEM) began #ColortheConversation as a new discussion and listening campaign to address racism in higher education and ministry. The campaign will elevate and center the voices and experiences of people of color in our agency and affiliated institutions....

  • GBHEM: Our Road Reimagined
    Published On: August 12, 2020

    Today, the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry (GBHEM) launches a new guiding structure for its long-held mission of preparing leaders for the Church, the academy and the world. “Our Road Reimagined” is the result of a months-long process to survey and remodel the agency. This effort included a...

  • ‘Connecting people to opportunities’: Rust College’s first woman president
    Published On: August 7, 2020

    By Jessica Love Dr. Ivy Taylor, President of Rust College Former mayor of San Antonio, Texas Dr. Ivy Taylor, was recently elected as Rust College’s first woman president. She is the 12th president in the college’s 154-year history. Rust College, founded in 1866 in Holly Spring, Mississippi, is the oldest...

  • Current-Felder Recognized as Longtime Advocate for Women of Color Scholars
    Published On: June 22, 2020

    Current-Felder retired from GBHEM in 2010. When the United Methodist Black Clergywomen’s Caucus met for the first time in 1987, there were almost no women of color to represent their voices in religious higher education. Dr. Angella P. Current-Felder, then the executive director of the Office of Loans and Scholarships...

  • In Memoriam: Dr. Yed Esaïe Angoran
    Published On: June 16, 2020

    Dr. Yed Angoran at GBHEM. Photo by Kimberly Lord. The General Board of Higher Education and Ministry (GBHEM) mourns the loss of its dedicated friend and colleague, Dr. Yed Esaïe Angoran. He passed away on Saturday, June 13 in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. “Dr. Angoran has had an immense presence and...