NW Valley Times

College of Theology Assistant Dean Dr. Paul Smith shared his college's successes at the Association of Theological Schools' biennial meeting in Atlanta. Photos by Ralph Freso

College of Theology Dean Dr. Jason Hiles and Assistant Dean Dr. Paul Smith represented Grand Canyon University’s seminary at the biennial meeting of the Association of Theological Schools in Atlanta.

What was originally a fact-finding mission became a mini showcase for Grand Canyon Theological Seminary.

“Because we’re embedded in one of the flagship Christian universities in North America, there was interest in seeing and hearing how we relate with the larger university,” Smith said.

The theme of the two-day meeting in June, which was also the biennial meeting for the association's Commission on Accrediting, was “Rooted in Hope, Thriving in Change: Navigating Transitions in Theological Education.”

With the college up for accreditation renewal in 2025, the College of Theology's leaders thought it was important to be represented at the event.

College of Theology Assistant Dean Paul Smith lent insight at the ATS meeting in Atlanta last month. Administrators from other universities approached Hiles and Smith to ask about the college and its seminary, indicating GCU's presence. They heard comments such as, “Wow, you guys have grown a lot in a small amount of time” and “What are some of the best practices you’re doing?”

“At a breakfast I was at, they were really interested in hearing how we handled faculty load,” Smith said. “Because the way they were doing things, they were running into some problems. And so there was just a discussion at the table. And I had mentioned how we did it, and there was lots of interest expressed in that, and they asked quite a few follow-up questions of that sort... Everyone at that table said something like, ‘The way you did it, we never would have considered doing it that way.’"

Smith also participated in discussions about standards required for the master of divinity degree and made suggestions for those standards.

“That gives us a voice so that we're not just passive, that someone else's doing something without our input,” Smith said. “But we actually have a voice in helping to shape what's going on and that (our input) won't just be binding for us but be for wider theological education as a whole.”

At the same time, Hiles and Smith looked for ways to improve their college during uncertain times.

“I went to a breakout session on strategic planning, learning some of the best practices on how we can plan for the future when we don't know (what it will be),” Smith said. “We’re not prophets.”

Smith shared some practices GCU implemented while also learning from officials from other schools about processes they could adopt.

Of approximately 200 schools accredited by Association of Theological Schools, Smith estimated up to 150 were represented.

GCU News Senior Writer Mark Gonzales can be reached at [email protected]

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