(ST. PAUL, MINN., July 7, 2022) – As an educational institution that has long championed social justice, United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities is proud to announce the creation of a new position, Director of Anti-Racist Initiatives, which is held by Rev. Dr. Gary Green II. The Assistant Professor of Pastoral Theology and Social Transformation at United, Green is pleased to accept the additional responsibility starting July 1.
“I am excited for this opportunity to lead United’s anti-racist efforts, aligning institutional action with what has been a longstanding ethos and aspiration,” asserts Green. “I look forward to deepening relationships within the United community, with community partners, and with the public to live into a reality where white supremacy is continually rendered a thing of the past.”
As director of the Anti-Racist Initiatives, Green will work with and support United’s BIPOC students, consult with United’s leadership about cultivating an anti-racist ethos throughout the seminary and beyond, collaborate with and advise faculty, and serve as the perpetual chair of the seminary’s Committee Advocating for Racial Justice (CARJ). He will also continue to develop and expand his series, Disrupting White Supremacy, for United and the public.
“We need institutional leadership and investment to provide strategic direction for progressing policies and practices related to anti-racism,” observes United Dean Kyle Roberts. “These initiatives, under Dr. Green’s leadership, will bring together the many places within United where this work is already being done and bring systemic coherence and synergy to our efforts.”
Roberts adds: “We are looking forward to conversations, facilitated by and in collaboration with Dr. Green in this new role, about any systemic revisions we can and should make to our curriculum to develop ‘through lines’ of education for transformation around anti-racism, a theology and ethic that disrupts white supremacy and colonialism in its many forms, and a curriculum that demonstrates sustained attention to diverse voices and perspectives.”
Green’s new role, in tandem with the creation of an endowed faculty chair in world religions and intercultural studies and the recently launched Leadership Center for Social Justice, explains Roberts, “underscores United’s commitment to interreligious engagement and diversity. Ministers, spiritual leaders, and social justice activists today need interreligious and intercultural literacy as much as they need literacy, theological grounding, and skills around racial justice and other forms of justice-seeking.”
###
About United
Founded as a welcoming, ecumenical school that embraces all denominations and faith traditions, United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities has been on the cutting edge of progressive theological thought leadership since it was established in 1962. Today, United continues to train leaders who dismantle systems of oppression, explore multifaith spirituality, and push the boundaries of knowledge.
