Trustees approve fund-raising campaign goals

by Jason Hall

The trustees of Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary today unanimously approved plans for the second phase of the school’s decade-long fund-raising campaign, with a stated goal of $17 million.

Projects to be funded through the campaign include renovations to the school’s library, scholarships for undergraduate students, endowed faculty chairs, and the school’s Lewis A. Drummond Center for Great Commission Studies, among others.

In other action, trustees approved a $21.3 million budget and elected three new members of Southeastern’s faculty.

School administrators, who have been working on plans in the so-called “silent phase” of the capital campaign for years, were pleased to have such enthusiastic approval from the board.

“Fundamentally, this campaign is not about money,” said Daniel Akin, Southeastern president. “It is about fulfilling the Great Commission by equipping students to serve the church and spread the fame of the Lord Jesus Christ by every Christ-honoring means possible. We never tire of dreaming about the advance of the gospel. We need and pray for godly men and women to catch this vision and support us generously in this endeavor.”

Dennis Darville, vice president for institutional advancement, said the board’s approval was an endorsement of more than just a dollar amount, but was an endorsement of Akin and the faculty’s vision to make sure every Southeastern classroom is a Great Commission classroom.

“The outcome of this campaign will be that Southeastern is better equipped to train up godly pastors, missionaries and Christian leaders across all of our degree programs,” he said. “It is humbling to see how God is working here and how he is raising up students to accomplish his will. This campaign exists to serve the greater goal of the Great Commission.”

The theme for this phase of the campaign will be “Fulfilling the Great Commission,” which is reflective of the school’s mission statement.

The first phase of the school’s overarching fund-raising campaign was approved in 2002, and Southeastern exceeded its stated goal by raising $17 million in that phase. The most visible fruit of that labor – the seminary’s flagship academic building, Paige and Dorothy Patterson Hall – will be dedicated in October.

Southeastern vice president emeritus Bart Neal, the architect of the first phase of the campaign, has assisted Southeastern as a consultant in launching phase two. Thanks to the generosity of longtime donors, Southeastern has already quietly raised $10 million toward its phase two goal.

“Southeastern is doing it right,” said Ronald Cherry, chairman of the Board of Trustees. “Their mission is God’s mission. Their passion is God’s passion. There has never been a better time to support Southeastern than now.”

Perhaps the biggest impact of the campaign will be felt in the area of Southeastern’s academic resources. Of the overall goal, over $7 million is devoted either to faculty endowments, library renovation or scholarships. Another large priority, the Drummond Center, will be used to endow mission trip scholarships and offset programming and operating costs for Southeastern’s efforts to spread the Gospel around the world through international church planting.

The approval of a $21.3 million operating budget represents a slight increase of 0.63% over the current budget. Akin said that administrators worked hard to cut costs so that tuition increases could be kept to a minimum and students would not be affected. Given the difficult circumstances in the overall economy, Akin said they did a good job.

“That we even increased the budget at all is a sign of God’s goodness,” he said.

Further, trustees elected three new faculty members: Steven Wade, assistant professor of pastoral theology; Greg Heisler, associate professor of preaching and speech; Tracy McKenzie, associate professor of biblical studies.