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| Motto | "Abundant Pathways. Intersecting Perspectives. Transformative Impact." |
|---|---|
| Type | Private |
| Established | 1962; 64 years ago (1962) |
Religious affiliation | Ecumenical and Multireligious |
Academic affiliation | Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada |
| Endowment | $48.7 million (2020)[1] |
| Chairman | William Glenn |
| President | Uriah Y. Kim |
| Dean | Christopher Ocker |
Academic staff | 8[2] |
| Students | 245[2] |
| Location | ,, U.S. 37°52′32″N122°15′43″W / 37.875524°N 122.262079°W /37.875524; -122.262079 |
| Website | www |
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TheGraduate Theological Union (GTU) is a consortium of eight private independent Americantheological schools and eleven centers and affiliates. All the GTU members are located inBerkeley, California.
Founded in 1962, GTU and its member schools offers masters and doctoral degree programs in philosophy, theology and other subjects. Certificate programs are also available. GTU students are also able to take courses at theUniversity of California, Berkeley (USB).
Although it was founded by several Protestant schools, the GTU now has two Catholic schools as members and has academic centers forJudaism, Islam,Hinduism and other eastern religions.
The following schools and institutions are members of GTU
During the late 19th century and early 20th century, several Christian denominations opened seminaries inNorthern California to prepare ministers and priests to serve the rapidly expanding population in the region. These were all independent institutions. After the establishment of the University of California Berkeley (USB) in 1868, several of these seminaries relocated near the university.[10] They formed cooperative agreements with USB to provide more educational choices for their students.
In the mid 20th century, the ecumenical movement prompted discussions among the seminaries affiliated with Berkeley to begin sharing resources. They decided to establish a cooperative graduate study program that would lead students to a master's degree in theology.[11]
In 1962, six Protestant seminaries established the Graduate Theological Union (GTU) in Berkeley. They included the Berkeley Baptist Divinity School (now BST), CDSP, PLTS, SFTS and the Golden Gate Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.[11]
The GTU expanded in 1964 with the addition of PSR, St. Albert's College (now DSTP) and theStarr King School for the Ministry. GTU began its first effort to share facilities with the creation of the Bibliographical Center to consolidate library administration and manage the different library collections. In 1966, Alma College relocated to Berkeley and was renamed theJesuit School of Theology at Berkeley, which also joined the GTU. The Franciscan School of Theology (FST) joined GTU in 1968. That same year, GTU opened the Center for Judaic Studies (CJS) to promote exchanges between Christian and Jewish scholars. This was its first expansion into non-Christian faiths.[11]During the 1960's, GTU expanded its graduate degree offerings, establishingDoctor of Philosophy and Master of Arts degrees. Members providedMaster of Divinity, Master of Theological Studies, andDoctor of Ministry degrees.[11]
In 1969, GTU established its Common Library in the basement of the Church Divinity School of the Pacific, merging all the member libraries into one location.[12]By 1971, the GTU was fully accredited by theAssociation of Theological Schools. In 1979, GTU began construction the first phase of construction of a new building to house the GTU Common Library. Phase I was completed in 1981. Volunteers and staff moved 300,000 books into the partially completed building.[12]
GTU in 1985 began the long-planned phase II of the new library building. It was completed in 1987 and named theFlora Lamson Hewlett Library in honor of theHewlett Foundation.[12] In 2007, GTU opened the Center for Islamic Studies (CIS) to allow students and scholars exposure to Islamic traditions[13]
In 2013, the FST merged with theUniversity of San Diego, leaving GTU to relocate toOceanside, California. TheStarr King School left the GTU in 2020. According to its administrators, few of its students were taking GTU courses and the school believed that the annual GTU fee of $310,000 was excessive.[14]
The dean of the GTU is the chief academic officer for the GTU. The dean also chairs the council of deans, which is composed of the academic deans of the member schools. Traditionally, deans have held the John Dillenberger Professorship in their general field of specialization. For example, Margaret Miles held the professorship inhistorical theology while Arthur Holder held it inChristian spirituality. The current GTU president,Uriah Y. Kim, is the John Dillenberger Professor of Biblical Studies.
The GTU offers theDoctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree and theMaster of Arts (MA) degree in cooperation with its member seminaries. GTU consortial seminaries variously offerTh.M.,M.Div., Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.), S.T.B., S.T.L., and S.T.D. degrees. The GTU also offers non-degree certificates in InterreligiousChaplaincy andInterreligious Studies. Doctoral students are encouraged not only to take advantage of the academic resources available to them at USB but are also required to include a non-GTU scholar in their exams or dissertation committees. GTU students have collaborated with UCB faculty members in the anthropology, critical theory, ethnic studies, history, philosophy and sociology departments.
Allmatriculating students at GTU may take any USB classes. They also have borrowing privileges at the USB andStanford University libraries. Only doctoral students have unrestricted access to registering for UCB classes (subject to approval of course instructors). Cross-registration opportunities are also available at theDominican University of California in San Rafael, California,Holy Names University in Oakland, California., andMills College in Oakland. Additionally, students can participate in international exchange programs.[26]
The GTU has four doctoral departments, with more than 30 concentrations:
The GTU's in-house academic journal is theBerkeley Journal of Religion and Theology.[27] The journal is managed by current doctoral students, although peer-reviewers include members of the consortial doctoral faculty. All issues are available free online.
Although the GTU consortium occupies many buildings throughout the Bay Area, GTU owns only three buildings. One of them is theFlora Lamson Hewlett Library, one of the largest theological libraries in the world, with around 529,000 volumes.[28]
Most of the GTU consortial schools are located in the Berkeley area with the majority north of the campus in a neighborhood known as "Holy Hill" due to the cluster of GTU seminaries and centers located there
The GTU draws its consortial faculty from its constituent seminaries and centers. Although faculty members are employed at their respective seminaries and centers, they commit to supervising doctoral and masters students, as well as occasionally teaching advanced GTU-wide courses.
Former faculty members includeNaomi Seidman,Daniel C. Matt,David Alexander,John Dillenberger, andRoy I. Sano.[45]
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