NBTS President Dr. Gregg Mast announces his retirement
April 29, 2016
NEW BRUNSWICK THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY PRESIDENT GREGG A. MAST TO RETIRE IN JUNE 2017
NEW BRUNSWICK, New Jersey – New Brunswick Theological Seminary (NBTS) today announced that Dr. Gregg A. Mast, President of the Seminary, will retire effective June 2017. Dr. Mast is the 14th President in the Seminary’s 230-year history and has held that position since 2006.
The NBTS Board of Trustees will appoint a Search Committee during the coming months to begin the process of identifying a new president. The Committee will advertise the position, accept resumes and schedule interviews with the goal of recommending a candidate at the April 2017 Board of Trustees meeting. The Seminary expects the selected candidate will assume his or her new role as President Mast retires in June 2017.
“We have been extremely blessed to have Dr. Mast at the helm of New Brunswick Theological Seminary these past 10 years; his vision, leadership and unwavering commitment to further the mission of NBTS has been without equal,” stated The Reverend Michael Bos, Moderator of the NBTS Board of Trustees, President of the Collegiate Church Corporation and Head Pastor of West End Collegiate Church. “While words cannot adequately express the debt of gratitude we owe to Dr. Mast, we will use this time of transition to thank him and bestow upon him all of the appreciation, affection and love he so freely shared with not only Seminary students, staff and faculty, but with the body of Christ around the world.”
Currently, Dr. Mast is shepherding the most ambitious fundraising campaign in the Seminary’s history: the Building A New Future Capital Campaign. During his ten year tenure, Dr. Mast returned the school to financial stability, doubled the size of the Seminary’s endowment and reserves, and guided the construction of a new campus building – debt-free – on the corner of Seminary Place and College Avenue in New Brunswick. In April 2014, the NBTS Board of Trustees unanimously agreed to dedicate the new Seminary Chapel in honor of Dr. Mast. To date, the Seminary has raised more than $7 million of its $8 million capital campaign goal.
Under Dr. Mast’s leadership, New Brunswick Theological Seminary also introduced a new Master of Divinity curriculum as well as new Master of Arts and Doctor of Ministry degree concentrations. In addition, Dr. Mast has also been a staunch proponent of the Anti-Racism Transformation Team which has worked over the past decade to identify ways the seminary has had to confront the lingering place of privilege in its own structures.
“I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to serve the Seminary I fell in love with 42 years ago when I arrived as a student,” expressed Dr. Mast. “My decade of service has helped move NBTS to a much stronger position in terms of its fiscal, staffing and campus stability. It’s humbling to reflect on my time at the Seminary, where I was allowed to share my gifts in a community of faith and learning that has deeply touched my life and so many others around the world.”
Dr. Mast graduated from NBTS in 1976 (M.Div.) and in June of this year will celebrate 40 years as an ordained Minister of Word and Sacrament in the Reformed Church in America (RCA). During that time, he served congregations in Johannesburg, South Africa; Irvington, New Jersey; and Albany, New York. Dr. Mast also served in the RCA as Minister for Social Witness and Worship and as the Director of Ministry Services before returning to New Brunswick Theological Seminary as its President.
The Rev. Bos added that the Board of Trustees is confident there will be a seamless transition between the incoming president and Dr. Mast’s retirement. “Dr. Mast has given us a great new foundation on which to grow. We look to the next chapter of New Brunswick Theological Seminary with great anticipation!”
About New Brunswick Theological Seminary
Founded in 1784, NBTS is the oldest independent Protestant seminary in the United States. It is one of two seminaries affiliated with the Reformed Church in America (RCA), and offers an exceptional seminary education, a flexible academic schedule, and a spiritually rich community for students of many Christian denominations and backgrounds. The Seminary offers Master of Divinity (M.Div.), Master of Arts (M.A.) and Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.) degrees, as well as Professional Certificates to enhance the work and training of special ministers, church officers, and other Christian leaders. The seminary is located in New Brunswick, NJ, and operates a satellite campus at St. John’s University in Queens, NY. To learn more about New Brunswick Theological Seminary, please visit nbts.edu.