Campbell’s retirement comes at a time of transition in leadership for a number of the seminaries of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), with several seminaries either having a relatively new president or being in the process of making such a change. They include San Francisco Theological Seminary, where Laird Stuart has been named interim president, and Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary, where Dean Thompson will retire as president this summer.
Having led McCormick since 1995, Campbell has been its ninth president and is currently the longest-serving seminary president at any of the 10 Presbyterian seminaries. She also was the first woman to be named a president of a PC(USA) seminary. (Until she stepped down in June 2009, Barbara Wheeler led Auburn Theological Seminary in New York City, a PC(USA)-related seminary, for 30 years.)
Campbell informed the seminary’s Board of Trustees of her plans at the board’s May meeting. She also said that, in the time remaining in her tenure, she wants to work to support programs at the seminary developed to meet new leadership needs, including, for example, certificate programs in executive leadership and in environmental ministry, and programs in discipleship development, and urban ministry.
A PC(USA) minister, Campbell earned her master of divinity degree from Harvard University and a doctorate from Southern Methodist University. She has served on a series of denominational committees and task forces, including the Special Committee of Fifteen, which prepared the text of the Brief Statement of Faith the denomination adopted 20 years ago.
The McCormick trustees will begin a search process this summer for a new president. Campbell has said she will retire no later than Dec. 31, 2011.
