Meet the new Alumni Board President: Alisha Lola Jones

By Elizabeth Ekman ’23 M.Div.

Alisha Lola Jones ’07 M.Div., Assistant Professor of Folklore and Ethnomusicology at Indiana University, is the newly elected President of the YDS Alumni Board. Dr. Jones completed the certificate program of the Institute of Sacred Music during her time at YDS. In addition to her divinity degree, she has a B.A. from Oberlin Conservatory and a Ph.D. in Ethnomusicology from the University of Chicago. Jones is the author of the recent book Flaming? The Peculiar Theopolitics of Fire and Desire in Black Male Gospel Performance (Oxford University Press).

Following two years as the Board’s Vice President, Dr. Jones succeeds the Rev. Kaji Douša ’06 M.Div., Senior Pastor of Park Avenue Christian Church in New York, as President.

“I would like to thank Kaji Douša for her dedicated work as President of the Alumni Board and for her continuous support of her alma mater,” Dean Greg Sterling said. “It is a joy to greet Alisha Lola Jones as her successor. Like Rev. Douša, Dr. Jones was connected with the ISM as a student, and she has made the most of this in her academic career. It is wonderful to have a senior pastor of a major church followed by a first-rate academic serving as chair of our Alumni Board.”

YDS sat down with Jones to discuss her new volunteer leadership role and the impact of YDS on her career and life. 

As you enter your new role as President of the Alumni Association, what are your principal concerns and priorities? What do you hope to bring from your previous position as Vice President?

I think the perspective I bring is that of a faculty person from a Research 1 institution who has a sense of the broader implications of the seeds that are sown by a YDS education—as well as that of a parachurch minister who started my own organization and has experienced the sorts of innovation and resourceful ingenuity that are required for 21st century faith leadership, especially in a pandemic moment. It’s my pleasure to ground YDS leadership conversations in my perspective as both a professor and a social entrepreneur.

What was it about your YDS experience that shaped you? What stands out when you reflect on your time at YDS? 

As I wrote in Reflections around the time I became Vice President, I am a rare unicorn—someone who was raised a charismatic Christian but who deliberately sought out a theological formation alongside people who diverged from my upbringing. I didn’t know much about mainline denominations, and I didn’t know much about patriarchy in the church; my parents were co-pastors. At YDS, I had a crash course in both of these subject areas.

Simultaneously, YDS helped give me a strong scholarly direction and voice. While at YDS I saw that there was a void that I could address in the literature around Black sacred music. I was introduced to leading scholars in gospel music, Black sacred music and liturgy, setting me on a course to land a job at Indiana University, which is a “mecca” for Black music research and global pop music research.

Although I came for theological formation, I was able to realize a broader call in ministry while at YDS. I understand what I do today as a form of ministry: I get up every day before at least 160 predominantly white students who are largely from Indiana and talk about culture. I am often their first educator as a Black woman professor, which can be a culture shock in itself. As I move further into my career, I’m grateful that YDS met me in theological formation and critical assessment in a way that has shown up in my research and career.

YDS also positioned me to think outside of the box in terms of my authority as a woman leader. I was President of Yale Black Seminarians while I was a student at YDS as well as a Magee Fellow at Dwight Hall downtown. These experiences have helped me design worship experiences and conference experiences, using liturgical skills, for example, to enhance how people experience music. They also helped me start and run my own organization, InSight Initiative, Inc., which uses arts programming to design enriching events like Genius for Men Conference and Move and Shake Women’s Retreat to serve predominantly minority communities and address the most pressing questions in urban America.

How can students and recent graduates of YDS use their spiritual gifts and academic formation during this time of pandemic?

Self-care is a must. Service is done best when we are rested and healthy, especially because a lot of our caregivers, pastors, preachers, and lay leaders are burning out. The isolation of ministry can be crushing. YDS students should make sure that they’re taking care of themselves, so that when they are called upon, they can serve with freshness and energy.

Watch what others are doing and learn from them, be inspired by them. It’s given me great joy to observe fellow alumni and alumnae do their thing, whether it’s Kaji Douša on the front lines of care for immigrants; or Cece Jones-Davis ’05 M.Div., who has been bringing our attention to setting the captives free with her work around justice for a wrongfully convicted man whose story she’s bringing to light; or Otis Moss III ’95 M.Div. out of Chicago, who has shifted how he ministers by mastering the art of creating short films.

When it comes to life as alumni, what advice do you have for recent grads? 

Recent graduates should get in touch with their closest regional Yale Alumni Association chapter and remain connected to YDS through the annual offerings like Convocation and Reunions and the Parks-King lecture series. YDS is serious about connectivity, so being a part of your local chapter and telling people about your experience of YDS is important.

Giving as an alum is important, too. It helps ensure that future leaders of congregations, nonprofit organizations, research institutions, and other communities are properly trained and formed for these important roles, and that they will have a little debt as possible as they begin their careers. It’s also important to remain in conversation with current students, hearing them share their stories, learning about their needs, and trying to act in response to them.

Editor’s note:  YDS also welcomes Jason Turner ’06 M.Div. into the position of Vice President of the Alumni Board. He is Senior Pastor of Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Memphis, TN.  Continuing her term as Board Secretary is Melissa Pucci ’04 M.A.R. She is Senior Program Manager at Technolutions, a software company designed for college admissions and advancement.

“Jason Turner, a noted pastor, civic leader, and key partner to Church Health in Memphis, and Melissa Pucci, with her experience at the Yale School of Nursing and in higher education administration, bring great ability to the leadership of the Alumni Board,” Dean Sterling said. “I have high regard for each of them and am grateful for their willingness to serve in a leadership role.”

Made up of 21 members, the YDS Alumni Board celebrates and promotes a community of active alumni to support, serve, and advance the mission of the School.

December 4, 2020