Vernice Hopie Randall is an academic counselor, brand marketer, communications specialist, budget manager, recruiter, strategist, events planner, mentor, and spiritual director.
In other words, she is dean of admissions and financial aid for Yale Divinity School.
By the hundreds, Randall fields questions from prospective students, sifts through applications, and welcomes the new arrivals – last month, 148 students from more than 18 countries for the new academic year.
“The person who sits in the deanship of admissions is a Jack or Jill of all trades and must be master of many,” she says.
“At a time when universities are looking especially hard at the bottom line, we have to learn new ways of operating in order to reach the number one goal – to bring in a new set of qualified students each year. These are students who have the top academic qualifications and a commitment to a life of service to others and a deep desire to change the world.”
Born and raised in Kingston, Jamaica, Randall received an M.Div. degree herself from YDS in 2011, then a Master of Theology degree from Princeton Theological Seminary the next year. She then came back to YDS as a lecturer in homiletics. Soon after, the dean of admissions position opened up to her. She started on an interim basis in 2012 and was named dean earlier this year.
Every day, she says, she finds the work more intricate, nuanced, and full of ramifications for individual destinies, the Yale community, and the future of the church and world. It has become her ministry.
“It cannot be just a job. There is the intention to do right by all students, prospective and current. I am a steward of handling ‘holy things,’ in that it is a platform full of opportunity to aid in the transformation of people, communities, the church, and the world in unimaginable ways.”
This year has seen an 11.6 percent increase in the number of applications received. One reason for the increase is her office’s efforts to stay in regular, hospitable contact with applicants and other inquirers, answering all emails within 24 hours and focusing on other forms of follow-up.
But she gives credit to everyone involved – alumni, faculty, staff – for their efforts in being available to prospective students and helping in overall recruitment.
She is keen on helping prospective students discern their calling and find out whether divinity school, and YDS, is right for them.
“I ask them about themselves,” she says. “Yale isn’t the first thing we talk about. I want to get to know them, I first want to hear about their own journey, hear what they are certain and uncertain about. I want to help them on their journey of discernment.
“One of the first questions I typically ask prospective students is: Why is theological education important to them and why does it matter? I also always ask: When you think of the human predicament, where does it hurt? They always pause a bit to think about the questions. Oftentimes they are caught off guard because they are not expecting those kinds of questions from me, and many times they wrestle to articulate an answer. It is in those moments that I can see them coming to a sense of clarity or affirmation, some sort of awareness. I am intentional to listen to them keenly and watch them closely for expressions and signs of passion and conviction. They talk about inequality and social injustices and the intensities of suffering in the world and the work that needs to be done. Some feel the church isn’t doing enough, others believe the academy isn’t doing enough, and they come searching to know what their own role can be.”
This 2014-15 academic year’s class confirms a recent trend. This new group includes more M.A.R. candidates (65) than M.Div. (56). There are also 12 S.T.M. students and five non-degree students.
“We are finding that an increasing number of students are becoming less religiously affiliated and are not interested in the traditional church ministry or the pastoral office for one reason or another. It is not that they have lost interest in the church, but they want to engage their understanding of theology to minister in a variety of different ways and in any number of professions. They are re-imagining the concept of ministry, what it means to do ministry, and where to do ministry.”
Another trend is theological diversity, something Randall does not shy away from herself. Growing up in Kingston, she had family exposure to Roman Catholicism, Anglicanism, and Presbyterian denominational traditions.
“We moved around in the island quite a bit,” says Randall, who emigrated to the U.S. in the 1980s. “When you move around a lot, you find a church home where you are, and you bloom in the church life you are planted in.”
She went to a Catholic girls’ high school in Jamaica, a Lutheran college (Concordia College in Bronxville, NY), Presbyterian-oriented Princeton seminary, and ecumenical YDS. Now ordained as a Baptist minister, she doesn’t mind admitting she is also a closet Lutheran.
“I am a walking testimony to ecumenism. It is why I love theological education. I have not lost hope for the church, humanity, and the world. I believe there is a God somewhere who watches over us all and I, like Paul, am persuaded that nothing can separate us from the love of God.”
YDS’s ecumenical commitments make Randall’s demanding work a little easier. It is something that attracts prospective students, along with an acclaimed faculty.
“The school’s commitment to multi-denominational, multi-faith experiences and inquiry is a big draw – its dedication to social justice and change, the engagement of faith and intellect. Students can explore the world and their own faith and spirituality and the connections between the two. A space is created for YDS’s constituents to wrestle with the questions that are important to them.”
It’s part of the job description to be passionate about the school. For Randall it’s also personal: “As a student here, I was the beneficiary of all that the school had to offer, and I savored every morsel. It changed me for the better.”
It also gives her an extra dose of empathy for those who are launching on the bold adventure of divinity school discernment, matriculation, and whatever comes next.
“It takes a significant amount of courage to go to divinity school and engage in theological education and wrestle with humanity’s biggest and deepest questions,” she says. “And to do so knowing you cannot expect a six-figure salary to come out of it. It’s truly a calling.”