In its 193rd year, Yale Divinity School welcomed 148 new students to campus to join in its mission of service to church and society.
The members of the incoming class hail from 18 countries and represent 31 religious traditions. Sixteen percent of the students are from under-represented groups in the United States and 33 percent of the class has already earned a graduate degree.
“This was a successful admissions season and we are proud of the strong, diverse group of students we have been able to recruit,” says Associate Dean of Admission and Financial Aid Hopie Randall. “While we have come a long way down this very important road, we still have further to go and more to accomplish. We continue to be committed to intentional diversity and our pursuit of new ideas and procedures that will help us broaden the inclusive environment we believe in and have fostered at YDS.”
In keeping with a favorite YDS tradition, the incoming class of 2014 was welcomed to the Sterling Divinity Quadrangle with a four-day “Before the Fall” Orientation (BTFO), coordinated by returning YDS students.
Between informational sessions on degree requirements, library databases, and course registration, incoming students had the opportunity to sample New Haven’s famous apizza, explore the summit of East Rock Park, dine with faculty members in their homes, laugh with Yale Divinity Drama, and compete in the annual BTFO Karaoke competition.
“We want people to feel connectedness to both this place and each other,” said Jessi Litman ’15 M.A.R., one of the co-coordinators of BTFO. Preparations for this year’s BTFO began in May when Litman and Adam Perez ’15 M.A.R. began answering questions from incoming students through a BTFO website and Facebook page.
“I think BTFO is the ultimate form of hospitality,” said Litman. “It’s something that’s really important to the YDS community: to make people feel that we want them to be here, that we appreciate them and welcome them, and want them to contribute.”
After a long weekend, Opening Convocations on August 26 marked the official start of the 2014-2015 academic year.
Before a packed audience in Marquand Chapel and hundreds of online Livestream viewers, Dean Gregory Sterling welcomed the YDS community back to campus, extending a special welcome to new students.
“We hope that you will all experience a commitment to faith that nurtures your soul, a challenge of intellectual rigor that stretches your mind, and the warmth of an ecumenical community that offers you the security of belonging,” he said.
Dean Sterling also announced that “Building Sustainable Community” would be the theme of a series of events and community conversations throughout the 2014-2015 academic year.
“We hope that our conversations will challenge all of us to think about the environment, food, and water in terms of environmental ethics, intergenerational ethics, and social justice,” said Dean Sterling.
In addition to the incoming class and returning students, Dean Sterling formally introduced and welcomed new faculty members and administrators to the YDS community, including McFaddin Professor of Anglican Studies and Pastoral Theology and Berkley Divinity School Dean Andrew McGowan; Assistant Professor of New Testament Michael Beth Dinkler; Research Associate and Lecturer Felicity Harley McGowan; Interim Associate Dean of Berkley Divinity School Lynda Tyson ’05 M.Div.; Senior Director of Development James Hackney Jr. ’79 M.A.R.; and Interim Associate Dean of Students Sara Lamar-Sterling.
Dean Sterling also recognized Teresa Berger, who was named the inaugural Thomas E. Golden Jr. Professor of Catholic Theology, and Hopie Randall ’11 M.Div. who was promoted to Associate Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid.
During the service, J. Edward and Ruth Cox Lantz Professor of Christian Communication Tom Troeger gave the address and Buckingham Professor of New Testament Criticism and Interpretation Adela Collins led the community in prayer. Both Troeger and Collins will retire at the end of the 2014-2015 year.
At the service’s conclusion, everyone was invited to the Common Room for a reception. For many, the buzz of conversation in YDS halls was a welcome sound.
“The summers here are so quiet,” said Office of Student Affairs Senior Administrative Assistant Jennifer DellaCamera. “I can’t wait for the students to come back each August.”
Opening Convocation 2014 was broadcast live and is available online.