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The Magazine of Wesley Theological Seminary | Fall 2023

PATHWAYS IN THE WILDERNESS

32 FE ATURES

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On the cover: In President David McAllister-Wilson’s letter on page 2, he invites the Wesley community to go into the wilderness and blaze new trails.

Calling is published by the Office of Development twice a year for alumni, donors, and friends of Wesley. Wesley Theological Seminary 4500 Massachusetts Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20016 202.865.8600 www.wesleyseminary.edu

Supporting Our Students in Uncertain Times Wesley’s Commitment to Walk Beside Our Students

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Introducing Dean Carla Works

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Wesley Innovation Hub

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30th Anniversary of Korean Endowment

A Special Tribute by Two Wesley Colleagues

Preparing Leaders for the Future

VP Kyunglim Shin Lee Hosts Celebration

DEPARTMENTS

David McAllister-Wilson President Monica Hargrove Chair, Board of Governors Angela Willingham Vice President of Development Julie Babler Designer Jeremy D. Birch Copy Editor Lisa Helfert Tony Richards Contributing Photographers Printed with zero VOC ink on paper containing postconsumer content, and/or manufactured with hydroelectric power, acid free/alkaline, elemental chlorine free, mixed credit or certified sourcing.

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From the President

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Forty-Five Hundred

Pathways in the Wilderness

News and views of the Wesley Community

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Community Tuesdays

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Beyond Wesley

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Answering the Call

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2023 Annual Report

Chapel, Special Guests, Dean’s Forums, and more

Retired Faculty Continue to Make a Difference

Community Members Share their Journeys to Ministry

Celebrating the Generosity of the Wesley Community

12 FALL 2023

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Pathways in the Wilderness “Come with us into the wilderness.” That’s one way to understand Isaiah 40:3 and the best way to report on the transformation underway at Wesley Theological Seminary. The second part of the passage is clear: “Prepare ye the way of the Lord.” Some will remember that song from the rock

Kelly Wright

Host/Correspondent/Executive Producer

Kelly Wright is the Emmy Award winning host and producer of “America’s Hope With Kelly Wright” at NTD/Epoch in New York. He is also a former Senior Capitol Hill Correspondent with NTD News in Washington. Throughout his career, Kelly has reported on top stories around the world, snagging interviews with heads of state including former Presidents Donald Trump and Barack Obama, First Lady Laura Bush, and leaders of foreign countries. He is enthusiastic about telling stories that inform, motivate, and inspire people. Kelly previously anchored for “The World Tonight,” on, now defunct, Black News Channel (BNC). He also served as the host and executive producer of The Kelly Wright Show.”

Previously, he was the anchor for The World Tonight, on now defunct Black News Channel (BNC).  Kelly also served as the host and executive producer of The Kelly Wright Show.”

Before BNC, Kelly hosted Taking Care ofBusiness on Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN). He spent 15 years as an Anchor/Reporter at Fox News Channel, anchoring America’s News Headquarters and co- hosting Fox and Friends Weekend.

Most recently, he has anchored and reported on special coverage of the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, the January 6th Insurrection, and more. In 2004 Kelly spent nearly three months reporting on the developments in Iraq. He was among the first reporters to cover the Abu Ghraib prison scandal and the subsequent court-martial cases held in Baghdad. Kelly also spent time embedded with U.S. and British troops, reporting on the military’s humanitarian efforts in Baghdad, Basrah, and Mosul. He also provided coverage on U.S. forces training Iraqi security forces. Additionally, Kelly reported on the historic U.S. handover of sovereignty to Iraq.

Before joining Fox News Channel, Kelly worked as an anchor/reporter at WAVY-TV/WVBT-TV in Norfolk, VA, co-anchoring the Fox affiliate's first primetime newsc

Vol. 123, No. 38 | $1.50

September 21, 2023 - September 27, 2023

VP HARRIS SPEAKS AT HAMPTON UNIVERSITY

HAMPTON

As students returned to campuses nationwide, Vice President Kamala Harris began a month-long college tour, rallying young people to champion fundamental freedoms and rights. Hampton University was her first stop last week where she put a spotlight on critical issues disproportionately affecting young Americans.

The whirlwind tour, dubbed the

HOW SOME HBCUS ARE ADDRESSING GUN VIOLENCE ON-AND-OFF CAMPUS

Associate Editor

New Journal and Guide

There was a time when HBCU students arrived on campus in late August, unpacked their gear, left the dorm to explore nearby restaurants, churches, and nightclubs, which often rolled out the red carpet at the start of school.

But escalating gun violence is changing this time-honored tradition at numerous HBCUs including Virginia State, which recently announced plans to upgrade its security measures after two Virginia State students were shot and killed off campus within a nine-day span.

Virginia State students

Matthew Gibbs, age 19, and Adrionna West, age 20, were recently killed off campus. Gibbs died from a gunshot wound and was taken to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead in late August. The second slain Virginia State student, West, was shot a few days later off campus and found dead inside of a car in early September.

“Being angry is not enough,”

Virginia State President Makola M. Abdullah said in a recent statement on the school’s website, announcing security upgrades that include VSU Police meeting daily with Petersburg Police “to share intelligence and inform our VSU community of any activity/crimes that may impact our students.”

Abdullah said campus and local police officers will continue to patrol the Petersburg apartment complexes “where our students have been assigned. Police from VSU, Colonial Heights, Chesterfield, and a pr

As Hampton University marks 150 years, it is impossible to overstate its vast and influential legacy

The history of Hampton University begins, as many great legacies do, with a paradox. In this instance, a man raised with an acute sense of the “white man’s burden” who established one of the nation’s first institutions dedicated to the higher education of blacks. Union General Samuel Chapman Armstrong came only gradually to recognize the potential in these people he considered to be uncivilized heathens — but he ended up pushing his students to successes beyond anything either he or they had imagined.

Hampton University has paid off equally extraordinary dividends on the investment Gen. Armstrong made with his mission to educate “the heart, the head and the hand” of African-Americans. As the school celebrates its 150 anniversary — a milestone we are marking in our news pages with a full week of stories — it is clear that the impact reaches far beyond the students who have passed through the campus, and extends to the entire region surrounding the college.

Before the Civil War it had been illegal to educate blacks in Virginia. But when Fort Monroe became a primary destination for escaped slaves seeking Major Gen. Benjamin Butler’s “contraband” declaration, a clear necessity and opportunity arose. That burgeoning refugee population was a key inspiration for Gen. Armstrong to launch the Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute on April 1, 1868. (The word “Normal” in this usage refers to a school that trains teachers, and therein lies one of the college’s most profound influences — Hampton’s early graduates spread across the South to teach reading and writing skills to more than 100,000 black students.)

The school, of course, which would later become Hampton Institute and then Hampton University, has strong roots, both literally and figuratively.

The earli