File photo / Baptist Press
FORT WORTH, Texas — Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary announced Sept. 23 that president Adam W. Greenway has resigned from his post effective immediately, citing financial and legal challenges the seminary faces as motivations for his resignation. The announcement follows an all-day meeting of the executive committee of the seminary’s board of trustees and the seminary administration on Sept. 22.
According to a statement released by Greenway, he stated, “Carla and I accepted the call to come back ‘home’ to Southwestern Seminary with an understanding of these challenges, but also with the strong desire to be part of the solution. What we failed to appreciate was the enormity of the reputational, legal, and financial realities that would welcome us to the Dome.”
Danny Roberts, chairman of the board of trustees and executive pastor at North Richland Hills Baptist Church, expressed the board’s “deepest appreciation” for Greenway’s three-plus years of service to his alma mater.
“He came to Southwestern Seminary during a difficult time of transition and has worked tirelessly to lead the institution to serve well the churches of the Southern Baptist Convention,” Roberts said of Greenway. “Among his other accomplishments, President Greenway has assembled an impressive faculty of scholar-ministers who are daily impacting the lives of their students. He also provided steady leadership during the COVID pandemic, which dramatically altered the delivery of theological education.”
Greenway was elected president of the institution in February 2019 and succeeded Paige Patterson, who was removed from the post in May 2018. Prior to coming to Southwestern, Greenway served as dean of the Billy Graham School of Missions, Evangelism and Ministry at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky.
Roberts also announced former GuideStone Financial Resources president O.S. Hawkins will serve as acting president of the seminary. Hawkins, a two-time SWBTS graduate, recently retired from GuideStone after 25 years at the helm of the institution.
In the announcement, SWBTS stated Greenway had accepted a position with the International Mission Board. No specifics were given about the position.
“We will continue to serve Southern Baptists as we have throughout the course of our lives and ministry,” said Greenway. “We believe our next assignment is not a departure from but a continuation along the journey God has always had us walk. We are thrilled that we are going to help prepare Southern Baptist missionaries for their work of addressing the world’s greatest problem—spiritual lostness—with God’s solution, which is the gospel of Christ. As we look forward to beginning a new chapter with Southern Baptists’ favorite entity, the International Mission Board, we ask for your prayers for us in this season of transition, and we pledge our continued prayers and support for our beloved ‘crown jewel.’”
The SWBTS release also stated that the Board of Trustees is expected to name a Presidential Search Committee during its next meeting, Oct. 17-18, in Fort Worth. B&R This article is compiled by B&R staff and includes reporting from Baptist Press and SWBTS’ news office.
