Southern Baptist Theological Seminary’s trustees have approved a 10-year master plan to “repurpose and refocus” the physical campus, according to a seminary news release.
Seminary president R. Albert Mohler Jr. addresses trustees.“This dramatic step represents the most significant physical revitalization of the seminary since moving to its current location in 1926,” the news release stated after the trustees’ April 17 meeting at the Louisville, Ky., seminary.
“The campus of Southern Seminary is merely a tool, but it’s a very important tool for our ability to fulfill the mission that has been entrusted to us,” said seminary president R. Albert Mohler Jr. “For that reason, we need to – make certain that the campus continues as a great asset to our mission and does not become a liability.”
During the next 10 years, the master plan will dissolve $52 million in deferred maintenance and will position the campus for immediate and future structural and financial sustainability. Phase one will restore and update the campus, primarily in terms of housing and administrative offices. This phase will require a $20 million seminary loan to be on the agenda of the SBC Executive Committee during its June 18 meeting in New Orleans.
The master plan will repurpose the historic Mullins Complex as a state-of-the-art facility for Boyce College, the undergraduate school of Southern Seminary.
“Moving Boyce College into the Mullins Complex in the heart of campus will facilitate the greatest integration of the college into the life of the seminary since its inception,” Mohler said. “It will accelerate our programs that link the college and the seminary together in order to get committed missionaries and pastors onto the mission field and into the churches as quickly as possible. It will also maximize the stewardship of all of our campus facilities.”
Phase two will enhance the learning community of Southern Seminary primarily through renovation of the James P. Boyce Centennial Library. Phase three, without requiring any firm commitments, anticipates future development.