General Theological Seminary

In May 1817 General Convention, the governing body of the Episcopal Church, met in New York City and passed two resolutions: first, to found a general Episcopal seminary to be supported by the whole church; second, that it be located in New York City.[7] This was emended in 1820 to remove the school to New Haven, Connecticut,[8] but in 1821 the will of Trinity Church vestry member Jacob Sherred unexpectedly heeded the words of his friend John Pintard[9] and directed that his entire fortune of around $60,000 should be paid when:

... there shall be established within the state of New-York, under the direction or by the authority of the General Convention of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America, or of the Convention of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the State of New-York, a College, Academy, School, or Seminary, for the education of young men designed for holy orders in the Protestant Episcopal Church.[10]

The newly established diocesan school in New York expected to be the beneficiary and Bishop Hobart published his thanks for the gift in the April 4 New York Evening Post,[10] since the General Seminary had already begun its 1820 term in Connecticut.[11] A special convocation of the bishops was hastily arranged, however,[12] and it was agreed to return the school to New York City in order to claim Sherred's grant,[13] although the Virginia deputies continued to bemoan that the seminary should be "placed under more favorable auspices for the promotion of what we [believe] to be sound views of the Gospel and the Church than it would be in New York".[14] Duncan Cameron mollified them and convinced one to note that "the evil of the undue influence of New York in the General Seminary ... would be chiefly at the beginning, and would be decreasing every year".[15] With some stipulations concerning its governance, Bishop Hobart consented to the union of the diocesan school with the General Seminary rather than contesting the inheritance.[16] The unified school opened for the spring term of 1822.[17]

Other parishioners of Trinity Church went on to support the once more local institution. Clement Clarke Moore, famous for penning A Visit from St. Nicholas, owned the estate "Chelsea", which included most of what would become the Manhattan neighborhood by that name. Also a member of Trinity Church, he donated 66 tracts of land—which was his apple orchard—to become the site of the new seminary. It was not, however, until 1827 that the seminary occupied that land.[7]

Other figures influential in the founding of the seminary include Theodore Dehon, William White, and John Henry Hobart. Bishop Hobart served as the seminary's first dean, after which the Bishop of New York served in this capacity until the 1850s.

Eastern quad of Hoffman's Grand Design at The General Theological Seminary

In 1878, Eugene Augustus Hoffman – said to be the richest clergyman in the world due to his extensive real estate holdings[18] – was appointed dean. Under his tenure, the seminary saw tremendous growth, both in student body and facilities. Dean Hoffman's "grand design" was for the seminary's Chelsea campus to be built on an Oxford model, with neo-Gothic buildings facing onto a central quadrangle or Close. Likely Dean Hoffman's most influential addition to the seminary's campus was the Chapel of the Good Shepherd which was begun in 1886, completed two years later, and became known as the "Jewel of Chelsea Square." Its set of 15 tubular bells is the oldest extant in this country, with tubes by John Harrington of Coventry, England; original installation (1888) by Walter Durfee of Providence, Rhode Island; and a modern baton clavier (1983) by Royal Eijsbouts of Asten, Netherlands.[19] The tower chime is played daily by members of the seminary's Guild of Chimers to call the community to worship. Architect Charles C. Haight designed and supervised construction of most of the buildings on Chelsea Square while Haight's father, Benjamin I. Haight, was the first priest at nearby St. Peter's Episcopal Church.

Due to growing housing needs for married students, GTS acquired 422 West 20th Street, a residential building opposite the seminary's 20th Street gate in March 1957.[20]

Chelsea Enclave, a residential condominium which replaced Sherrill Hall

A renovation and expansion of the seminary's buildings facing 10th Avenue was completed in 2007, when the Desmond Tutu Center opened. Named for Desmond Tutu, former visiting professor at GTS and retired archbishop of the Church of the Province of Southern Africa, the Tutu Center operates primarily as a hotel and conference center.

In 2007 the seminary engaged in an effort to reduce its carbon footprint, along with general operating costs, by converting many of its buildings to geothermal heating and cooling.[21][22]

Also in 2007, the seminary, in need of funds, sold Sherrill Hall, a 1960s building along 9th Ave to the Brodsky Organization for the construction of a residential condominium building. The Chelsea Enclave was completed in 2010 and contains 53 residential units as well as retail space, an underground parking garage, and the seminary's new Keller Library. The seminary's main entrance is now located on 21st Street between 9th and 10th Avenues.[23]

Still facing financial difficulties, General Theological Seminary is currently engaged in its Plan to Choose Life, a strategic initiative which necessitates the sale of several properties: 422 West 20th Street, the Chelsea 2,3,4 building, and the West Building. Assets from the sales are expected to eliminate the seminary's debt, rebuild its depleted endowment, and restore it to financial solvency.[24][25]

In September 2014, eight of the seminary's ten full-time faculty announced their intention to unionize[26] and announced their intention to absent themselves from teaching and worship, alleging harassment and bullying behavior on the part of Dean Kurt Dunkle.[27] In a letter to the Board of Trustees on September 17, the eight faculty alleged that Dunkle had repeatedly made racist, sexist, and homophobic remarks; made unprofessional comments about faculty members to their colleagues; compromised the confidentiality of student records; and responded to staff who complained of his behavior by threatening their jobs. The protesting faculty warned that unless the Board agreed to meet to discuss the allegations, the eight would be obliged to absent themselves from teaching, meetings, and worship.[28]

The Board of Trustees of the seminary treated the letter as a mass resignation, which it accepted on September 29.[29] The faculty contested this characterization, noting that no resignations were tendered, and published the details of their grievances online, including the original September 17 letter.[30][31]

The news quickly became a national issue widely reported on within religious circles. A previously arranged series of lectures by a visiting theologian from Duke had to be canceled when he declined to attend, citing the controversy roiling the seminary. Around the same time an online petition was established supporting the faculty, with hundreds of co-signers including theologians from all over the country who pledged not to speak at GTS until the terminated faculty were reinstated.[32]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, like most other institutions of higher learning, the Seminary quickly pivoted to a hybrid learning model which - for the first time in the Seminary's history - enabled seminary faculty and students to engage in a structure program and education, formation, and training in their home contexts. The program, initially begun in response to the pandemic, helped the Seminary to identify a need within the Church for a high-quality, low-residency, accredited MDiv program. In 2021, the Board of Trustees authorized the Seminary to launch a fully hybrid MDiv program, which welcomed its first cohort of students in 2022.

At the same time, under the leadership of Acting Dean and President Michael W. DeLashmutt, the Seminary Board entered into a formal process, aimed at assessing the Seminary's long-term financial and operational model. Through the "Strategic and Faithful Partnerships" the Trustees of General Seminary the need for the Seminary to engage in a substantial partnership with another institution, in order to secure the mission and legacy of the School. In 2022 this led to the establishment of a formal Affiliation Agreement between General Seminary and Virginia Theological Seminary. While remaining separate institutions, the two Seminaries now share a common leadership structure and support services.