Bexley Seabury Leaders
Roger A. Ferlo
Roger A. Ferlo is the president of the Bexley Seabury Federation. Ferlo, who was the associate dean and director of the Institute of Christian Formation and Leadership at Virginia Theological Seminary, where he also served as professor of religion and culture, took up his duties on July 1, 2012.
Since 2007, Bexley and Seabury have worked to assess their compatibility for possible partnership in serving the Episcopal Church in the Midwest and beyond. In 2010, the boards of the two schools began to hold joint meetings. Between February 2011 and March 2012, they operated according to an interim joint partnership agreement under which their boards have met jointly. During that time, the two seminaries have begun the process of combining communications, development programs and financial services. The votes earlier this month brought the Federation into being.
Prior to working at Virginia Seminary, Ferlo, who trained for the priesthood at the General Theological Seminary in New York City, spent 19 years in parish ministry, serving in Georgia, Pennsylvania, and New York City. He has 14 years of teaching experience at the university and seminary levels; 15 years of service on the board of the National Association of Episcopal schools, including a term as President; and nine years of service on the board of trustees of his alma mater, Colgate University (’73, summa cum laude), where in 2010 he was awarded an honorary doctorate. Ferlo holds a Ph.D. from Yale University (’79) and has authored and edited three books and numerous published essays, sermons and reflections. He has served as a deputy from New York to General Convention and has traveled internationally for teaching and research in South Africa, Australia and Italy.
“The Federation of Seabury and Bexley offers a new model for sustaining high-quality theological education for the changing church,” said Ferlo. “I’m honored that both schools have entrusted their new venture to my leadership, and I look forward to working with their faculty and staff, and with our Lutheran and Episcopal partners, to build a strong presence for theological education in the Midwest and beyond.”
Tom Ferguson
Thomas Ferguson is Dean of Bexley Hall. He has taught as an adjunct faculty member at Wartburg Theological Seminary, Claremont School of Theology, Union Theological Seminary and Church Divinity School of the Pacific (an Episcopal Church-affiliated seminary in Berkeley, California). He was ordained to the priesthood in 2009 and has served at Emmanuel Church, Boston; Miriam Hospital, Providence, Rhode Island; and St. Thomas Church in New Haven, Connecticut. He came to Bexley Hall in 2011 after ten years on the service of the staff of the Episcopal Church Center, first as associate deputy to the Presiding Bishop for ecumenical and interreligious relations from 2001-2009, before being appointed ecumenical and interreligious officer in 2010.
He holds a Ph.D. from the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, California, and is a graduate of Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology, Yale Divinity School and Wesleyan University. He and his wife, the Rev. Shannon Kelly, live with their son in Columbus.
Susan Harlow
Susan Harlow is Seabury's Director of Congregational Development and Professor of Practical Theology. She is an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ and has taught for 17 years in theological education. A graduate of Hollins University, Susan earned her Master of Divinity at Andover Newton Theological School and a Masters of Theology at Harvard Divinity School. Her doctorate is from Columbia University in its joint program with Union Theological Seminary in Religion and Education. Her life partner is the Rev. Dr. Bonnie A. Perry.
Ellen Wondra
Ellen Wondra is Seabury's Professor of Theology and Ethics and Academic Dean. She has degrees from Pomona College, the Church Divinity School of the Pacific, and the Divinity School of the University of Chicago. Her teaching and research interests include the theology and practice of authority, the intersections of gender, race, and class, and the development of Anglican theology for a global church. A widely published author, she is also the Editor in Chief of the Anglican Theological Review, which is headquartered at Seabury. Prof. Wondra has served the Episcopal Church in numerous capacities at both the diocesan and the national level and has been a member of the Anglican-Roman Catholic Consultation in the U.S.A. since 1992.
