Reference articles on history, science, culture and more
Encyclopedia

Northern Seminary

American Christian seminary in Illinois

Northern Seminary is a private Baptist seminary in Lisle, Illinois. Historically known as Northern Baptist Theological Seminary, it is affiliated with the American Baptist Churches USA.

01History

The Seminary was founded in 1913 by the Second Baptist Church of Chicago named as Northern Baptist Theological Seminary as a theologically conservative alternative within the framework of its association with the American Baptist Churches USA. In 1920 a collegiate department was founded, and the American Baptist Churches became a seminary partner. In 1963, it moved to Lombard, Illinois. In 2004, it was renamed Northern Seminary. In 2017, it moved to Lisle, Illinois.

It is accredited by the Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada.

On March 13, 2023, the president, William D. Shiell, resigned from his position amid controversy. After several interim presidents, Joy J. Moore officially became the president of Northern Seminary on December 1, 2024. On January 2, 2026, Moore and the Board of Trustees mutually agreed that she would resign from the position of president of the seminary. Ingrid Faro was named interim president.

Presidents

No. Name Term Ref
1 John Marvin Dean 1913, 1918
2 George W. Taft 1918, 1936
3 William Law Ferguson 1936, 1938
4 Charles W. Koller 1938, 1961
5 Benjamin P. Browne 1960, 1964
6 Bryan F. Archibald 1965, 1975
7 William R. Myers Sr. 1975, 1988
8 Ian M. Chapman 1988, 2001
9 Charles W. Moore 2001, 2006
, John F. Kirn 2006, 2008
10 Alistair Brown 2008, 2016
11 William D. Shiell 2016, 2023
, John C. Bowling 2023
, Karen Walker Freeburg 2023, 2024
12 Joy J. Moore 2024, 2026
, Ingrid Faro 2026, present

02Notable people

Alumni

Faculty

Watch videos about Northern SeminaryExplainers and documentaries on YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Sources and credits

This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article Northern Seminary, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.

Fathomly is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Wikimedia Foundation. Spotted a problem? Tell us.