Dr. Debbie Brubaker, Director of Online and Hybrid Programs; Lecturer, Boston University School of Theology.

Study: Adaptive Online Administration: Staffing, Stress, and Structural Wellbeing at ATS Seminaries in a Digital Age. 2027.

Debbie Brubaker is Director of Online and Hybrid Programs and a Lecturer at Boston University School of Theology. She holds a PhD in religious studies from Vanderbilt University. In addition to her work in educational technologies, she studies contemporary Christian discourse about race and racism and the use of digital media.

Dr. Cláudio Carvalhaes, Marylin Seven Endowed Chair in Religion and the Arts, Union Theological Seminary in New York City.

Study: Sacred Imagination for Desecrated Times: Arts as Curandería in Theological Education. 2027.

Cláudio Carvalhaes, earth thinker, theologian, performer, artist and playwright, a native Brazilian from São Paulo, Professor of Worship at Union Theological Seminary in New York. In the Spring of 2023 Carvalhaes received his Full Professorship at Union Seminary. In the Summer of 2023, Carvalhaes received the Honorary Degree Sacrae Theologiae Doctor bestowed by the Board of Trustees of Starr King School for the Ministry. And in the Fall of 2023, Carvalhaes received the award of The Most Creative Play at the New York Theater Festival with his play When Wajcha Meets Pachamama. He is the author of several books 

The Very Rev. Dr. Michael W. DeLashmutt
Senior Vice President of General Theological Seminary and Dean of the Chapel of the Good Shepherd

Study: “Executive Turnover in Theological Education. 2025.

The Very Rev. Dr. Michael W. DeLashmutt was appointed Senior Vice President of General Theological Seminary and Dean of the Chapel of the Good Shepherd in November 2022. He previously served as Acting Dean and President of General Seminary (2021–2022) and as Vice President and Dean for Academic Affairs and Associate Professor of Theology (2016–2021). 

During his tenure as Acting Dean and President, Dean DeLashmutt played a pivotal role in the Seminary’s “Strategic and Faithful Partnerships” initiative, which culminated in the Affiliation with Virginia Theological Seminary and the launch of General’s innovative Hybrid MDiv program. 

Dr. DeLashmutt has devoted his career to theological education, with over a decade of senior leadership experience in seminaries and colleges in both the United States and the United Kingdom. He is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (UK) and a recognized scholar whose interdisciplinary research has explored subjects ranging from the philosophy of Paul Ricoeur to the intersections of theology, information technology, and popular culture. His early research focused on ministry formation in the Church of England, with a particular emphasis on alternative pathways for ordination training for bi-vocational and non-stipendiary clergy.

Dr. Jodi L. Porter, Director of Education for Ministry Innovation, Acadia Divinity College.

Study: “Contextualizing Pedagogies and Practical Examples Emerging from ATS Member Schools.” 2026.

Dr. Jodi L. Porter is Director of Education for Ministry Innovation at Acadia Divinity College (ADC) in Wolfville, Nova Scotia. She serves as project director for the ADC Futuring Lab, Adjunct Faculty, and Educationalist for a collaborative project among theological schools led by NAIITS: An Indigenous Learning Community. She holds an Ed.D. from Vanderbilt University, an M.Th. from the University of Oxford, and a B.A. from William Jewell College.

Rev. Dr. Yara González-Justiniano, Assistant Professor of Religion, Psychology, and Culture, Vanderbilt University

Study: “Hoping and Future Casting in Theological Higher Education’s Discourse and Practice in the United States and Canada.” 2026.

Rev. Dr. Yara González-Justiniano is Assistant Professor of Religion, Psychology, and Culture with emphasis on Latinx Studies and affiliated faculty of the Center for Latin American, Caribbean, and Latinx Studies at Vanderbilt University. She is a practical theologian and minister in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). Her educational journey of interdisciplinarity informs the ways in which she approaches theological studies. Her most recent publication, Centering Hope as a Sustainable Decolonial Practice: Esperanza en Práctica (2022), wrestles with answering the question of what does hope look like amid socioeconomic crisis. Her interdisciplinary approach to this inquiry is grounded in ethnographic research to identify practices that foster hope and sustain the collective.