PRESS RELEASE: Andrews University Receives Major Grant from Lilly Endowment Inc.
January 7, 2025 |
In a press release from the campus, “Andrews University (AU) has received a grant of $6,326,735 from Lilly Endowment Inc. through its Ministry in Rural Areas and Small Towns Initiative. The initiative aims to provide resources to help churches in rural areas and small towns enhance the vitality of their ministries and strengthen the leadership of the pastors and lay leaders who guide them.”
Andrews University seeks to address these goals in several ways:
First, Andrews will mentor rural and small-town pastors and their congregations in community engagement. The Center for Community Change, founded by AU’s Theological Seminary, will work with surrounding rural and small-town congregations to engage their communities to become community hubs.
Second, the University will partner with the Center for Community Change and Adventist Learning Community (ALC), the Adventist Community Services Department, and the Ministerial Association to develop a comprehensive range of resources. The resources, which will be distributed across ALC platforms, are to be used by these congregations to address the needs of their communities (e.g., mental health, drug addiction, loneliness and abuse). Additionally, the Center for Community Change will be incorporated into the ALC platform, integrating the resources with the Center’s mentoring program.
Finally, “undergraduate theology students at North American Adventist institutions such as Andrews University, Burman University, Oakwood University, Southern Adventist University, and Southwestern Adventist University will receive funding to participate in rural and small-town placements during their programs of study. The grant will also provide financial backing for the International Center for Trauma Education & Care at Andrews University to help rural and small-town congregations address the causes and impact of trauma within their wider communities.”
Cedric Vine, the project leader and an associate professor of New Testament at the Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary, shares, “Contrary to popular perception, rural and small-town communities are not hotbeds of religious fundamentalism but instead report the same levels of religious unbelief as urban communities while experiencing higher levels of social problems. Population shifts have led to the closure of many services. There are fewer shared spaces where members of the community can meet and support each other.”
He continues, “This represents a great opportunity for our churches to reimagine themselves as community hubs where support can be provided in partnership with the community. We need to undertake the hard work of reimagining how our communities might be transformed by kingdom values. I am thrilled that the Seminary at Andrews University can be part of this process and thank John Wesley Taylor V, president of Andrews University, and Jiří Moskala, dean of the Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary, for their strong support and commitment to this important initiative.”
Andrews University is one of 20 organizations from across the United States receiving grants through the Lilly Endowment initiative, including colleges and universities, denominational agencies, church networks, and parachurch organizations.
“Our hope is that these grants will provide much-needed resources and support to rural and small-town churches to help them address their challenges and enhance and extend the many ways that they serve their communities,” says Christopher L. Coble, Lilly Endowment’s vice president for religion.
