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UMNS# 05139-Ten theology students receive Dempster fellowships


From "NewsDesk" <NewsDesk@UMCOM.ORG>
Date Mon, 7 Mar 2005 16:00:28 -0600

Ten theology students receive Dempster fellowships

Mar. 7, 2005 News media contact: Linda Green * (615) 7425470*
Nashville {05139}

NOTE: Related resources are available online at
http://umc.org/interior.asp?mid=6913.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (UMNS)-Ten students preparing for careers in
theological education have received Dempster Graduate Fellowships from
the United Methodist Church for the 2005-06 academic year.

The awards, up to $10,000 for single students, are the largest graduate
fellowships offered by a Protestant denomination, according to the
United Methodist Board of Higher Education and Ministry in Nashville.
The scholarships are given through the denomination's ministerial
education fund and the board's Division of Ordained Ministry.

The annual fellowships have helped graduate students move toward careers
in theological education for the past five decades and represent the
United Methodist Church's commitment to theological education both in
the United States and around the world, according to the Rev. Robert
Kohler, a staff executive in the division.

The 51-year-old fellowships are named for John Dempster, a 19th-century
Methodist preacher who helped establish three denominationally related
seminaries.

The 2005-06 recipients are:

· Jeremy Todd Bakker, a certified candidate in the North Texas Annual
Conference and graduate of the University of North Texas and Perkins
School of Theology. He is specializing in biblical studies at Perkins
School of Theology, Dallas.
· Sharon Lynn Betsworth, an ordained elder in the Iowa Annual
Conference and a graduate of Luther College, Wesley Theological Seminary
and Princeton Theological Seminary. She is in her fourth year of
doctoral studies, specializing in the New Testament at Graduate
Theological Union in Berkeley, Calif. Betsworth received a Dempster
Fellowship for the 2004-05 academic year.
· Kevin M. Carnahan, a layperson in the Kansas West Annual Conference
and a graduate of Southwestern College and Perkins School of Theology.
He is a third-year doctoral candidate specializing in religious
study/ethics at Southern Methodist University, Dallas.
· Terry Ray Clark, a full member of the Rocky Mountain Annual
Conference, and graduate of Western Kentucky University and Southern
Baptist Theological Seminary. He is a fourth-year doctoral student
specializing in the Hebrew Bible at Iliff School of Theology and the
University of Denver.
· Mary K. Cavazos, an ordained elder in the West Ohio Annual
Conference, is a graduate of Albion College and Methodist Theological
School in Ohio. She is enrolled in her fourth year of a doctoral program
at Drew University, specializing in 20th century U.S. religious history
with a focus on race and gender.
· Charles Mayo Collier, a layperson in the North Carolina Annual
Conference and graduate of Emory University and Duke Divinity School. He
is a fifth-year doctoral student, specializing in theology and ethics in
the Graduate Program in Religion at Duke University.
· Timothy Reinhold Eberhardt, an ordained elder in the Dakotas Annual
Conference and a graduate of St. Olaf College and Vanderbilt Divinity
School. He is a second-year doctoral student in the Graduate Department
of Religion at Vanderbilt University, specializing in theological
studies and ethics.
· Peter K. Han, a full member of the Northern Illinois Annual
Conference, and graduate of the University of Illinois and
Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary. He is enrolled in his second
year of a doctoral program at the Divinity School of the University of
Chicago, specializing in religious ethics.
· Darryl William Stephens, a certified candidate in the Texas Annual
Conference, is a graduate of Rice University and Perkins School of
Theology. He is enrolled in his fourth year of a doctoral program at the
Graduate School of Arts & Sciences at Emory University and is
specializing in Christian ethics and Methodist studies. Stephens
received a Dempster Fellowship for the 2002-03 academic year.
· Kirk Alan VanGilder, an ordained elder in the Baltimore-Washington
Annual Conference, is a graduate of Ball State University and Iliff
School of Theology. He is a third-year doctoral candidate at Boston
University, specializing in practical theology, missions and deaf
studies.
# # #
News media contact: Linda Green, (615) 742-5470 or newsdesk@umcom.org.

********************

United Methodist News Service
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