March 28, 2017 – Chancellor Ligon Duncan and the Board of Trustees of Reformed Theological Seminary are pleased to announce that Dr. Guy M. Richard has accepted the call to serve as the Executive Director of the Atlanta campus starting June 1, 2017. “I am delighted that my good friend Guy Richard has agreed to lead RTS Atlanta into the future. Dr. Richard is a pastor-theologian with strong gifts for teaching and leadership. He is well-acquainted with and connected in Atlanta, and has taught for RTS at several of our campuses over the years – with much appreciation by our students. Guy is a churchman par excellence, and his love for and commitment to the local church was demonstrated extraordinarily when he went to a congregation devastated and dispersed by Hurricane Katrina, and by God’s grace, was used to build it up into a thriving flock again. Guy embodies our aspiration to cultivate in our students “a mind for truth, a heart for God, and a life for ministry,” Duncan said.
Dr. Richard is ordained as a teaching elder in the Presbyterian Church in America and has served as Senior Minister at First Presbyterian Church Gulfport, Mississippi since 2005. Guy earned an Engineering degree from Auburn, an M.Div. from RTS Jackson and a Ph.D. from the University of Edinburgh in Historical and Systematic Theology.
In addition to giving leadership to RTS Atlanta, Dr. Richard will serve as Assistant Professor of Systematic Theology. “I am very excited to be joining the RTS family and look forward to the opportunity to serve the next generation of leaders in the Lord’s church. The Atlanta campus already has a rich legacy of equipping ministers and church leaders, and I am honored to be invited to help build upon the firm foundation that has been laid.” Richard said. Guy is married to Jennifer and they have 3 children: Schyler, Jane Barton and Ellie.
This appointment coincides with the planned retirement this summer of our beloved John Sowell after serving the institution for 17 years. “It has been my privilege to plant, grow and nurture this campus,” Sowell said. “It has been an amazing blessing to interact with literally thousands of choice individuals who have been united in their desire to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ through their commitment to theological education. I am pleased that we have identified the right person to take the Atlanta campus to the next level, and I will be working with Dr. Richard in the coming months to facilitate a smooth transition.” In appreciation for his service the Chancellor will recommend to the RTS Board of Trustees to honor Mr. Sowell with the title of President Emeritus.
Established in 1966, Reformed Theological Seminary is now the largest reformed evangelical seminary in the world. RTS is committed to preparing pastors and church leaders with a mind for truth, a heart for God and a life for ministry. The RTS student body is drawn from about 40 denominations at any given time, and the Seminary aims to serve the whole of the evangelical community, especially the Presbyterian and Reformed family. RTS is committed to the inerrancy of Scripture and Reformed Theology, and from that standpoint offers rigorous and reverent graduate theological education, through nine degree programs across multiple campuses and online.
For more information about the RTS Atlanta campus and the degree programs being offered, go to www.rts.edu/Atlanta.