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At the end of this month, Dr. Jeffrey Greenman will retire from his role as Regent College’s fifth President. In this interview, Jeff reflects on his experience of leading the College over the past decade and looks ahead to his future involvement with the Regent community.

As you approach the conclusion of this chapter of your story with Regent, what do you consider to be some highlights of your time as President?

By God’s grace, there have been many highlights. I’m grateful for what God has done in our midst over the past decade. And I’m grateful for all the hard work done by my amazing colleagues as we have worked together on some major projects.

There are quite a few things that I could mention, but I’ll constrain myself to just three. A definite highlight was seeing the capital campaign called “Deep Roots, Wide Reach” exceed its goal. It was our first such campaign since 2007. We faced the unexpected and quite unwelcome challenge of doing almost all of it during Covid, with its various restrictions on travel, in-person meetings, and so on. Through countless Zoom calls, God provided amazingly. That was such an encouragement to me and to our whole community.

A second highlight has been reaching an agreement to sell our parking lot to Polygon Homes. This process began with conversations in summer 2019, and we’ve seen the groundbreaking just a couple weeks ago. This project will enable Regent to offer student housing for the first time in decades. The Board of Governors has been trying to find a way to develop that space for student housing for about 20 years, so this is a very significant step. At the same time, the funds from the sale have approximately doubled Regent’s endowment, which helps make us financially sustainable in the long term by providing for things like student scholarships and faculty chairs.

Finally, I’d say that the establishment and growth of the MALTS (MA in Leadership, Theology & Society) program has been a very important personal highlight. I have been involved with this program since the planning stages, and I stepped in as acting director of the program for two years during my presidency. What I find so compelling about MALTS is that it gives fresh expression to Regent’s core ministry—blending substantive academics, an integrative vision, personal and spiritual formation, deeply communal learning, and in-depth mentoring—in a new way that is flexible and accessible. Our students love the experience they are having, and virtually all our MALTS students finish the program on time in two years.

What's something you've learned from Regent's students that has impacted your intellectual or spiritual life?

Regent students are simply the best. I’ve often told people that I wouldn’t wish to trade our students for those anywhere else in the world. During my time as President, I’ve continued to teach because I love our students, I love teaching, and it’s kept me in close touch with what our students are hoping for in their Regent education.

In various classes, I’ve gained a lot of insight into specific topics from interacting with students. We get to learn so much from such bright students—it spoils us as teachers. But mostly I’d say that they’ve taught me more of what deep, transformative learning involves. I’ve learned so much about learning by accompanying them as they wrestle with ideas, work together with their peers, apply challenging insights to their lives, and get their hands dirty together (sometimes literally, at least in the food course!).

How are you planning to spend your upcoming sabbatical?

First of all, it’s a time for me to embrace Sabbath rest and renewal for body, mind, and spirit. I am looking forward to the chance to shift gears and move into a different pace of life. Beyond that, my wife and I will be in Oxford, England, during the fall semester. I was a student at Oxford University long ago, so it seems like all things academic are coming full circle for me.

As you move into a Research Professor role, how do you anticipate your relationships with Regent faculty, staff, students, and the larger Regent community will change? What do you expect to stay the same?

The role of Research Professor at Regent means that I’ll still be teaching several courses each year as well as pursuing several writing and editing projects. So that will keep me connected with Regent students. I’ve had several academic projects on the back burner for a long time while my focus has been on leading the College. I am excited to be able to give attention to these projects, which will also keep me connected to my faculty colleagues.

What will change significantly for me is that this new role allows for no part whatsoever in administration. No more meetings or committees or involvement in governance. Stepping fully aside from that realm is totally right and proper. I’ve had my turn at leading the College, and I am passing the baton to Paul Spilsbury, someone whom I hold in the highest possible regard. I’ve observed that at other schools it’s proven quite unwise for former presidents to remain involved in administrative matters. I want to support and encourage Paul in every possible way as he brings his gifts and vision to this role.

What do you think you’ll miss about the role of President?

Ask me in a year! What I anticipate is that I will miss the unique opportunity afforded to the President to work constantly with everyone in the Regent community—students, staff, our senior administrative team, our faculty, Senate, Board, donors, alumni, and various friends of the College. I’ve had the chance to work with everyone and be involved with every aspect of the life of Regent. I’ve been involved in picking the colour of the carpet and in setting the strategic direction of the school, and everything in between. That’s been a great challenge and great fun. I’ve learned so much.

At Regent, the legacy of past founders, Presidents, and professors can often loom large. How do you hope your legacy will inspire and inform Regent's future leaders?

I’ve never thought about what my legacy might be. But I hope my legacy would be related to the way that I’ve championed the quality of student experience. Regent exists for students. It has been my greatest privilege to be the first graduate of the college to serve as President. For that reason, I think that I identify closely with today’s students. What I said when I accepted the job was that my motivation was to enable students to have the same kind of experience that I did—an education that is intellectually challenging, theologically robust, spiritually stretching, personally enriching, communally experienced, and just utterly life-giving. I hope that Regent’s future leaders and faculty will always remain resolutely focused on providing that kind of holistic, transformative learning.

What are your hopes for the future of Regent College?

Regent’s future is bright. With excellent leaders, strong faculty, and solid financial foundations, we are well positioned to flourish during some very difficult times for graduate theological education. My biggest hope is that Regent will continue to find new and creative ways to offer Regent education while remaining faithful to our theological vision and our educational mission. The best days of Regent are yet to come.

Dr. Jeff Greenman will conclude his term as President at the end of June 2025, and Dr. Paul Spilsbury will assume the role of President on July 1. Please join the Regent community in celebration and prayer for Jeff, Paul, and a smooth transition process.