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UNION THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY
NEW YORK, NY · EIN 131624238 · Form 990 · FY2024 · NTEE B500 · Education · Large ($10M-$50M) · utsnyc.edu
revenue
$27.8M
expenses
$32.9M
net assets
$197.4M
employees
239
volunteers
29
program ratio
71%
mission · from form 990

TO PROVIDE THEOLOGICAL EDUCATION.

profile · synthesized from sources

Union Theological Seminary is a New York-based institution providing theological education and training for religious and academic leaders. It emphasizes social justice, inter-religious engagement, and intellectual rigor in its academic programs. The seminary is undertaking a major campus revitalization initiative to preserve its historic facilities, modernize infrastructure, and ensure long-term sustainability while maintaining its mission-centered focus.

named programs · 3 · from sources

What they call their work

Affordable Housing Initiative
Component of the facilities plan to address neighborhood housing needs through development partnerships, currently in planning stages
Jubilee Strategic Plan
Institutional framework to expand economic access to theological education, strengthen social justice programming, and integrate inter-religious and global engagement into academic offerings
Master Facilities Plan
Comprehensive campus renovation initiative to modernize HVAC, plumbing, and electrical systems; improve accessibility; create smart classrooms; and upgrade student and faculty housing
activities · 8 groups

What they do

  • Religious Education and Instruction 1 activity
    • Deliver educational programs in correctional facilities
      Provides accredited theological education programs at Bedford Hills and Sing Sing Correctional Facilities, extending access to seminary-level coursework within carceral settings.
  • Interfaith Dialogue & Peacebuilding 1 activity
    • Educate faith leaders for social justice engagement
      Trains individuals across faith traditions (and none) for leadership roles addressing critical social issues such as racial equity, criminal justice reform, income inequality, and environmental protection, integrating faith, spirituality, and scholarship into transformative practice.
  • General Support for Educational Institutions 1 activity
    • Generate operating revenue through facility leases
      Negotiates long-term leases with Columbia University for three campus buildings, producing annual income that supports the Seminary’s operating budget.
  • Campus Construction and Renovation Projects 1 activity
    • Implement campus infrastructure and community renewal initiatives
      Executes a long-term campus renewal plan involving core infrastructure renovation, modernization of housing, construction of smart classrooms, expansion of scholarship aid, and contribution to local affordable housing projects, developed through inclusive community planning.
  • Infection Prevention & Control Protocols 1 activity
    • Promote community health and wellbeing on campus
      Maintains a shared commitment to community health through mutual respect and compassion, implementing public health protocols including cleaning, vaccination and testing support, contact tracing, isolation/quarantine procedures, and mental health resource access in coordination with Columbia Health.
  • Higher Education Degree Programs 1 activity
    • Provide accredited theological education and graduate programs
      Offers theological education through accredited degree programs, including M.Div., M.S.S.W., and joint/dual degree options in partnership with Columbia University and Hunter College, fostering intellectual excellence, social justice, and compassionate wisdom. Programs are open to students regardless of background and include cross-registration opportunities with other graduate schools.
  • Alumni Community Building 1 activity
    • Support alumni engagement and donor relations
      Conducts advancement activities including alumni outreach via newsletters, regional gatherings, reunions, donor database management, and coordination of prospect visits and fundraising events such as the Annual Appeal and 1836 Day.
  • Uncategorized 1 activity
    • Advance institutional capacity through collaborative networks
      Engages in the Academic and Student Experience Collaborative (ASEC) with other independent seminaries to strengthen student support, career development, curricular design, course sharing, and academic administration.
financials · form 990 · fy2024
revenue
Total revenue$27.76M
Contributions & grants$12.06M43%
Program service revenue$9.55M34%
Investment income$5.93M21%
Other revenue$212K
expenses
Total expenses$32.94M
Program expenses71%
Admin / overhead25%
Fundraising4%
Salaries & benefits$11.26M
Grants paid out$4.42M
Largest expense lineCompensation
balance sheet
Total assets$228.88M
Cash$8.26M
Investments$139.88M
Liabilities$31.46M
Net assets$197.42M
Liquid reserves54.0 mo
6 years on record · 2019–2024 · YoY revenue -29.0%
leadership · form 990 part vii · fy2024

Who runs it

paid leadership · 11
NameTitleHours/wkCompensation
THE REV DR SERENE JONES PRESIDENT 40 $527K
WILLIAM PEABODY CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER 40 $334K
SU YON PAK VP OF ACADEMIC AFFAIRS & DEAN 40 $269K
MAURA SMITH VP FOR DEVELOPMENT 40 $256K
AFSHEEN SHAMSI VP OF COMMUNICATIONS & MARKETING 40 $223K
MARY BOYS SKINNER MCALPIN PROFESSOR OF PRACTICAL THEOLOGY 40 $212K
FREDERICK DAVIE SENIOR EVP FOR PUBLIC THEOLOGY & CIVIC ENG. 40 $182K
DAVID GASTWIRTH VP FOR ONLINE ED & LEARNING INNOVATION 40 $178K
VANESSA HUTCHINSON VP OF ADMISSSIONS & FIN. AID 40 $161K
JODY WEST SECRETARY INTERIM TREASURER/VP FOR ADMINISTRATION 40 $148K
IVAN DE JESUS SENIOR ACCOUNTANT 40 $146K
board members · 14
  • CALVIN MEW — TRUSTEE
  • CAROLINE LAGUERRE-BROWN — TRUSTEE THRU OCT 2024
  • CHANG PARK — TRUSTEE
  • CLIFFORD HUDSON — CHAIR
  • CRAIG J MILLER — TRUSTEE
  • DAVID KLASSEN — TRUSTEE
  • DAVID M MCALPIN — TRUSTEE THRU MAY 2025
  • DR TIMOTHY LIGHT — TRUSTEE
  • GEOFFREY BROWN — TRUSTEE
  • JAMES BLUE III — TRUSTEE
  • JASON G WRIGHT — TRUSTEE THRU MAY 2025
  • MARIAN MARCUS WARDEN — TRUSTEE
  • MILLICENT FORTUNOFF — TRUSTEE
  • REV DR MARK HOSTETTER — TRUSTEE
relationships · 12

Who they work with

  • Association of Theological Schools Network — Member institution accredited by ATS
  • Chaplaincy Innovation Lab Partner — Collaborates with Union to enhance chaplaincy education, training, and innovation across diverse contexts.
  • Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School (CRCDS) Partner — Member of the Academic and Student Experience Collaborative (ASEC), collaborating on student support, curricular development, and academic administration.
  • Columbia Health Partner — Collaborates with Union Theological Seminary to support vaccination, testing, contact tracing, isolation, and quarantine protocols.
  • Columbia University Partner — Negotiated long-term leases for three campus buildings to generate operating income.
  • Columbia University Partner — Partner institution offering dual degree programs, cross-registration, and shared access to library, health, fitness, and university programming.
  • Diana Torres-Petrilli Partner — Chief Human Resources Officer at Union Theological Seminary
  • Hunter College Partner — Partner in offering a joint M.Div./MSW dual degree program focused on spiritual and social contexts.
  • Middle States Commission on Higher Education Government — Accredited by MSCHE
  • New York State Education Department Government — State authorization and SARA complaint resolution oversight
  • New York Theological Seminary (NYTS) Partner — Member of the Academic and Student Experience Collaborative (ASEC), collaborating on student support, curricular development, and academic administration.
  • liberation theologians Network — Engages with the theological framework and community of liberation theologians through its values and educational approach.
strategies · 5

How they approach the work

Named approaches extracted from this org’s sources. Where others share an approach, follow it to see the full set of orgs running it.

  • Generative Theological Tension
    methodology: generative-theological-tension
    By fostering constructive tension among diverse theological traditions (e.g., Womanist, feminist, process, liberation, interreligious), the institution generates new theological insights and adaptive expressions of faith, because innovation in religious thought emerges from pluralistic dialogue.
  • Holistic Leadership Formation
    methodology: holistic-leadership-formation
    By cultivating spiritual, intellectual, ethical, and relational capacities in tandem, the institution prepares leaders for complex real-world challenges, because effective ministry and justice work require integrated personal and professional formation.
  • Integration of Scholarship and Justice
    methodology: scholarship-and-justice-integration
    By integrating rigorous academic scholarship with a passionate commitment to social justice, the institution forms leaders who are intellectually and ethically equipped for transformative engagement, because justice is understood as intrinsic to theological education.
  • Liberation-Centered Theological Education
    methodology: preferential-option-for-the-poor
    By centering the perspectives and needs of marginalized communities—particularly through liberation theology frameworks—the institution produces theological leadership that challenges systemic oppression, because faithfulness requires a preferential option for the poor and oppressed.
  • Urban-Centered Contextual Education
    methodology: urban-centered theological education
    By grounding theological education in an urban context, the institution aligns academic rigor and ministerial training with the lived realities and needs of cities, because urban environments are critical sites for justice, diversity, and public faith engagement.