May 4, 2004

By Suanne Whorl*

PITTSBURGH (UMNS) — General Conference delegates elected four people to serve on the 25-member University Senate, a body of professionals in higher education that determines which academic institutions meet the criteria to be affiliated with the United Methodist Church.

The Rev. David Maldonado, Jr., president of Iliff School of Theology in Denver, and Dr. Socorro Brito de Anda, president of Lydia Patterson Institute in El Paso, Texas, were elected in the category of chief executive officers of United Methodist higher education institutions.

The Rev. Rebekah Miles, professor of ethics and United Methodist doctrine at Perkins School of Theology in Dallas, and the Rev. L. Gregory Jones, vice-president of the Association of United Methodist Theological Schools, were elected in the category of persons holding positions relevant to academic or financial affairs or church relationships.

The four elected by General Conference were chosen from a slate of 13 nominees. The remaining 21 members of the senate are selected by other groups: nine by the National Association of Schools and Colleges of the United Methodist Church, four by the United Methodist General Board of Higher Education and Ministry, four by the Council of Bishops, and four by the senate itself.

The senate was established by the Methodist General Conference of 1892 and is an affiliate of the Board of Higher Education and Ministry. It monitors, evaluates and approves the 123 colleges, universities, preparatory and theological schools related to the denomination. Most of the senate’s members are professional educators and administrators at United Methodist educational institutions.

*Whorl is a correspondent for the United Methodist News Service.

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