Public Service

Graduating student Salvador Peña has spent the past three years at HDS earning his master of divinity degree and seeking out new ways to help others.

"I’m interested in the cross section of where creativity and compassion intersect. I want to use my camera to help others express themselves and to communicate different issues that need more understanding and empathy."— Brenda Bancel, Special Student ‘17

The tradition of HDS graduates speaking and acting publicly—and often prophetically—extends back to the School’s earliest years. In his address to the graduating class of 1838, Ralph Waldo Emerson, HDS ’26, railed against a church “which seems to totter...

Sometimes the Rev. Katherine Buechner Arthaud, MDiv ’86, wonders if she’s making a difference. The crowd in the pews on Sundays can be small in the rural Vermont churches she serves. She’s not sure that her sermons always resonate with parishioners. A...

This summer, thanks to several generous gifts in support of Dean David N. Hempton’s campaign initiatives, HDS continued its ongoing effort to provide students with financial support so that they can serve communities locally and abroad through...

Writing is freedom for Precious Rasheeda Muhammad, MTS ’01: freedom from the life-threatening allergies and respiratory problems that have plagued her since she was a child; freedom from the prejudice and misunderstanding she experienced growing up...

As HDS enters its bicentennial year, there is an increasing representation of world religions at the School, which has fostered new communities and directions for alumni.

Liz Walker was one of the most famous and successful TV news personalities in Boston. She spent more than two decades as a reporter, as well as being the first African American news anchor on WBZ-TV. So, when she stepped down from the anchor desk, many of...

As a Volunteer in Mission with the Presbyterian Church, USA, in Thailand in the late 1980s, Rick Santos found himself in the middle of great socioeconomic and cultural shifts in Southeast Asia. Santos, MTS ’92, now president and CEO of the global public...

Silvia Mejia came to HDS thinking she would pursue further graduate work in religion. Instead, she ended up having a life-changing experience that led her to discover her passion: serving those who were invisible to her, and to many others. “I took the...