Weekly Email: August 24, 2026

Weekly Email

Aug 24

We are now in Week 4 of the Fall 1 term. This week I want to talk about something outside the classroom that I think can help you get the most out of your online experience here at Southern, and that's community. I also want to put a live virtual Q&A with Dr. McKinley on your radar for those of you thinking about missions.

Congrats to the giveaway winners: John B and AJ S. Amy will be in contact with you this week. Thanks to everyone who did the survey and entered the giveaway. There is so much valuable feedback and our online team will be looking through everything and thinking through ways we can improve the program and your experience.

In this email:

Student Tip: Don't Do Seminary Alone
Program News: Virtual Q&A with Dr. McKinley

Student Tip: Don't Do Seminary Alone

When we talk about community in an online program, our minds usually go first to building community with each other virtually. That matters and I'll get to it. But I think one of the most important ways to get the most out of your online experience is to be in conversation with the people in your physical orbit, a pastor or associate pastor or other elders, about what you're learning.

Make a point to reach out if you haven't already and just say, "Hey, I'm doing seminary and I would love to meet weekly or biweekly or once a month to discuss what I'm learning and to work on applying it on the ground where I'm at." I've talked to some of you who pastor smaller churches and the honest response is, "I don't really have anybody to talk to." If that's you, look to your local association. I know of some pastors who meet with other pastors in their area and others who meet virtually over Zoom and then get together in person at longer intervals when distance or travel is an issue.

The next level is meeting other online students. The Experiential Modulars are one of the best ways to do that. The fall modulars are just a few weeks away and sign-ups for the spring will be opening up soon. What makes them so valuable isn't only the time with faculty. It's students meeting other students in person, talking, having coffee, and forming friendships that carry on long after the week is over. It's been awesome to see students come back for another modular and just pick up right where they left off with each other.

Then there's digital community. This is one of the reasons we have the Southern Seminary app, and it's different from a lot of community platforms that want you to spend all your time in there. We don't really care if the app is where you do most of your communicating. It exists to help you find other students with similar interests. What I love hearing is when students meet in the app and then take it further, a group text or a coffee when they realize somebody lives nearby. Discussions and questions and group feedback in the app are great but we'd love for you to launch out and form those connections in other places too. If you haven't joined the online community and need a link, email Amy (agillham@sbts.edu).

As the semester gets going, if you realize you're not talking to anybody about what you're learning, work through those levels and start forming those relationships. The in-person ones are by far the most important. There's something about being with other people that a screen can't replicate and as an online student it takes more intentionality to build.

On campus you can walk into the coffee shop and fifty other students are sitting there in the same boat as you. Online, you have to go build that where you're rooted.

Don't do seminary alone.

I'd also love to hear the ways you've been able to connect with others in your online classes. Feel free to reply to this email. I love hearing from students about what's going on in their lives.

Program News: Virtual Q&A with Dr. McKinley

Some of you came to seminary already knowing missions is where you're headed. Others of you have felt something stirring in a class or a sermon and haven't done much with it yet. Either way, it can be hard to know what the next step is supposed to look like from where you're sitting.

Dr. Keith McKinley, Professor of Christian Missions and Director of the Bevin Center for Missions Mobilization, is hosting a live virtual Q&A on August 25 at 4:00 pm EST. He'll be talking through missiology, studying at Southern, and whatever questions you bring. It's open to prospective and current master's and doctoral students, so even though you're already enrolled, you're welcome to join.

If missions is anywhere on your radar, even loosely, an hour with someone who has given his life to this work is a good way to test what you're sensing. And if you leave more certain that God has you right where you are, that's worth figuring out as well.

We also have some other upcoming webinars as well you might be interested in:

DMin and DEdMin Q&A with Dr. Matt Haste, Vice President of Doctoral Studies and Associate Professor of Biblical Spirituality and Biblical Counseling (Tuesday, September 1 at 4 pm EST)
PhD and Research Doctoral Studies Q&A with Dr. Ayman Ibrahim, Director of Research Doctoral Studies and Bill and Connie Jenkins Professor of Islamic Studies (Thursday, September 10 at 4:00 pm EST)
Making it Work: Moving to On-Campus Studies with the Southern Admissions staff. They will cover financial aid, housing options, and resources for families, finding work, and life in Louisville.
Church History and Piety Q&A with Dr. Michael A.G. Haykin, Professor of Church History and Biblical Spirituality (Tuesday, October 6 at 4:00 pm EST)

You can see all the upcoming virtual events here.