Asbury Seminary Grads Elected UM Conference Bishops
Bishop Frank Beard
Asbury Theological Seminary is pleased to announce that two of the recently elected United Methodist bishops in the USA are graduates of the Seminary. Bishop Frank Beard and Bishop James Nunn were elected to the North Central Jurisdictional Conference and the South Central Jurisdictional Conference respectively.
“We are delighted that Asbury Theological Seminary continues to provide leaders to serve throughout the connectional system,” Dr. Timothy Tennent, President of Asbury Theological Seminary, said. “We join with the denomination’s Book of Discipline and challenge the new bishops to ‘guard the faith, order, liturgy, doctrine and discipline of the church.’ We pray that you will be both prophetic voices and courageous leaders.”
Bishop Beard and Bishop Nunn join the ranks of other Asbury Seminary graduates currently serving as bishops in the USA:
- Bishop Peggy A. Olver Johnson, M.Div., 1980
- Bishop Mark James Webb, M.Div., 1989
- Bishop Debra Kaye Wallace-Padgett, D.Min., 2000
Bishop James Nunn
Prior to his appointment, Bishop Beard pastored Castelton UMC in Indianapolis. His new jurisdiction includes the states of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota and Wisconsin.
Bishop Nunn has been mission and administration director of the Lubbock, Texas-based conference since 2011. His new jurisdiction includes the states of Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Texas and Louisiana.