Seminary Professors Honored with Emeritus Status
Two of Asbury’s counseling professors have been honored by the Seminary for their decades of exemplary contributions to the Seminary’s mission.
Dr. Anthony (Tony) Headley (ATS ‘81), Professor of Counseling, will retire from the regular faculty on June 30. He has been a professor at Asbury since 1990. He is renowned in his discipline as a Christian scholar and practitioner in counseling, carrying certifications in multiple assessments, especially for couples. His students consistently speak of his acumen in the counseling and pastoral care disciplines, his winsome sense of humor, and his commitment to pastoral wellness.
His heart for pastors has been evident in his doctoral research as well as subsequent publications. There are hundreds of Doctor of Ministry students who benefited from his professional development conversations from 2000-2013. He designed and teaches in Asbury’s Certificate in Pastoral Counseling. When you consider his extensive teaching overseas, he continues to have a significant impact on the Church and her shepherds.
Dr. Headley has chaired the counseling and pastoral care department on several occasions, including 2020-21. He was one of the founding authors of Asbury’s Sustaining Pastoral Excellence grant (PSALM) proposal that yielded $3,000,000 in funding from the Lilly Endowment and provided start-up resources for what is now Seedbed/New Room. For over three decades, he has honored his alma mater with a commitment to equip pastors and counselors for ministry. He has embodied scholarship, teaching, service to the Seminary and service to the Church.
Dr. Virginia (Toddy) Holeman, officially retired as Professor of Counseling on June 30, 2020. Due to exceptional growth in enrollments in Asbury’s counseling degree programs, she agreed to come out of retirement for one year to help meet the need. She originally joined the faculty in 1995. Dr. Holeman has distinguished herself in the Academy as a Christian scholar and practitioner in counseling. Her research on forgiveness has been a guiding force in the counseling discipline as she has modeled robust engagement in academic and professional conversations.
As a faculty member, Dr. Holeman’s teaching record has been exemplary. She has maintained high standards in the classroom while serving students with healthy boundaries that call them forward in personal and professional maturity. Mutual respect and affection mark her relationships with students.
She has masterfully led the Seminary in the process of accrediting the MA in Mental Health Counseling degree program that has resulted in significant increases in quality and enrollments. She has also guided the department as it prepares to seek similar accreditation for the MA in Marriage and Family Counseling.
Dr. Holeman has served as interim Dean for the School of Practical Theology, was Associate Dean of the former School of Theology, and her seminal contributions on standing groups like the Faculty Committee and search teams have helped set the future of the Asbury community.
Emeritus status is reserved for faculty who have exemplified distinguished service to the Seminary for a minimum of fifteen years. More importantly, the honor reflects high esteem by students, faculty, administrators and trustees for lives given to a Wesleyan integration of scholarship and formation. May their ensuing ministries be marked by the same faithfulness!
Dr. Headley,
Congratulations on your retirement. You helped me a lot as my mentor for my D.Min. dissertation. May God bless you and your family in your retirement.