houston graduate school of theology

This past July, HGST welcomed the first incoming class of students in its brand new Doctor of Professional Counseling (DPC) program. The DPC program is only the second of its kind in the nation, which puts Houston Graduate School of Theology at the forefront in the development of what we believe will be a much sought after terminal degree for professional counselors. To say I feel thrilled and honored to be the director of this new program is an understatement.

When I was invited to speak at Texas State University, I gave a speech entitled “The Case for a Zero Gift Policy.” The subject matter was ethics. Therefore, I spoke on what an employee can do when a local government has no guidelines or ethics policy.

Mission statements are essential for organizations. Clearly stating an organization’s purpose sets expectations, creates standard for evaluating institutional activities, and helps in decision-making. A mission statement can do that for families too.

When people begin looking into Houston Graduate School of Theology for the first time, they often stumble upon this tidbit from the school’s history: “Houston Graduate School of Theology had its beginnings in the Friends Institute of Religious Studies which offered continuing education courses for students and pastors in the Evangelical Friends Church (Quaker) beginning in 1976.”

I am preparing to teach a class on Psalms in July, so I am reading Walter Brueggemann’s Praying the Psalms: Engaging Scripture and the Life of the Spirit. Brueggemann wrote the book in 1980, revising and republishing it in 2007. The book serves as an early example of Brueggemann working out his schema for understanding, studying, teaching, and using the Old Testament Book of Psalms.