On February 6, 2024, at the meeting of the Seminary of the Southwest Board of Trustees, the Board unanimously voted to promote Dr. Gena St. David, director of the Loise Henderson Wessendorff Center for Christian Ministry and Vocation, to the rank of Full Professor.
“Gena St. David shines as a scholar, teacher, and administrator,” said Dr. Scott Bader-Saye, academic dean. “Since her last review she has published a remarkable book, The Brain and the Spirit, which brings together theology, psychology, and neuroscience in creative and fruitful ways. She has published in tier 1 counseling journals, and she has proven to be one of our most effective teachers. Under her leadership, the counseling program has received multiple grants that have allowed us to reach under-served communities in Texas with mental health care. This includes rural areas as well as Spanish-speaking communities. I am so pleased to be able to reward Gena’s exceptional work with this well-deserved promotion.”
Dr. St. David joined the Southwest faculty in 2015. In the Fall of 2017, she helped lead the efforts for the Henderson Wessendorff Center to achieve accreditation through CACREP. This accreditation vaulted the Counseling degree program at Southwest to become one of the most sought-after graduate degrees in the region for those looking to become Licensed Professional Counselors (LPC).
In 2019, she was named director of the Henderson Wessendorff Center, and has overseen a period of tremendous growth, wherein the Counseling Faculty has doubled in size and increased significantly the diversity of the entire Southwest Faculty.
“Dr. Gena St. David is a leader of incomparable wisdom, skill, and grace,” said the Very Rev. Cynthia Briggs Kittredge, dean and president. “We celebrate her promotion to full Professor.”
