Dear Members of the Yale Community,
We write to share that Gregory E. Sterling, the Lillian Claus Professor of New Testament, will conclude his service as The Reverend Henry L. Slack Dean of Yale Divinity School (YDS) at the end of the 2026-2027 academic year. By the end of his term, Greg will have served fifteen years as dean. We congratulate and thank him for all he has accomplished on behalf of the school and university, and we are grateful that he will continue to teach and conduct research as a member of the faculty.
Since becoming dean in 2012, Greg has guided YDS through a period of significant growth and transformation. During his tenure, YDS has expanded its academic programs, increased access to theological education, advanced initiatives focused on sustainability, justice, and community, renewed much of the school’s physical campus, and raised funds in record-breaking amounts. As dean, Greg has been instrumental in solidifying YDS as one of the world’s preeminent centers for theological scholarship and a moral voice for addressing today’s global challenges.
Over the course of his deanship, Greg has prioritized making YDS more accessible and responsive to constantly changing religious and cultural landscapes. In 2015, he set out to provide full tuition for every YDS student with demonstrated financial need. By 2022, the school had achieved that goal — covering full tuition and supporting some living expenses for all students qualifying for need-based aid, who constitute 95 percent of the Divinity School’s student body.
Greg has been a dedicated leader in building a dynamic YDS community that supports theological thinkers from all walks of life. Under his leadership, applications reached record levels, and the school emerged as one of the most selective divinity schools in the world. His efforts have brought exceptional faculty, staff, and students to Yale. At the same time, Greg has spearheaded an extraordinary era of philanthropic growth for the school. YDS raised more than $147.5 million during the current campaign — far surpassing previous fundraising records — enabling transformative investments in student life, financial aid, faculty support, and campus infrastructure.
A scholar committed to theological education and public leadership, Greg oversaw a reimagining of the school’s signature master of divinity program to better prepare students for ministry in an increasingly complex world. During Greg’s tenure, YDS also expanded the master of arts in religion (M.A.R.) program to support new forms of ministry, including nonprofit leadership and other areas of public service.
Throughout Greg’s deanship, YDS completed major renovations and additions, including the restoration of the Old Refectory and Old Common Room, and the remodeling of what is now the Croll Family Entrance Hall. Among the most visible examples of his leadership is the creation of the Living Village, the largest living-building residential complex on a university campus. Designed to give back to the environment more than it takes, the Living Village is a defining achievement at Yale and serves as a model for bold solutions that benefit people and the planet. Greg’s steadfast commitment to this landmark project — galvanizing the support needed to move from concept to student occupancy — reflects his ability to translate ambitious ideas into transformative realities.
In addition to the Living Village, Greg led efforts to adopt sustainability practices at the Divinity School, including a carbon tax on faculty and staff air travel — the first such tax at Yale — used to support environmental initiatives. He also led work to establish a religion and ecology concentration in the M.A.R. program and certificates in religion and ecology and ecological leadership and ministry. Together, these efforts established YDS as a global leader in ecotheology and religion-based responses to climate change and other planetary challenges.
As dean, Greg has fostered seminal partnerships and affiliations. In 2016, he led the historic affiliation between YDS and Andover Newton Theological School, now Andover Newton Seminary at YDS, broadening the school’s ministerial education and denominational engagement. He also nurtured YDS’s historic affiliation with Berkeley Divinity School at Yale and its unique partnership with the Institute of Sacred Music, enriching students’ opportunities for training in history, theology, music, and the arts.
Additionally, under Greg’s leadership, YDS established and strengthened several centers and initiatives that broadened the school’s public and academic reach, including the Center for Continuing Education, home to the Divinity School’s certificate program in youth ministry — the school’s first certificate program for non-degree students — and the Center for Public Theology and Public Policy.
Colleagues, students, alumni, and friends know Greg as a talented leader and scholar who is motivated by his faith to treat all people with kindness and dignity. We admire his accomplishments and acknowledge the countless lives he has touched through his human-centered leadership. Planning is underway for events throughout the year to gather and celebrate his remarkable deanship.
In the coming months, the provost’s office will form a search advisory committee to help identify candidates for the next dean of YDS. We will keep the community informed throughout the search process and share opportunities to provide input.
Please join us in expressing our profound gratitude to Greg for his exceptional service to Yale and for the enduring legacy he leaves at Yale Divinity School.
Sincerely,
Maurie McInnis
President
Professor of the History of Art
Scott Strobel
Provost
Henry Ford II Professor of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry