General Catalog

We extend greetings to all who enter this space. Payne Theological Seminary, this nation’s oldest free standing accredited African American seminary welcomes your interest and curiosity. The history of this institution appears on the following pages of this catalog. Yet, it is critical to the seminary’s history to mention the direction and the support of the African Methodist Episcopal Church [AMEC]. It was the Bishops of the AME Church that commissioned the Reverend Alexander Payne to establish Payne Theological Seminary in 1844. Throughout its history, the seminary has proudly proclaimed and embraced its covenantal relationship with the African Methodist Episcopal Church. Over the years, Payne Theological Seminary has continued to ensconce and immerse its varied curricula in the ethos and history of the African and African American liberation experience. Alumni of Payne Theological Seminary serve churches throughout African Methodism, and other denominations. Payne Alumni are and have been Presidents of institutions, Bishops in the AME Church, and professional advocates for righteous living across the full spectrum of occupations and industries.

Payne Theological Seminary has entered an exciting era in its history. The new Bishop Reverdy Ransom Library will be opened for study and research in the early winter of 2009. The institution’s Doctor of Ministry program is continuing to receive students. The first cohort is expected to graduate in 2010. Payne Theological Seminary will implement a new two-year Master of Arts in Theological Studies degree in the fall of 2009. The seminary is celebrating the addition of its first fulltime female faculty person. The institution’s online program continues to grow and expand. Students continue to seek out the resources of the seminary to enable their choice[s] of various pathways to ministry.