KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and Spurgeon College celebrate another year marked by the Lord’s kindness, institutional growth, and significant ministry developments.
“I am incredibly grateful for this past year in the life of Midwestern Seminary and Spurgeon College,” said President Jason Allen. “From our enrollment gains to our on-campus community, we have so much for which to give thanks. The Lord continues to bless this institution by sending us quality students who are eager to serve the church.”
Enrollment, programs and projects
Midwestern Seminary and Spurgeon College continued to grow in both enrollment and academic offerings in 2025 – marking 13 consecutive years of enrollment growth. During the May and December commencement ceremonies, more than 750 degrees and certificates were awarded across undergraduate, master’s and doctoral programs.
A major highlight this year was the extension of the For the Church Cohorts into the 2026-2027 academic year, providing 96 students with full-tuition scholarships for their first year of residential studies. These cohorts continue to be one of the institution’s signature programs, offering hands-on ministry experience and close-knit community among students and faculty.
“I am very thankful for another year of full-tuition scholarships for residential MDiv students through our FTC Cohort program,” said Allen. “Thanks to generous donors, students can receive intensive mentorship from our faculty and get a great head start on their degrees. There has never been a better time to study with us in Kansas City.”
Additionally, the Lord has been exceedingly kind to provide more laborers for the harvest through the Fusion Program. This past spring and summer, 13 teams were sent out from Spurgeon College to serve the Great Commission in Africa, Asia, and Europe. Another 11 teams are preparing for deployment in 2026, alongside 10 additional Fusion Impact teams of high school students training for service across Africa, Asia, Europe, and South America.
Academic programs expanded as well. Spurgeon College launched several new Christian education degree programs, while Midwestern Seminary added a Master of Business Administration degree, a Ph.D. in Church History, and a D.Min. in Biblical Spirituality.
Campus development moved forward through several notable construction projects, the most significant being the transformation of the former Library Annex at the Koehn-Meyers Hall into a dormitory for the Fusion Program—an investment into future missionaries being trained on campus. The Koehn-Meyers Hall is named after Bill Koehn and Martha Meyers, who were tragically killed while serving at a Baptist hospital in Yemen.
Reflecting on the legacy of Koehn and Meyers, Allen shared, “We are proud to be associated with both Bill Koehn and Martha Meyers and are grateful for their service. We pray that their legacy endures for generations here at this institution.”
Endowed chairs and faculty
The continued growth of Midwestern Seminary and Spurgeon College was matched by encouraging developments among faculty and staff.
Midwestern Seminary was pleased to install two more faculty members into endowed chairs: Matthew Swain was installed in the Wayne and Berna Dean Lee Endowed Chair of Church Music and Worship Ministries and Michael McMullen was installed in the Lee and Tammy Roberson Endowed Chair of Church History.
This year also included the announcement of a new endowed chair to be filled in the spring: The Bill and Connie Jenkins Endowed Chair of Historical Theology and Spurgeon Studies.
The faculty at Midwestern Seminary continues to expand as four new members joined the institution: John Meade, Peter Gurry, Matt Boswell, and Ronni Kurtz—each bringing expertise and a desire to serve the Church. Faculty members continued to publish an array of beneficial resources for the Church. Publications in 2025 included:
- Lest We Drift: 5 Departure Dangers from the One True Gospel by Jared C. Wilson
- Letters to My Students, Volume 3: On Life and Doctrine by Jason K. Allen
- Big Thoughts for Little Thinkers by Joe M. Allen III
- Zephaniah: A Discourse Analysis of the Hebrew Bible by Jason S. DeRouchie
- The Real-World Theology series edited by Samuel L. Bierig
- Praise God, All Creatures: A Doxology for Children by Jason G. Duesing
- Enjoying Jesus’s Bible: The Old Testament for Christians by Jason S. DeRouchie
- Spurgeon and the Gospels by Geoffrey Chang
- New Word Biblical Themes: Matthew by Patrick Schreiner
Reflecting on the addition of new faculty and the sustained effort of the entire faculty to produce content that blesses the Church, Allen stated, “In God’s kind providence, He has assembled a new and supremely gifted generation of scholars on this campus. I cannot be more proud of the men and women who teach here.”
Conferences and special guests
The seminary was pleased to welcome students, pastors, and ministry leaders to several major gatherings throughout the year.
Locally, Midwestern Seminary hosted another successful For the Church National Conference, focused on the theme “Kingdom Come.” In addition, the seminary encouraged youth seeking to stand firm in their faith at the Ready Conference while the 9Marks Conference equipped pastors and seminary students for healthy church leadership.
Throughout the year, the seminary community benefited from lectures and sermons by special guests including Peter Williams, principal and CEO of Tyndale House in Cambridge; Andrew T. Walker, professor of Christian ethics and public theology at Southern Seminary; Robert Smith, distinguished professor of divinity at Beeson Divinity School; Kevin Ezell, president of the North American Mission Board; and a panel on “Why We Are Southern Baptist,” featuring Jamie Dew, president of New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary.
Beyond Kansas City
Beyond the seminary, Midwestern Seminary President Jason Allen delivered the seminary report at the Southern Baptist Convention. Additionally, 28 Midwestern Seminary Ph.D. students, graduates, and faculty presented at the annual Evangelical Theological Society meeting in Boston this November.
Midwestern Seminary launched the Midwestern Institute for Preaching and Preachers, providing training and resources for preachers throughout the Midwest region. Each workshop has its own unique emphasis, including preaching tough texts, pastoring through preaching, and preaching from the Gospels.
“We consider not only the students we train but the churches we serve to be a precious stewardship. And we consider it a double stewardship to serve those churches in our immediate proximity,” Allen said.
The seminary also continued its tradition of blessing pastors through its $10,000 giveaway for Pastor Appreciation Month. This year’s recipient was Zachary Evans, pastor of New Life Baptist Church in Newalla, Oklahoma. Half of these funds will be used for his family to get rest on a family vacation, and the other half will be used the needs of his church.
Speaking of the portion dedicated to their church, Evans stated, “The money comes at a critical time for our church. We have some maintenance in our small-group spaces that this will help with. We will also use half of it to help fund our food pantry. This funding will help us continue to serve people in the community in a time of need.”
The Singing Seminary
The Department of Worship Ministries had several significant developments in 2025.
The addition of Matt Boswell to the faculty of Midwestern Seminary provides another strong voice to train the next generation of leaders for the Church.
The Department of Worship Ministries also acquired the Butler Collection – a treasury of historic songbooks, modern hymnals, and worship resources.
The department concluded the year with a concert titled “A Campus Christmas,” a joyful evening featuring the Voices of Midwestern choir, the North Oak Collective band, and guest musicians.
Athletics
With new coaches and standout athletes leading the way, Spurgeon College’s athletics programs saw great success this year.
The Spurgeon Knights welcomed two new coaching hires: Brooklynn Elder, the head women’s soccer coach, and Jojo Wilkes, the head volleyball coach.
Multiple programs achieved significant milestones this year. The men’s basketball team made history – winning the regional championship, finishing second place in the national championship, and was recently ranked #1 in the NCCAA Division II Coach’s Poll for the first time. They still remain undefeated in the 2025–2026 season to date.
Additionally, the cross-country team achieved podium positions at the NCCAA National Championships, and the women’s team placed seventh in the nation in Division 2. The men’s soccer team made it to the central region final.
In light of all the news this year, we are deeply grateful for the Lord’s kindness and for the support of all who assist and pray for us as we seek to raise the next generation of leaders for the Church. Without the Lord’s provision and direction – along with your continued support and prayers – we could not serve the Church in the ways we do.
Wherever you find yourself this season, we pray you have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Related posts:
MBTS Year in Review: 10 years For the Church 
MBTS rededicates Spurgeon Library, fills endowed chairs at spring trustee meeting 
FROM THE SEMINARIES: Dockery, at SBTS, sees evangelical/Southern Baptist benefit; SEBTS names 4 new faculty members; MBTS journal looks at ‘Biblical Theology and Missions’ 
FROM THE SEMINARIES: Clifton joins MBTS faculty; NOBTS Prepare Here Conference; SEBTS Page Lectures; MBTS Send Network partnership 
Midwestern sends 167 December grads into ministry 
TIME magazine covers prompt closer look at ‘Truth’ 
NEWS DIGEST: Fusion teams return to Spurgeon College; Allen joins Mid-America FROM THE SEMINARIES: MBTS receives $1.25M Lilly grant, releases latest theology journal
