The newest Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.) Cohort has been together for nearly a year without being able to meet in person. That changed this month. Members of the Cohort of 2023—who held their first intensive last fall via Zoom due to the pandemic—arrived on campus for their onsite intensive component July 12 through 16, 2021.
“It has been a blessing to be a part of the D.Min. program at St. Vladimir’s. Within a short time it has already enhanced my ministry a great deal,” said Fr. Sean Govostes, who serves at St. Katherine Greek Orthodox Church in Burlington, NC. “Being on campus for intensive week was very fruitful and beneficial for the entire cohort, if I may speak for us all. I would recommend the program to any priest who desires to better himself and enhance his parish.”
Joining Fr. Sean and the other D.Min. students on campus were Seminary professors Very Rev. Dr. Nicholas Solak and Dr. Ana Iltis. They taught Counseling in the Parish and Bioethics for Ministry, respectively. Professor Iltis is part of a group of noted professors who recently joined the D.Min. program, and the onsite intensive this month marked her first official visit to St. Vladimir’s in a teaching capacity.
“The onsite intensive lived up to its name in every way,” said Dr. Iltis. “Students and faculty were able to gather onsite at the seminary, and we enjoyed an intense week of exploring many of the ways bioethics issues relate to ministry.
“Witnessing the deep commitment the D.Min. students to advance their ministry was inspiring.”
The Cohort of 2023, the fourth that has formed since the D.Min. program was revived in 2014, was originally comprised of ten students from six different jurisdictions and denominations. Due to pandemic-related and other circumstances, a few students had to take leave from the program over the past year. The remaining students of the 2023 cohort are all priests who serve in parish ministry.
The D.Min. program at St. Vladimir’s Seminary provides priests, chaplains, and other pastoral professionals with advanced knowledge and skills. The program’s hybrid format allows students to continue serving in their current pastoral ministry while completing their D.Min. degree. For more information about the D.Min. program at St. Vladimir’s, contact Program Director Very Rev. Dr. Sergius Halvorsen at shalvorsen@svots.edu.
