St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary (SVOTS) faculty member Dn. John (Rassem) El Massih was ordained to the Holy Priesthood on Sunday, August 30 by the hand of His Eminence Metropolitan Joseph of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America (AOCANA). The ordination took place during a hierarchical Divine Liturgy...

In the spring of 2020, New York state was the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic. Saint Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary (SVOTS) classes went virtual, and its chapel and liturgical life were effectively suspended. But several months later, in August, SVOTS reopened for the new academic year with in-person classes, full...

Saint Vladimir’s Seminary President Fr. Chad Hatfield ’s fascinating presentation about North American saints is now available to the public. Father Chad delivered the presentation, “Orthodox Christian Saints of North America,” for the Orthodox Christian Laity (OCL)’s 33rd Annual Meeting and Program on November 13, 2020. A recording of the...

Saint Vladimir’s Seminary Director of Music Harrison Russin has successfully defended his doctoral dissertation, “I Believe: The Credo in Music, 1300–1500.” Russin passed the oral examination via Zoom on January 22, 2021.

Fr. David Barr (SVOTS Class of ’83), pastor of St. Elias Orthodox Church in Austin, Texas since 2004, recently participated in a phone interview with Ginny Nieuwsma from the Seminary’s advancement team. We appreciate the time he took to answer her questions. He emphasizes the unique place of St Vladimir’s...

Seven seminarians from the Serbian Orthodox Church are enrolled at St. Vladimir’s Seminary in the 2018-2019 Academic Year. The Serbian Scholarship, so generously established by some of the Seminary’s outstanding servants and donors, pays for up to three Serbian Orthodox students each year to attend seminary. Funding is needed, however...

Rick and Jean Wagner hail from St. Paul, Minnesota. Rick completed his undergraduate education in chemistry at UNC-Chapel Hill and then earned a Ph.D. at Duke University. Jean attended Duke University in Biomedical Engineering, obtaining both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree. After Rick finished a NIH post-doctoral Fellowship at...

Giving gratitude to the founders and benefactors of the Sacred Art Institute at St. Vladimir’s Seminary: In honor of Drs. Frank and Alcides Kulik Much has been publicly reported about the ongoing work toward the Institute of Sacred Arts (ISA) at St. Vladimir’s Seminary (SVOTS). It would be remiss, however...

Matushka Laurel Magruder works in the banking industry and enjoys serving as a Sunday School teacher at their home parish, St. Andrew Orthodox Church in Baltimore, MD. Deacon James and Mat. Laurel are blessed with two children. Deacon James received the M.Div. from St. Vladimir's Seminary in 2003 and a...

Making the choice to volunteer a great deal of your time and energy--even for a cause you believe in--is no easy decision. So what makes these women leaders, all members of St. Vladimir's Seminary's Board of Trustees, do what they do? To find out, Director of Advancement Sharon Macrina Ross...