2025 represented another great year of academic and ministry success for New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and Leavell College.
“This past year at NOBTS and Leavell College has brought us great joy in New Orleans, and God has richly blessed the School of Providence and Prayer,” said NOBTS President Jamie Dew.
“Our students and faculty have continued to show a remarkable commitment to the task before them. These men and women are faithfully preparing for service through service, and the faculty are diligently and joyfully committed to the work Southern Baptists have set before them.
“I am grateful for the work God has given us to do and the way the churches of the SBC equip and enable us to do that work through the Cooperative Program. I am thankful for the past year and anticipating a promising new year.”
A variety of academic achievements, ministry updates and historic milestones made the 2025 year deeply memorable.
Faculty and academic updates
NOBTS continued to experience a variety of academic updates and faculty additions throughout 2025.
New presidentially appointed faculty members in 2025 were:
NOBTS trustees elected two new faculty members who recently finished serving their two-year presidentially appointed period:
Adam Hughes was appointed as director of the Doctor of Ministry program in August. Hughes previously served as a ministry-based faculty member.
Former NOBTS faculty member Mark Johnson was named the 10th president of Louisiana Christian University (LCU) this February, marking a huge achievement for the seminary.
Several faculty members published books throughout the year, and more than 20 NOBTS students, faculty and alumni presented papers or moderated a session during the Evangelical Theological Society (ETS) in Boston, Mass., in November.
Additionally, the seminary continues to report growing enrollment numbers and students continue to make incredible academic achievements.
Lastly, NOBTS launched its new podcast with President Jamie Dew, titled “Beyond the Pulpit.”
The podcast features Dew conversing with a variety of guests, including many from NOBTS, about various ministry topics as well as more light-hearted subjects. Episodes premiere every two weeks and are available now on YouTube and all major podcast platforms.
History
Several historic milestones and anniversaries took place during the year.
NOBTS kicked off the spring semester this January after experiencing a record-setting winter storm which covered the campus in snow and postponed the start of classes.
It was the most snow that had ever been seen on the seminary’s campus with some areas reaching up to 10 inches, and campus residents took full advantage of the once-in-a-lifetime storm.
Throughout the spring semester, the seminary celebrated the 100th anniversary of the Cooperative Program and its historic connection to NOBTS, with special attention given to the role that M.E. Dodd, an instrumental figure in the founding of NOBTS, played in its formation.
This August marked the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, the storm that forever changed the city of New Orleans and NOBTS.
The seminary documented the experience of several staff and faculty members who lived through the storm in a feature article.
This Giving Tuesday (Dec. 2) NOBTS raised a record-setting total of just over $500,000. This far exceeded last year’s record total of just over $460,000. It was the first time the seminary has raised more than $500,000 on Giving Day.
Conferences/events
NOBTS hosted several notable conferences and events throughout the year including:
Missional Focus
Several activities and achievements of the seminary and its students continued to illustrate fulfilling its mission of preparing servants to walk with Christ, proclaim His truth, and fulfill His mission.
The Caskey Center for Church Excellence reached the significant milestone of 10,000 professions of faith as a result of student evangelism efforts since the Center’s inception in 2014.
Just in 2025, Caskey Center students have engaged in more than 15,000 Gospel conversations which have resulted in more than more than 1,300 professions of faith.
Crescent City Worship continues to minister through leading worship at NOBTS and at events across the country. In addition to leading at chapel throughout the year, CCW led worship at Falls Creek Youth Camp in Oklahoma, the Louisiana Youth Evangelism Conference and the NOBTS Alumni Luncheon at the 2025 SBC Annual Meeting.
The NOBTS Museum of the Bible and Archaeology continued to add to its outstanding collection of artifacts.
The Museum was gifted a facsimile replica of the Gutenberg Bible, one of the most significant artifacts in Christian history, this September. It is one of the closest things to an original copy in existence.
Individually, the Moskau Institute for archaeology continued to excavate in downtown New Orleans during the summer and strengthen its relationships with other archaeology organizations in Israel and the U.S.
The Center for New Testament Textual Studies also recently presented their latest project of producing a fully online edition of the Greek New Testament at the Evangelical Theological Society.
The Global Mission Center had a variety of exciting updates throughout the year including:
NOBTS students lived out the mission of the seminary beyond the classroom in their ministry to New Orleans and around the country.
Nearly 500 students, staff and faculty participated in the seminary’s spring and fall Serve Days. Students volunteered in other evangelism and service opportunities throughout the year including the SBC’s summer Crossover event and the seminary’s MissionLab.
Most importantly, the seminary produced more than 500 Leavell College and NOBTS graduates between the spring and fall semesters.
More information about NOBTS can be found here.
