Dr. Darrell Gwaltney has announced his plan to retire as Dean of Belmont University’s College of Theology and Christian Ministry (CTCM), effective the end of the Fall 2022 semester. Gwaltney came to Belmont in May 2004 when the University had just under 4,000 students and the School of Religion served about 1,900 students. Today, Belmont’s student body has grown to 8,995 and CTCM serves more than 4,000 students each year, underscoring Gwaltney’s leadership throughout the more than 18 years since he joined Belmont.
Belmont President Dr. Greg Jones said, “Over the years as he has served Belmont, Darrell Gwaltney has made countless contributions to our campus community, the College of Theology and Christian Ministry and in the lives of hundreds of students. The nearly two decades of commitment and devoted attention that Dr. Gwaltney has graciously invested as dean have been instrumental to the growth of the College, its programs and our goal of forming Christ-centered leaders.”
Under Gwaltney’s leadership, Belmont’s School of Religion became the College of Theology and Christian Ministry and has grown its programs significantly. With 10 undergraduate programs and two graduate programs—including an M.A and a Ph.D. in Mental Health Counseling—the College continues to thrive. Most recently, the newly established Ph.D. in Mental Health Counseling earned full accreditation through the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC), Belmont’s accrediting body.
“I have been deeply changed by my students and those with whom I have worked,” Gwaltney said. “My faith and understanding of who I am vocationally has been enriched, deepened and improved by my colleagues’ profound faithfulness, kindness and creativity. As I move into a season of life where I am able to reflect on the work with which I have been privileged to participate, I look to each memory and each person with gratitude, wonder and grace.”
Gwaltney will be on the sabbatical for the Spring semester and will return to campus in Fall 2023 as a faculty member, teaching courses in Religion, Honors and Mental Health Counseling. He will also continue his work leading Project Thrive, the Moench Center for Church Leadership and the Academy of Preachers.
Belmont Interim Provost Dr. David Gregory added, “Although the role he will serve on our campus will look different in the coming months, I am so grateful that Dr. Gwaltney will be staying at Belmont as a member of our exceptional faculty. The impact he has made on our campus is immense, and I look forward to the continued impact he will make in the lives of our students moving forward.”
