Students no longer admitted to seminary

Seabury-Western Theological Seminary, which has been preparing Episcopal priests for 150 years, has stopped admitting students.

The Evanston seminary has told tenured faculty that their jobs will end next year, although officials insist the school isn't closing.

Officials at the Evanston seminary acknowledge a financial crisis is forcing the seminary to overhaul its approach to preparing priests. Leaders are exploring more affordable models for candidates to earn degrees, such as distance learning and short-term residential stints.

Seabury-Western's dean, the Reverend Gary Hall, says the institution wants to bring the traditional excellence of residential theological education to the new challenges and realities of the 21st Century.

The school is advising first-year students to transfer if they want to earn a master's of divinity degree at an Episcopal institution.