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Augustus Witherspoon Leadership Award
Brother Dr. Edward Wheeler
August 27, 2023
Award criteria:
- Leadership positions held in Alpha locally, regionally and nationally. Positions may be elected and/or appointed
- Any leadership offices held in community, civic or other organizations. Positions can be elected and appointed
- Ongoing involvement in groups where leadership occurred. This can include service as a member and in a leadership position
- Effects of candidate influence on the groups and the individuals of involvement
- Any leadership mentoring: peer-to-peer or senior to junior type
- Cover the most recent three to five years period of service
Brother accomplishments
- Served Sigma Pi Lambda Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity as the Chaplain for the past three and a half years. i was appointed to serve for the first 18 month period and I was then elected for a two year term.
- Served as the President of two accredited graduate theological schools, the Dean of the Chapel and Professor of Religion and Society at Tuskegee University, the Senior Pastor of an 850 member congregation, and served on numerous professional, civic and community Boards. Until retirement, I was active in the Baptist World Alliance serving as Vice Chair of the Intra Baptist Relations Committee and the primary author of the document that established present guidelines for Intra Baptist Relations across national and international boundaries. 3) I currently serve as the Associate Pastor of Mt. Pleasant Missionary Baptist Church in Green Cove Springs, Florida. I also serve on the Board of Trustees for the Penney Retirement Community, The Legends Trust Fund, and the Board of Edward Waters University. I am an active member of Sigma Pi Lambda Chapter of A Phi A.
- The oldest (by age) in SPL and I am a Charter Member. I was selected as the Brother of the Year in 2022 by my Brothers in SPL. I have tried to be a positive influence in the Chapter by respecting each Brother while holding myself and my Brothers to the high standards of Alpha. As Chaplain, I attempted to represent the President and the Chapter by being present to the Brothers who were sick, had deaths in their family, or needed to have someone they could talk to confidentially.
- Participated in the SPLendid Gents program established by SPL to fulfill the Alpha National “Go to High School, Go to College” Initiative for two years and will be the presenter for another mentoring SPL program in November. I have been mentoring college and graduate students for almost 50 years.
- In addition to being the Chaplain of SPL for 31/2 years, I have taught courses for the ministers, deacons, and members of Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church. I have also been blessed to have the ongoing opportunity to counsel and advise former students, ministers and presidents of educational institutions.
Brother bio:
Edward L. Wheeler, an ordained Baptist minister, was elected President of the Interdenominational Theological Center (ITC) in Atlanta, Georgia on January 21, 2015. He came out of retirement to assume his full time duties on April 6, 2015 and after four years retired July 31, 2019. He previously served as President of Christian Theological Seminary (CTS) in Indianapolis, Indiana for fourteen years before being named President Emeritus of CTS on July 1, 2011. He retired from that position on July 1, 2012 after earning a one year sabbatical.
A highly regarded community leader and theological educator, Wheeler has served in numerous
church and educational related positions. He was Dean of the Chapel and Professor of Religion and Society at Tuskegee University (1991-1997) before going to CTS. He was Senior Pastor of Zion Baptist Church in Cincinnati from 1985-1991. While at Zion he was on the faculty at United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio teaching in both the M.Div. and D.Min. programs. From 1982-1985, he served as Dean of Morehouse School of Religion at the ITC. He is the author of numerous articles, book reviews and the books Uplifting the Race: Black Ministerial Leadership in the New South, 1865-1902 and Black Pearls: Lessons from a Beautiful Black Mother. As a dynamic preacher, lecturer and speaker, he continues to be in demand around the nation.
Over the past two decades, He has served on several civic and professional boards including the Committee on Leadership Development of the Indianapolis Chamber of Commerce, the Greater Indianapolis Progress Committee (Office of the Mayor) and 100 Black Men of Indianapolis. Dr. Wheeler has also served on the Board of Directors of the Association of Theological Schools in the U.S. and Canada (ATS) and as Vice Chair of the Baptist World Alliance Commission on Intra Baptist Relations. He was a member of the joint Commission authorized by ATS and the Association of Hispanic Theological Education to strengthen Hispanic Bible Institutes. He currently serves as the Associate Pastor of Mt. Pleasant Missionary Baptist Church in Green Cove Springs, Florida, as a member on the Board of Trustees of Edward Waters University in Jacksonville, and on the Board of Trustees of the Legends Trust Fund that provides scholarship support for college bound high school
graduates in Greenwood, Mississippi. Dr. Wheeler is also an active member of Sigma Pi Lambda Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.
He earned his B.A. from Morehouse College (’69) and his M. Div. (Magna Cum Laude) from
Colgate-Rochester Divinity School (’72) and holds a Ph.D. in Historical Theology from Emory
University (’82). He has been recognized for his leadership, contributions to humanity, and to ministerial education with several honorary doctorate degrees from leading colleges in Indiana and with honorary doctorates from Christian Theological Seminary and Payne Theological Seminary. In 2011 Dr. Wheeler was named one of two Distinguished Alumni of the Year by Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School.
Wheeler and his wife, Mary Susan, have been married since 1969. They are blessed with three
daughters, three grandchildren and two great grandsons.
