Candler School of Theology prepares to install next dean as fall semester begins

Candler School of Theology at Emory University will mark the beginning of a new chapter on Wednesday, Aug. 26, and Thursday, Aug. 27, when the Rev. Dr. Terrence L. (Kojo) Johnson is formally installed as the school’s Mary Lee Hardin Willard Dean. 

The two-day celebration includes an opening keynote panel and reception, the installation ceremony during Candler’s fall convocation and a community lunch. Events are free and open to the public, with registration required. 

The installation activities are grounded in the searching question posed in Psalm 116: “What shall I render unto the Lord?” Johnson chose the theme for its particular salience in this current moment.

“It’s a question intended to invite the Candler community into discernment around what the institution must render to God, the church, the academy and the world in a time that demands both rigorous thought and faithful and prophetic witness,” he explains.

Opening keynote to feature rich religious perspectives 

In keeping with this call to intellectual engagement and faithful action, the installation activities kick off on Aug. 26 with a 5 p.m. keynote panel discussion featuring internationally respected scholars whose work represents the richness of Jewish, Protestant, Catholic and interreligious traditions.

“Faith When Democracy Betrays Its Promise: Law, Lament and the Work of Justice” will be moderated by Robert M. Franklin Jr., Candler’s James T. and Berta R. Laney Professor in Moral Leadership. Panelists will include Claudio Burgaleta (Boston College), Marc Gopin (George Mason University), Susannah Heschel (Dartmouth College) and Jennifer S. Leath (Queens University). Together they will explore how rigorous scholarship, moral imagination and diverse theological perspectives can equip leaders to engage one of the defining questions of our time:  How can public theologians, clergy and scholars guide communities to discern truth, resist despair and act with courage, mercy and justice?

Johnson says he is thrilled to open his time at Candler with this group of scholars.

“I’m truly honored that each of them agreed to share their brilliance with the Candler community, and I’m especially grateful to Robert Franklin for agreeing to moderate this important discussion on faith, law and democracy,” Johnson says.

“This panel’s collective scholarship is uniquely positioned to address the specific concerns facing theological education during a time when our students and lay communities are waiting for us to confront the challenges facing our nation and world.”

Fall convocation to include installation ceremony

On Aug. 27 at 11 a.m., the community will gather in Cannon Chapel for Candler’s fall convocation and the installation of the dean. Johnson will give his inaugural address, and the service will be followed by a community lunch at Candler.

Johnson became the eleventh dean of Candler School of Theology on Aug. 1, 2026. An internationally recognized scholar, academic leader and ordained itinerant elder in the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church, Johnson comes to Candler after serving as the director of Religion and Public Life and Charles G. Adams Professor of African American Religious Studies at Harvard Divinity School. A distinguished scholar of African American religion, democracy, ethics and political thought, he explores the intersections of public life and justice, shaping national conversations on faith and religion’s role in advancing a more just and democratic society.