Faculty Q and A with Jamie Dew

Q: Tell us about yourself.

A: I’ve been married for 13 years to my high school sweetheart, Tara. We’ve been blessed with two sets of boy and girl twins, ages six and three, who keep me hopping. I have been at Southeastern in one capacity or another for about 14 years.

Q: How did you come to SEBTS?

A: When I was 18, I came to Christ and immediately felt the call to ministry. Some of my co-workers were students here, so even when I was in high school, I enjoyed coming to chapel and hanging out with them in the dorms.

I went off to college in Georgia, but while making the decision to go to seminary, I narrowed it down to three different schools. I’m glad that I decided to come to Southeastern!

At Southeastern, after completing my M.Div. in 2003, I went straight into the Ph.D. program and started pastoring in the area. A few years later I started teaching adjunctively and in 2011 I started teaching full time.

Q: When people ask you, “What do you do at Southeastern,” what is your response?

A: I am the vice president for undergraduate studies and academic support as well as an associate professor of history of ideas and philosophy. Though most of my days are spent on administrative tasks, I still really enjoy teaching and interacting with our students.

Q: On what are you currently working?

A: I’m currently working on two book projects. I’m one of the editors of a “5 Views” book on the problem of evil, and the other project is an introduction to postmodernism.

Through the University of Birmingham in England, I am working on a second Ph.D., focusing on the intersection of the philosophy of mind and the philosophy of religion. 

As far as administrative projects go, we’ve spent the last year rebuilding the College curriculum and making it more “user-friendly” for students. I’m excited!

Q: What have you been reading recently?

A: I’ve mostly been reading a number of works in the area of philosophy of religion and philosophy of the mind, specifically those about the existence of the soul.

Q: When you get home from work, what do you look forward to doing?

A: The thing I do more than anything else is hang out with my kids and my wife. Whatever they’re doing, that’s what I’m doing.

Q: Who are your role models?

A: A number of pastors and brothers in Christ come to mind. Some are pastors or members of local churches in the area and others are faculty members here around Southeastern that have influenced me.

Q: What has God been teaching you lately?

A: In the last year the Lord has brought me back to the point in my life where I have a childlike faith. I pursue him now with the same vigor and freshness that I had when I first came to faith in Christ. I want to just be a true worshipper in everything I do.

Q: Where are some of your former students?

A: I have former students that have gone into the corporate world and are doing some exciting things for the kingdom. I also have some that are serving faithfully on the mission field. Some of my students are pastors or serving in their local churches, which is always encouraging.

Q: When students graduate from the College at Southeastern, what do you want them to walk away with?

A: I hope they would walk away with a disposition that points them and compels them toward serving Christ. I want their minds to be sharp, I want them to be competent in their field, and I want them to be theologically grounded. I also want them to use their occupation and their life for the Kingdom of God, in whatever field they pursue.

Q: The College at Southeastern is a Great Commission institution. How does that affect the way you work as the Dean of the College at Southeastern?

A: If we’re serious about fulfilling the Great Commission, we’ve got to be serious about planting churches and sending people throughout the world in a variety of contexts. I want to expand the degree offerings we have so that we can strategically place people around the world. Along those lines, I want our core degrees in global studies, biblical studies and theology to be the very best they can be. That’s why we’ve been working so hard to improve these degrees in my time here.