July 13, 2023
Board of Trustees chair, Rev. Patricia Farris, announced that Grant Hagiya has been named the 8th president of Claremont School of Theology (CST). He had previously been serving as President ad interim since January 2023.
Bishop Grant Hagiya was the resident bishop of the Los Angeles Area, which includes the California-Pacific Conference in the Western Jurisdiction of The United Methodist Church. He was elected to the episcopacy in 2008. His prior Episcopal assignment was for eight years in the Greater Northwest Area, which included the Alaska, Oregon-Idaho, and Pacific Northwest Annual Conferences. On October 1, 2021, he also served as the Interim Bishop for the Desert Southwest Conference.
Dr. Hagiya retired from active bishop status on January 1, 2023, and became President ad interim at CST, until the announcement this week.
Kah-Jin Jeffrey Kuan, who announced in September 2022 that he would begin a sabbatical leave beginning January 2023, then step down as the school’s president on June 30, 2023 after a 10-year tenure, has been named Senior Advisor to the President.
“How incredibly fortunate we are to celebrate these two outstanding leaders whose vision, creativity, passion and resilience have brought us to this place and will now lead us forward,” said Rev. Patricia Farris, trustees chair. “Please continue to hold them in your prayers for all that lies ahead in this season of new beginnings,” Farris said.
“I am deeply honored to be able to serve in this capacity as the 8th president of the Claremont School of Theology,” Hagiya said. “I thank the Board of Trustees, especially our chairperson, Rev. Patricia Farris, for trusting me with this leadership role. I believe that authentic leadership is collaborative, and there are no solo leaders. Our Claremont School of Theology embodies this principle, as all of our trustees, faculty, and staff are true leaders who give tirelessly to make our school better. This also means that all of us related to CST are leaders, and we will count on your leadership in the coming months and years,” Hagiya said.
Grant Hagiya’s presidency begins four months after the school’s board of trustees announced the school will be moving to Los Angeles on the campus of Westwood United Methodist Church.
Both Grant Hagiya and Kah-Jin Jeffrey Kuan will also serve as professors to CST.
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Claremont School of Theology is United Methodist in origin and affiliation and ecumenical and interreligious in spirit. CST is one of 13 United Methodist seminaries, currently located in Claremont, California. To support this ministry, donations can be made at CST.edu/give.
