Updates from the Baptist Joint Committee Search and Succession Committee
This page provides the latest information on the search for the next executive director of the Baptist Joint Committee from Chairman Daniel E. Glaze.
Dear friends and supporters of the Baptist Joint Committee,
I am pleased to inform you that, on September 26, 2016, the Baptist Joint Committee Board of Directors named our organization’s next executive director: Amanda R. Tyler.
The vote was held upon the recommendation of the BJC’s Search and Succession Committee, which I had the pleasure of chairing. Over the past 11 months, we identified areas of giftedness and expertise we desire in our executive director, solicited and received recommendations from trusted advisors in the Baptist world, and considered candidates through the application review process and interviews. All along we used as our guide the visioning statement regarding the long-term plans for our organization.
We were honored to serve on your behalf, and we were pleased with the caliber and diversity of the candidates. Because of the prominence of the BJC and its reputation for excellent advocacy ministry, we received many stellar resumes and had the opportunity to speak with some exciting people in the world of religious liberty. When we spoke with Amanda Tyler, it became clear to us that she possessed the qualities we desire.
Amanda is well-prepared and eager to lead the BJC staff in implementing our vision. She represents both the BJC’s history and its future. Having served on staff at the BJC under the leadership of James Dunn and Brent Walker, Amanda knows the rich legacy of ministry and advocacy we enjoy. She also realizes the steep climb we have before us, for our work is never done. Her history with and passion for the BJC, paired with her professional experience, give her a unique ability to articulate the value of the BJC and the ideals we champion.
In our conversations together, Amanda clearly voiced the Baptist principles of religious liberty and the separation of church and state—why they are important not only in the history of our nation, but also to her personally and spiritually. Drawing upon the BJC’s visioning statement, she articulated her ability to lead us in outreach, mobilizing, and being first-responders when threats to religious liberty arise.
Amanda is an excellent and experienced communicator, and she has leadership qualities that complement the current staff and fit our vision in important ways. We believe that Amanda will bring fresh thinking to how we apply our mission today and build support with new audiences.
Amanda Tyler is the right person to lead the BJC forward with grace and tenacity to defend and extend religious liberty in an ever-changing world. She will assume the leadership of the BJC upon Brent Walker’s retirement at the beginning of January.
You can learn more about Amanda on our website and watch her share her passion for religious liberty and the BJC.
Scroll down for endorsements from many key leaders on today’s momentous decision.
With prayerful excitement,
Daniel E. Glaze
Chair, BJC Search and Succession Committee
Chair, BJC Board of Directors
“I feel called by God to this work. There are many challenges and opportunities surrounding our First Freedom, such as increasing religious pluralism and the unease it can bring.
The Baptist Joint Committee, with its rich history and deep expertise, is uniquely positioned to be a voice for all people who want to defend and extend God-given religious liberty for generations to come. I truly believe that our entire world has never needed the BJC as much as it does right now, and there is no limit to what God can do through us to preserve religious liberty for all of God’s children.”
-Amanda Tyler
Search committee members
Hal Bass, Arkadelphia, Arkansas
Valoria Cheek, Valley Forge, Pennsylvania
Dan Hamil, Rocklin, California
Jackie Baugh Moore, Fair Oaks Ranch, Texas
Suzii Paynter, Decatur, Georgia
Oliver “Buzz” Thomas, Maryville, Tennessee
Chair: Daniel Glaze, Ahoskie, North Carolina
Endorsements
Amanda is deeply committed to the mission of the Baptist Joint Committee. She is known and loved by Baptists of all ages. Amanda will help ensure that the BJC is fully embraced by younger generations. Given her Washington experience and positive relationships with a wide array of D.C. leaders, she will hit the ground running. I’m thrilled that the BJC has chosen such a talented leader to defend and extend religious liberty for all people.
Amanda’s experience includes leadership in demanding political settings and attention to legal complexities—both relevant gifts to the BJC for today’s religious liberty climate. I have confidence in Amanda’s capacity toward the future work of the BJC; I have seen her build working groups with sensitivity and knowledge to accomplish strategic objectives and solidify key relationships.
Amanda’s expertise and passion for religious liberty is palpable. Both her professional preparation and her call to ministry make her a great fit to lead the Baptist Joint Committee.
Amanda is an excellent communicator: measured and polished, but she also speaks well ‘off the cuff.’ In my district, I have seen her listen to and fight for the underserved and underrepresented. This makes her a natural to represent the cause of religious liberty and minority faiths.
Amanda Tyler brings deep Baptist roots and convictions to this leadership challenge. She is thoroughly familiar with and committed to the mission of the Baptist Joint Committee. Her strong, savvy advocacy for religious liberty and the separation of church and state will be acknowledged and appreciated by office-holders and issue activists on Capitol Hill, in state capitals and city halls, and by her fellow Baptists and our ecumenical allies in pulpits and pews throughout the world.
With Amanda’s keen mind and passion for justice, she has gone on to make a difference for others through a successful legal and legislative career. But her first love has always been the BJC and the cause of religious liberty. Truly, we have not yet seen what all that God will do through her.
Amanda knows well the history and work of the organization but she is also a visionary. She sees the great potential for the BJC’s expanded outreach in the coming days. For me personally, in this year of shattering glass ceilings, I am thankful that one more significant leadership role in Baptist life will be filled by a gifted young woman.
