AG Scholars Forum Held at Vanguard University

Last week, 50 AG scholars from around the country gathered at Vanguard University for the first-ever “AG Scholars Forum.” The event, a collaboration between national leaders of the General Council of the Assemblies of God, the Alliance for AG Higher Education, and AG scholars, featured general sessions and breakout discussions with the goal of finding new ways of including and encouraging scholars in the AG, ultimately strengthening the Fellowship.

Allen Tennison, theological counsel to the General Council of the Assemblies of God, says that AG leaders wanted a way to hear from AG scholars, take what they had to say, and make sure the AG benefits from their ideas and research.

“Sometimes, all we know to do with [someone who holds] a Ph.D. is to stick them in a classroom. But what they know is useful for the life of the church, not just the life of a class or for earning a college degree,” Tennison says.

General Superintendent Doug Clay says that his desire since he was elected has been to utilize everything God has gifted to those in the AG in order to fulfill the Great Commission.

“Bible scholarship and the work of the church deeply enrich each other when approached with humility and openness,” Clay says.

The idea for the forum came after months of brainstorming how the General Council could take better advantage of the scholars in its community. Clay and Tennison brought in Paul Alexander, president of Trinity Bible College, who also represents the Alliance for AG Higher Education.

“Historically, the doctors of the church have played strategic roles,” says Alexander. “They kept manuscripts, translated the Bible, provided commentaries, and led reformations. We wanted to nest the event within the AG alliance, but it was an event above and beyond the alliance.”

The two-day event included discussions on opportunities for contributing to the AG and how the Fellowship could better encourage and support scholars. Sessions featured speakers including Alexander, Tennison, John Hailes, director of Solutions Development and Product Advancement for the AG, George P. Wood, executive editor of AG Publications, Jay Mooney, director of AG Publishing and Church Ministries, Elly Marroquin, national director of Christian Education and Discipleship, and Jimmy White, director of Adult Discipleship.

Clay also attended the event and was the featured speaker for its concluding banquet. “This is the first time we’ve had a conference of this kind sponsored by the national office. So with the general superintendent participating both days, it let them know how highly they were valued,” Tennison says.

Attendee Daniel Isgrigg, associate professor at Oral Roberts University's Graduate School of Theology and Ministry, says that he appreciated the event and the AG leaders that gathered together to build bridges with scholars through cooperation and dialogue.

“As an AG scholar, I felt valued, validated, and excited about the potential impact of my research on serving the Fellowship” Isgrigg says. “Many scholars have long dreamed of using their scholarship to serve the church, and this historic forum has provided a pathway for that dream to become a reality.”

The AG Scholars forum will return next year to create additional pipelines between scholars and the rest of the AG. Mooney says that the “strategic communication and connection between AG scholars and Gospel Publishing House will forge a new generation of Pentecostal academic resources from Logion Press beginning in 2026.

“We want to build off of this and keep the momentum going to create new avenues for scholars who feel called to contribute to the AG outside of the classroom,” Tennison says.

The forum also presented the first AG Lifetime Scholar Award to Cecil M. Robeck Jr. A respected professor of church history and ecumenics, Robeck has been an ordained minister with the Assemblies of God for over fifty years. He is considered the “noted authority” on the Azusa Street Revival and authored The Azusa Street Mission and Revival: The Birth of the Global Pentecostal Movement in 2006 which details the beginnings of Pentecostalism. Tennison states that Robeck has been an encouragement and a mentor to many AG scholars over the years, including many of whom were in attendance that evening.

“The Assemblies of God is blessed with mature scholars who have a desire to advance the Kingdom through the local church,” Clay says. “I am so grateful for what was birthed at this inaugural forum.”

The next AG Scholars forum will again convene at Vanguard University June 8-9, 2026.