Andover Newton Seminary at Yale Divinity School is pleased to announce that the Rev. Dr. Willard Walden Christopher Ashley, Sr. (ANTS M.Div. ’84, D.Min. ’92) will receive the 2026 Spirit of the Hill Award during Alumni/ae Convocation at Yale Divinity School this October.
Presented annually, the Spirit of the Hill Award honors an Andover Newton graduate whose life and ministry exemplify a commitment to renewing church and society, advancing justice and love, and crossing boundaries within and among religious traditions. It also recognizes graduates whose enduring relationship with Andover Newton strengthens its mission of educating inspiring leaders for faith communities.
Across a distinguished career as a pastor, theologian, educator, psychoanalyst, author, counselor, and advocate for justice, Ashley has embodied that spirit.
An alumnus of Andover Newton Theological School, Ashley has maintained a deep and longstanding relationship with the institution, including service on its governing bodies and continued support for its students and mission. His leadership has extended broadly across the church and theological education. At New Brunswick Theological Seminary, he became the institution’s first African American dean and later retired as Professor of Pastoral Theology.
Throughout his ministry, Ashley has brought pastoral care and theological reflection into conversation with some of the most pressing challenges facing communities. Following the September 11 attacks, he developed the Care for the Caregivers Interfaith Project, which provided support to clergy and other religious leaders responding to trauma and crisis. His work in counseling and psychoanalysis has complemented a persistent commitment to addressing race, diversity, reconciliation, and social justice.
At the same time, Ashley has remained deeply connected to congregational ministry, bringing his work as a scholar, educator, and counselor into conversation with the everyday realities of the local church. He serves as Founding Senior Pastor of the Abundant Joy Community Church in Jersey City, New Jersey.
That breadth of service reflects the ideals at the heart of the Spirit of the Hill Award: faithful leadership that reaches beyond familiar boundaries, responds compassionately to conflict and division, and works toward healing in church and society.
Founding Dean Sarah B. Drummond has worked with Ashley in numerous contexts, ranging from the days when they both directed their respective seminaries’ Field Education Programs through Ashley’s three terms of leadership on Andover Newton’s Board. Drummond writes, “Will has been a consistent supportive colleague through our 20 years of shared ministry, whose wisdom I trust and whose friendship I cherish.”
Andover Newton looks forward to welcoming alumni/ae and friends to Yale Divinity School this October as we celebrate the Rev. Dr. Willard Ashley and a lifetime of ministry, leadership, teaching, and service that embodies the Spirit of the Hill.