The Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago

Celebrating over 50 years, the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago was founded in the year 1962. Four seminaries, the Augustana Theological Seminary, Grand View Seminary, Chicago Lutheran Theological Seminary and Suomi Theological Seminary came together and formed the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago (LSTC). During a five year span, LSTC operated with two campuses—the Augustana campus, located in Rock Island, IL and the Chicago Lutheran campus, located in Maywood IL. After this timeframe, the seminary opened it’s current location, adjacent to the University of Chicago campus. It came into existence in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) on January 1, 1988 when ten faculty members of the Christ Seminary-Seminex, St. Louis, MO, relocated to LSTC. The two schools merged together and entered the ELCA as a unified body.

LSTC’s mission is to form leaders who are visionary to bear witness to the good news of Jesus Christ. Through education, LSTC seeks to build up the Body of Christ, trying to make a world of peace and justice which cares for the whole creation. It values teaching four major qualities: Christ-centered, Responsive to Context, Attentive to Diversity, and Committed to Excellence.

With 19 full-time faculty members and a student body of nearly 300, LSTC offers a variety of Masters and Doctorate degree programs. These programs allow students to gain expertise in various areas, such as Biblical Studies, Interfaith Studies, etc. LSTC offers special programs such as Youth in Mission and World Mission Institute. The location and partnerships provide the students a pool of resources including an easy commuting distance to the ELCA church wide offices.