President Monica Coleman
President Monica A. Coleman is John and Patricia Cochran Scholar for Inclusive Excellence and Professor of Africana Studies at the University of Delaware, where she is also the Director of Graduate Studies for the Department of Africana Studies. She spent over ten years in graduate theological education at Claremont School of Theology, the Center for Process Studies and Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago. Coleman has earned degrees from Harvard University, Vanderbilt University and Claremont Graduate University. Answering her call to ministry at 19 years of age, Coleman is an ordained minister in the African Methodist Episcopal Church and an initiate in traditional Yoruba religion.
Dr. Coleman brings her experiences in evangelical Christianity, black church traditions, global ecumenical work, and indigenous spirituality to her discussions of theology and religion.
Dr. Coleman is the author or editor of six books, and several articles that focus on the role of faith in addressing critical social and philosophical issues. Her memoir Bipolar Faith shares her life-long dance with trauma and depression, and how she discovers a new and liberating vision of God. Her book Making a Way Out of No Way is required reading at leading theological schools around the country. Dr. Coleman was co-host of the webinar series Octavia Tried to Tell Us: Parable for Today’s Pandemic with along with Afrofuturist writer Tananarive Due where they addressed today’s pressing issues with insights from Afrofuturist literature, process theology and community values. Dr. Coleman currently hosts the Diverse Devotions podcast on Black belief across boundaries.
Dr. Coleman partners with dance scholar Takiyah Nur Amin as an executive coach in the Academic Business and Branding Braintrust where they offer in-depth focused guidance for Blackademic women who want to share their knowledge with the world.
Coleman’s strength comes from the depth of her knowledge base and from her experiences as a community organizer, survivor of sexual violence and as an individual who lives with a mental health challenges. Coleman speaks widely on mental wellness, navigating change, Black religions and religious diversity.