College principal to retire next year

TORONTO – The Rt. Rev. Dr. Stephen Andrews, principal and Helliwell professor of biblical interpretation at Wycliffe College, will retire on June 30, 2025.

In a letter to college board chair Carol Boettcher, Bishop Andrews noted that the June 2025 date will mark the end of his ninth year in the role and his 40th year of ordained ministry.

“It is time for me to devote what remains of my strength and attentions more fully to (my wife) Fawna and my family,” he wrote. “There is never a perfect time to leave a job, and because of the importance of the college in the mission of the Church, and how fulfilling it has been for me to work with such a gifted and dedicated staff, faculty and board, it is tempting to stay longer. But I believe that Wycliffe has reached the point where we need, and deserve, new leadership.”

Ms. Boettcher received the letter with some sadness, but also understanding and thanksgiving. “We are thankful to God that He has blessed Wycliffe with Stephen’s deeply spiritual, steady and reflective leadership,” she said. “During a time of great change in society and in the Church, Stephen has shepherded the college through the development and implementation of our strategic plan and has shown great wisdom as we navigated the unknown waters of the pandemic and other transitions. He has been the leader Wycliffe needed in these uncertain times, and we are grateful.”

She expressed gratitude that the timing of Bishop Andrews’s announcement allows the college ample time to make a careful transition to a new principal. She said an extensive search process has already started, and that she expects that a new principal will be in place by the time Bishop Andrews leaves.

Wycliffe College