The formation of character and the spiritual life of religious leaders—those preparing for ministry and those already serving—is a longstanding priority across ATS and its member schools. Yet much of this work happens in isolation. Theological schools have had few structured opportunities, especially across confessional families and religious traditions, to learn from one another about how to form religious leaders thoughtfully, effectively, and in ways consistent with a school’s historical commitments.

Valuable resources do exist to support this work within theological education, but not everyone knows where to find them. Plus, current and future generations of religious leaders and theological educators are navigating unique formational challenges—from online and hybrid educational formats to the implications of AI on personal and spiritual formation—that call for new, innovative, and culturally-responsive resources to be developed and shared across institutions and religious traditions.

This repository was developed to address those gaps.

Rooted in the ATS commitment to strengthen theological education through collaboration and shared learning, here we gather tools, research, and practical resources from across the membership—making them easier to discover, compare, and put to use. Some are peer-reviewed research articles. Some are validated assessment instruments designed to operationalize constructs relevant to formation. Some case studies highlight timely and emerging insights from member schools. And other resources have been directly developed by ATS.

Together, we hope the insights collected here inspire the development of future resources—and mobilize a growing community of practitioners, scholars, spiritual directors, seminary staff and administrators, and educators to support theological schools in their work and mission to prepare leaders for ministry, and to sustain those already in it.

Know of a resource that belongs here? Submit a Resource.