A former athlete from Georgia, Akin once had dreams of playing baseball but after an injury he settled on ministry, graduating in 1980 from Criswell College in Dallas. He first came to Southeastern in 1992 as dean of students and then moved on to Southern Seminary, where he served as dean of the School of Theology, and senior vice president for academic administration for eight years. In 2004 he was chosen to replace Paige Patterson, one of the leaders of the conservative resurgence in the denomination, as president of Southeastern.
In his retirement letter, Akin noted, “I am often asked, ‘is it hard to be a seminary president?’ My answer is always the same: ‘Not for me.’ My answer is simply a testimony to the people that make up the Southeastern family.”
Akin and his wife have four adult children, all of whom are serving in ministry.
(National reporter Bob Smietana contributed to this report.) This article originally appeared here.
