Dr. Susan Gillies
Susan Gillies began serving as Interim General Secretary of American Baptist Churches USA on December 1, 2015. She retired in 2010 after serving ten years as Executive Minister of the American Baptist Churches of Nebraska. During that time, she also served a term as President of the Regional Executive Ministers Council.
Prior to that, she served as Deputy Executive Director of the American Baptist Home Mission Societies (ABHMS), then National Ministries. She also served the organization as Manager of the Ministry of the Laity in the Workplace Program, working with ABHMS for 13 years in total. She was also commissioned by the organization as a home missionary.
She was a faculty member at the University of North Dakota (UND), Eastern Kentucky University (EKU), and the University of Sioux Falls (USF), and also worked in public radio at each university. She directed the building of the first broadcast station at USF, hosted programs in both radio and television at EKU and served in North Dakota as News Director, then Program Director and General Manager for two NPR stations licensed to UND. She also served as Executive Director of the North Dakota Broadcasters Association. At KFJM, licensed to UND, she produced numerous news and music programs, documentaries, live coverage of political and community events. She contributed to NPR’s “Morning Edition” and “All Things Considered.” She received North Dakota Associated Press awards for agricultural reporting and documentary production.
Gillies has served on a number of Boards including: Central Baptist Theological Seminary, American Baptist Women’s Ministries, Green Lake Conference Center (American Baptist Assembly) and Interchurch Ministries of Nebraska.
She is the co-author of two books: Renewing God’s People, published by ABHMS, and Empowering Laity Engaging Leaders, part of the Judson Press Living Church series. In addition to other international travel, Susan was part of the first Baptist Peace Fellowship tour of the (then) Soviet Union, traveling to Siberia, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.
She received a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Sioux Falls and a Master’s degree from the University of Memphis. She holds a certificate in non-profit management from the University of Wisconsin.
In retirement, she has done local church consulting and has recorded 144 audio podcasts for the ABHMS website. She writes a weekly newspaper column for the Bridgeport, NE, News-Blade. She expresses her artistic side as a silversmith. She currently lives in her hometown, Omaha, Nebraska, and is a member of Benson Baptist Church.
Prior to that, she served as Deputy Executive Director of the American Baptist Home Mission Societies (ABHMS), then National Ministries. She also served the organization as Manager of the Ministry of the Laity in the Workplace Program, working with ABHMS for 13 years in total. She was also commissioned by the organization as a home missionary.
She was a faculty member at the University of North Dakota (UND), Eastern Kentucky University (EKU), and the University of Sioux Falls (USF), and also worked in public radio at each university. She directed the building of the first broadcast station at USF, hosted programs in both radio and television at EKU and served in North Dakota as News Director, then Program Director and General Manager for two NPR stations licensed to UND. She also served as Executive Director of the North Dakota Broadcasters Association. At KFJM, licensed to UND, she produced numerous news and music programs, documentaries, live coverage of political and community events. She contributed to NPR’s “Morning Edition” and “All Things Considered.” She received North Dakota Associated Press awards for agricultural reporting and documentary production.
Gillies has served on a number of Boards including: Central Baptist Theological Seminary, American Baptist Women’s Ministries, Green Lake Conference Center (American Baptist Assembly) and Interchurch Ministries of Nebraska.
She is the co-author of two books: Renewing God’s People, published by ABHMS, and Empowering Laity Engaging Leaders, part of the Judson Press Living Church series. In addition to other international travel, Susan was part of the first Baptist Peace Fellowship tour of the (then) Soviet Union, traveling to Siberia, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.
She received a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Sioux Falls and a Master’s degree from the University of Memphis. She holds a certificate in non-profit management from the University of Wisconsin.
In retirement, she has done local church consulting and has recorded 144 audio podcasts for the ABHMS website. She writes a weekly newspaper column for the Bridgeport, NE, News-Blade. She expresses her artistic side as a silversmith. She currently lives in her hometown, Omaha, Nebraska, and is a member of Benson Baptist Church.