Myerstown's Evangelical Seminary has a new president.

The Rev. Anthony L. Blair, of Lititz, began his duties July 1 as the seventh president of the seminary, affiliated with the Evangelical Congregational Church.

The role brings Allen, 47, full circle at the seminary, where he received a master of arts degree in religion in 1991.

"As an alumnus, I never expected to be sitting in the president's chair. I'm delighted to serve my alma mater."

Previously, Blair was professor of leadership studies and former dean of the graduate school at Eastern University, St. Davids, where he served for 14 years.

The seminary's official name remains Evangelical Theological Seminary, but it has been shortened for unofficial use.

"It's a little redundant," Blair said.

The school, founded in 1953, has about 150 students, mostly commuters, from 24 denominations, and about 12 full- or part-time professors.

An adjunct instructor there the past two years, Blair will continue to teach one course of church history a semester.

"One of the strengths of the seminary is that students get very personal attention here. They have very close relationships with the faculty."

One of Blair's challenges as president is "to resolve an ongoing ambiguity with the United Methodist Church."

To be ordained in the UMC, students  must attend a UMC-owned or approved   seminary, he said.

UMC owns 13 seminaries — none in Pennsylvania — and has approved five in eastern Pennsylvania, including Evangelical, for the past 15 years.

Last year, the denomination suggested it may withdraw its approval for Evangelical.

"It wasn't a failure of the seminary, but internal UMC budget issues," Blair said.

Recently, the UMC gave Evangelical a one-year extension of approval. In January, it will vote on making it permanent.

"My goal is to renew our relationship with the UMC to a good, healthy, productive one."

Blair's other goals include providing online courses to make the school more accessible.

Next year, Evangelical hopes to launch its first distance program — a proposed master of arts in Christian leadership.

Blair also wants to collaborate with other schools.

"We believe higher education and theological education can be better done in partnerships."

He will continue working on an association with Asbury Theological Seminary, in Wilmore, Ky., one of the largest seminaries in the country and theologically in line with Evangelical.

Evangelical students could take Asbury courses online, or Asbury professors could teach in Myerstown.

Blair received a bachelor of arts in religion from Messiah College in 1986, masters degrees of Christian ministries from Huntington College in 1989 and in  arts in history from Shippensburg University in 1993 and doctorates in philosophy in history from Temple University in 1999 and in ministry in leadership in the emerging culture from George Fox Evangelical Seminary in 2005.

He previously taught at Messiah College, Lebanon Valley College and Penn State University.

Ordained in 1989 in the United Brethren in Christ Church, he has been a pastor for 26 years, 17 of them bivocational.

For the past four years, he has been co-senior pastor of Hosanna! A Fellowship of Christians, in Lititz.

He chose the nondenominational congregation because, after a merger with the UMC, there are no longer any UBCCs in the area.

He plans to continue at Hosanna as volunteer co-senior pastor.

"I believe every church member needs to contribute his gifts and talents, and leadership is my talent."

His Hosanna business cards read: "Tony Blair, prime minister."

"It could be worse," he said. "I could have the name of someone famous for terrible things."

Blair and his wife, Carol, have two daughters, Rachel, 20, a junior at EU, and Alia, 17, a senior at Warwick High School.

He was born and raised in Franklin County, "in Coseytown, pronounced Cozytown, a wonderful little place to grow up."