Dr. Beverly Jones Gurley has been named President of Ecumenical University. The announcement was made by Bishop Redfern II, Chairman of the Board of Regents of the Ecumenical University. Dr. Gurley succeeds the Bishop who served as interim President and Board Chair.

Dr. Beverly Jones Gurley retired as an internationally acclaimed superintendent of school districts in South Carolina’s “Corridor of Shame.” She is credited with rising through the ranks from bus driver to the district superintendent. Dr. Gurley obtained her bachelor’s, Master’s, and Ed.D while working full-time and raising three children. As a teacher, principal, and superintendent, she impacted students and their families. She raised student performance, test scores, and school ratings. Dr. Gurley has been recognized for developing school budget integrity and deploying financial models of accountability for the school board, faculty, and staff.
She partnered with Marian Wright Edelman of the Children’s Defense Fund to bring an innovative community-centered focus to education. Edelman, founder, and president emerita of the Children’s Defense Fund, said, “Dr. Gurley was a visionary whose hard work and keen attention to detail inspire individuals and communities to succeed.”

Dr. Gurley will lead Ecumenical University into its second decade of service. Ecumenical University was founded and endowed to be a Christian academic community in the tradition of other Ivy League colleges and universities. Religious denominations founded Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Duke, and even Liberty University to educate pastors and religious leaders. Bishop Redfern II founded Ecumenical University for the Ecumenical Church in Columbia, SC, to provide a sound biblical education to pastors and church leaders.
Dr. Gurley has chosen Nazarene pastor Stephen Manley as Dean of the school of Cross Style Theology. Manley pioneered international Cross Style Evangelism with mission trips with ministry interns. Bishop Redfern II adopted Cross Style as the foundational doctrine of the Church and University. Dr. Manley is jurisdictional Bishop over all campuses in 13 countries in East Africa, the 10 countries in Central Africa, India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, and the Caribbean, with special emphasis on Jamaica.
Dr. Gurley has offered Ecumenical University a vision of institutional development and advancement. Her plan includes infrastructure and technology improvements on all campuses. She plans to construct 100 new facilities on campuses in east and central Africa. Ecumenical University will make healthcare available to women and girls on all campuses. In India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, the university will build campuses with prayer retreats for visiting pilgrims.
Dr. Gurley said, “This will be a decade of growth and change whose foundation will be the Two Great Commandments and the Great Commission.”
Dr. Gurley is a member of The Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. She is the daughter of Susie J. Evans-Jones, and the late Abraham Jones, Sr. She has three sons, Marcus (Stephanie), Roderick, and Ridge.