and property for the purpose of participating "in God’s own laboring to fulfill God’s reign on earth". The board consists of twelve to twenty-four trustees, serving for three-year terms, who are required to be "confessing Christians who acknowledge a commitment to the authority of the Bible over all matters of faith and practice, the sovereignty of God, and the Lordship of Jesus Christ over all of life". A majority of the board's members must be RCA members and each of the church's regional synods are represented by one member. The president and the General Secretary of the RCA's General Synod serve as ex officio members of the board without a vote. The by-laws further empower the seminary's trustees to provide it "with such property and buildings; faculty, administration, and staff; library and information resources; equipment and supplies as are necessary for the effective accomplishment of the Seminary's purpose". The board of trustees selects the seminary's president, who is elected for a five-year term and can be reelected to successive terms by the board. The president can be removed by a two-thirds vote of the trustees. The current president of the New Brunswick Theological Seminary is the Rev. Micah McCreary PhD, who joined NBTS on July 15, 2017. He succeeded the Rev. Dr. Gregg A. Mast, a clergyman who had served congregations in New Jersey, New York, and Johannesburg, South Africa, and held leadership positions within the Reformed Church of America. Mast was appointed by the trustees as the seminary's 14th president in 2006, succeeding Rev. Dr. Norman J. Kansfield. Notable people The New Brunswick Theological Seminary's bylaws establish its mission "to educate persons and strengthen communities for transformational, public ministries in church and society." In its 230-year history, the seminary's faculty and alumni have taken leading roles in the ministry and missions of the Reformed Church and other Christian denominations, in academia, and in the professional world. Because of the work and reputation of alumni who became prominent missionaries, the seminary became well known in the nineteenth century. David Abeel (B.D. 1826), served as a missionary throughout the world, including in Indonesia, Southeast Asia and China. Several members of the Scudder family, including Jared Waterbury Scudder (B.D. 1855), received their theological training at the seminary before serving as missionaries in India. Alumnus John Van Nest Talmage (B.D. 1845) served for over forty years in China for the American Reformed Mission.