in south Minneapolis from 1940 to 1967, it moved near the campus of Luther Theological Seminary in Saint Paul in 1967. At the time of the formation of the Lutheran Church in America (LCA) in 1962, Northwestern Lutheran Theological Seminary was placed under the jurisdiction of two supporting synods: the Minnesota Synod and the Red River Valley Synod. The presidents of Northwestern Lutheran Theological Seminary: Joseph Stump (1920–1935) Paul Roth (1935–1950) Jonas Dressler (1950–1957) Clemens Zeidler (1957–1976) Lloyd Svendsbye (1976–1982) Luther Northwestern Theological Seminary Desiring to make witness to a shared mission in theological education, Luther and Northwestern seminaries were functionally unified in 1976, beginning with a single administration. After a period of six years, the two seminaries formally merged on July 1, 1982, as Luther Northwestern Theological Seminary. On January 1, 1988, Luther Northwestern Theological Seminary became affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, which was formed by a merger of the LCA, the ALC, and the Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches. The seminary's name was simplified to Luther Seminary on July 1, 1994. The presidents of Luther Seminary (1982–1994 as Luther Northwestern Theological Seminary): Lloyd Svendsbye (1982–1987) Gib Fjellman (1987) (interim) David L. Tiede (1988–2005) Richard Bliese (2005–2012) Rick Foss (2012–2014) (interim) Robin Steinke (2014–present) Academics In the 2018–2019 academic year, Luther Seminary served 490 total students, employing 28 faculty. Luther offers a Master of Divinity degree (M.Div.) for students seeking ordination, as well as Master of Arts, Master of Theology, Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.), and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees for other students. In the fall of 2013, Luther Seminary suspended new admissions to the Ph.D program for at least three years as part of budget cuts. The seminary was planning to again offer the Ph.D. program, with classing beginning in the fall semester of 2018. As in most seminaries, M.Div. students complete three years of theological education, divided into a junior year (first), middler year (second) and senior year (final). A full year of internship, usually in a parish, is an integral part of pastoral training, and a degree requirement for ELCA M.Div. students. While individual situations may vary, internship typically begins after two-thirds of coursework has been completed. Thus, most students complete internship between their middler and senior year. The internship requirement is unique to the ELCA among the other mainline denominations in the U.S. Frederick Buechner Luther Seminary has affiliations with the acclaimed