Alan's Background

Rev. Alan Vincent Ragland, DMin. became the second pastor of Third Baptist Church of Chicago (TBCoC), succeeding founding pastor Rev. Elmer L. Fowler in November of 1992. Ragland's tenure was twenty-six (26) years ending in November of 2018, at which point he became Pastor Emeritus. He graduated from the University of Memphis (BA), Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School (MDiv.), and McCormick Theological Seminary (DMin.). As an ordained minister of the Progressive National Baptist Convention and the American Baptist Churches, USA, Dr. Ragland's ministerial experiences are broad and have included the following: Director of Pastoral Care at the now named Region One Hospital and Trauma Center, fulltime faculty member at Memphis Theological Seminary (MTS), and Pastor of New Fellowship Baptist Church, all in his hometown of Memphis, TN.

During his TBCoC tenure, Pastor Ragland continued to be active in theological education through seminary field education supervision and adjunct instruction at McCormick Theological Seminary and the University of Chicago Divinity School. Additionally, he has served as a board member of McCormick Theological Seminary, Hood Theological Seminary, and Colgate Rochester Divinity School, all of which are accredited by the Association of Theological Schools.

Dr. Ragland is a pioneer in a number of arenas, including being the first African American to work in fulltime instruction at MTS, as well the first African American Director of Pastoral Care at Region One.

In addition to the countless number of children born and Blessed, souls added to the church, families comforted in bereavement, and saints celebrated who now reside with the Lord, the following list of highlights are additional hallmarks of A. V. Ragland's pastoral impact in and through the TBCoC ministry:

Discipleship Training: Over 1,500 persons taking discipleship classes in more than twenty-five (25) consecutive years.

Development of Physical Plant: Successful church-wide capital campaign to retire the original mortgage, planning and construction of the multi-purpose, multi-level Life Center, and major additional renovations to the sanctuary and Heritage Plaza banquet complex.

Leadership Development: Ministers-In-Training Program, which developed over thirty (30) persons responding to a call to ministry, including the acceptance and ordination of women. Additionally, Dr. Ragland pioneered the training and ordination of women as deacons.

Care Ministries: Clergy Outreach and Visitation; GriefShare for recovery of the bereaved; Stephen Ministries for lay compassion support; Seniors Nursing Home Worship and Outreach; Caregivers Support Ministry; Prayer Shawl Ministry for the sick.

Congregational Ministry Developments: Annual Scholarship Awards for more than 25 consecutive years, Jail Visitation Ministry, Youth Ministry and Youth Church, Young Adult Ministry, Rites of Passage for Teens, Boy and Girl Scout Troops, Men's Ministry, Women's Ministry, Community Basketball League, Sewing Ministry, Christian Education Department, Praise Dance Ministry, Mime Ministry, CHIME Exercise program for seniors, and Adult Steppers Dance Classes. Also, Rev. Ragland co-founded (with his wife, Dr. Barbara Ragland) the Sociable Seniors and Retirees organization, operated from within TBCoC, which today has members from more than 50 Chicago area congregations.

Refreshment of Media Image: The Faith. Hope. Love. symbol is a product of a Young Adult Ministry task group to update our media profile and outreach capacity to rising generations. In it, the two colors are purple, which represents God's divinity as Sovereign King, and green, which represents our faith as both living and growing. The purple cross at the center represents the cross of Christ, and the three green arcs around it represent the three aspects of God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The unclosed circle and arcs represent the Church and our congregation. They are not closed entities but open fellowships of faith, hope, and love (grounded in 1 Corinthians 13:13) as primary spiritual principles that guide us.

Organizational Expansions: The more than doubling of the administrative support staff more than and establishment of two non-profit organizations: Heritage Community Development Corporation (sponsors of Freedom School and Destination Safehaven) and Quantum Faith, NFP for cohesive and strategic management of TBCoC properties.

Missional Footprint Enlargement: United Power for Action and Justice for congregation-based community organizing; Interfaith Worshipping Partnership with B'nai Jehoshua Beth Elohim Synagogue (BJBE); Ghana Baptist Convention Missional Partnership with American Baptist Churches of Metro Chicago; TBCoC Food Pantry; One Church One School, partnership with Vanderpoel Elementary; M. L. King, Jr. National Monument Committee; Foster Grandparents for Latch-key school children; ALIVE! partnership of churches with Rush University Medical Center and National Institutes of Health, on improving health equity in African-American communities.

Alan V. Ragland is married to Barbara Ollie Ragland, PhD who has been his life-long partner in ministry. She is the Founder and President of The Lydia Group Institute: Faith-Based Strategies For Congregational Agility. Her husband serves as Vice President. They are the proud parents of one daughter, Melanie Loren Ragland, a professional actor whose stage name is Melanie Loren.