Rev. Dr. Heesung Hwang (she/her) is Associate Professor of United Methodist Studies, Christian Education, and Leadership and Academic Director of Congregational Renewal Cohorts (CRC). A Christian religious educator and ordained deacon in the United Methodist Church, her scholarship centers on Korean American feminist theology and spirituality, anti-racism, and the intersections of theology, pedagogy, and social justice. She brings broad experience in theological education through her previous faculty appointments at Chicago Theological Seminary in Chicago, IL, and Saint Paul School of Theology in Leawood, KS.
Much of Dr. Hwang’s research and ministry has been shaped through her engagement with Korean American congregations as a pastor, consultant, and curriculum developer. These experiences inform her innovative approaches to theological education and leadership, particularly in immigrant and multicultural contexts. She also facilitates mentoring cohorts and contributes to national projects that amplify the narratives of Asian American women scholars and clergy, advancing anti-racism in both academic and ecclesial settings.
Dr. Hwang is the author of Reframing Christian Education for a Global Generation (Pickwick Publications, 2024), which examines Wesleyan theological concepts—such as prevenient grace, the small group movement, and social holiness—through the lens of immigrant congregational experiences. Her forthcoming monograph, Spiritual Formation for the Burnout Generation: An Asian Christian Perspective (Bloomsbury Publishing, 2026), explores faith formation, resilience, and theological responses to systemic burnout.
She serves on the Advisory Committee of the Religious Education Association and as a coordinator of the Asian and Asian North America Religious Educators, contributing to the advancement of theological education and religious leadership.
Outside of work, she can often be found discovering new coffee shops or planning her next trip with her spouse, Dooyong Kang.
