Northern Seminary president placed on leave amid HR investigation into bullying allegations
The board of Northern Seminary in Illinois has announced that President Bill Shiell is taking an indefinite leave of absence as he faces allegations of bullying and retaliation against female staff in key leadership roles.
Shiell's leave was announced in an email to the faculty, staff and students last week, according to The Roys Report. Another email sent two days earlier announced the opening of a "confidential" human resources investigation into Shiell's leadership.
"The Board takes these complaints seriously and must fully understand all aspects of this confidential HR issue, and any ancillary issues," reads the email. "The Board has asked for a thorough review of all pertinent information and expects a status report or the finalization of the inquiry within a month."
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The Christian Post reached out to Northern Seminary for confirmation of Shiell's leave of absence since the seminary has posted no public announcement. A response was not received by press time.
Formerly known as the Northern Baptist Theological Seminary, the seminary in the suburbs of Chicago is affiliated with the American Baptist Churches USA and was established in 1913. In the 2021-2022 school year, there were 346 students enrolled at the seminary.
The board initiated the investigation after concerns were raised by members of the Northern Seminary community who spoke with The Roys Report. The women alleged that Shiell has a history of bullying and retaliating against female staff who push back on his decisions.
Some members of the seminary community had urged the board to address Shiell's behavior for months — in some cases, years.
The women describe Shiell as "controlling" and misogynistic.
The board has agreed to a third-party investigation by lawyer Maureen Maffei with 17 former and current staff testifying against Shiell, The Roys Report states.
Former Chief Administrative Officer Ava Ivy told the outlet that Shiell treated some women like flies "picking off pieces of her wings."
Jennifer Boysen, Northern's chief development officer, claims the board retaliated against her for being a whistleblower.
"The entire board is complicit in attempting to silence and cover up the realities in front of them," Boysen was quoted as saying. "Not one member has reached out to see how I'm doing, even after reporting an ongoing pattern of retaliation. I have lost all faith in their ability to do the right thing."
Dozens of students, led by Justin Charles and Karen Smith, have signed a letter to the board expressing concerns about the allegations against Shiell.
"We are reiterating our expectations that you will make Christoform decisions that bring justice to the victims, as well as a Tov environment to all areas of Northern Seminary," the letter reads.
Tommy Lee, executive director of Northern's Grow Center for Church and Mission, sent a strongly worded warning that if Shiell doesn't resign, he will suspend all operations at the Grow Center.
"If there is even a hint that a woman or employee felt mistreated or felt bullied, you need to either change the behavior and seek forgives or be fired," Lee wrote in an email. "There's no place where anyone despite their age, position, sex, or color, should not feel equal compared to everyone else."
