Meeting of the Pedagogical Council Held at the Almaty Theological Seminary

February 9, 2026. A meeting of the Pedagogical Council was held at the Almaty Orthodox Theological Seminary under the chairmanship of the Rector of the theological school, Candidate of Theology, Archpriest Evgeny Ivanov.

The meeting was attended by the Vice-Rector for Pastoral Formation, Priest John Livinsky; the Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs, Priest Peter Bakhtiyarov; the Vice-Rector for Research, Candidate of Philosophical Sciences A.P. Solovyov; the Head of the Biblical and Theological Department, Candidate of Theology, Priest Oleg Lisin; the Head of the Church History Department, Archpriest Alexander Gaychenya; the Head of the Church-Practical Department of the theological school, Candidate of Theology, Priest Vladislav Pashkov; the Inspector of the Almaty Theological Seminary, Priest Evgeny Bessonov; the Head of the Seminary Chancellery, Priest Alexander Shishlov; the Head of the Correspondence Department, Priest Daniil Bobylev; the Head of the Regency Department of the Almaty Orthodox Theological Seminary, V.V. Dudareva; the Head of the Department of Foreign Languages, M.G. Ivanova; the Secretary of the Church History Department, Priest Georgy Sidorov; as well as members of the seminary’s teaching staff.

At the opening of the meeting, Archpriest Evgeny addressed the faculty with a welcoming address, congratulating those present on the beginning of the second semester of the 2025–2026 academic year, after which he announced the agenda.

The Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs, Priest Peter Bakhtiyarov, then presented the schedule for the final summer examination session and the defense of final qualification papers, and also announced the date of the formal graduation ceremony.

Next, the Vice-Rector for Pastoral Formation, Priest John Livinsky, delivered a report outlining the main directions of formative and educational activity for the second half of the academic year.

During the meeting, the heads of the departments reported on the activities of their academic divisions during the first semester.

The central topic of the meeting was the discussion of the seminary’s preparation for the forthcoming inspection by the Educational Committee of the Russian Orthodox Church.

At the conclusion of the meeting, the Rector of the Almaty Theological Seminary, Archpriest Evgeny Ivanov, thanked those present for their labors for the benefit of the theological school, after which he issued the relevant instructions to members of the administration and the teaching staff.