Former Princeton dean new U. chaplain

Rev. William ChristianRev. William ChristianGipson says his "loyalty is toRev. William ChristianGipson says his "loyalty is tothe red and blue" now and Kate Khatib Princeton University's former Associate Dean of Religious Life has been appointed to the position of Chaplain of the University of Pennsylvania. "My loyalty is to the red and blue now," announced Rev. William Christian Gipson. He plans to arrive on campus in early August. Gipson is replacing the Interim Chaplain Rev. Frederic Guyott who served the University for 11 months. Guyott followed Rev. Stanley Johnson who had been the University's chaplain for 34 years. A six-person search committee recommended Gipson for the position and Provost Stanley Chodorow announced his appointment yesterday. After spending five years at Princeton, Gipson feels he has enough experience and enthusiasm to serve Penn properly. "I am very excited to take advantage of Penn's urban atmosphere," Gipson said. "Princeton is very self-contained. It is going to be very exciting to work with all the various groups in Philadelphia." He mentioned that he is reading A Moveable Feast, the book designated as the freshman reading project this year, because he is, after all, "an honorary freshman." Gipson said he looks forward to working with University administrators on Penn's national standing. "Judith Rodin and Stanley Chodorow have a great vision of Penn as the country's number one Ivy," he said. "I say amen to that. I really respect their ideas." Gipson, a member of the First Baptist Church of Princeton, has a bachelor's degree in journalism from Northeast Louisiana University and a master's degree from Colgate Rochester Divinity School. He has worked extensively in the field of journalism, writing for and editing various publications. He became a Baptist minister in 1980 and was ordained deacon and elder in the African Methodist Episcopal Church. Gipson is married and has two daughters. Guyott said he is sad to be leaving campus, but feels that Gipson will do a good job as University chaplain. "I'm looking forward to helping him find his way around," he said. During Guyott's short reign as interim chaplain, he said many changes occurred in the area. "We went from seven to twelve organizations while I was in charge," he said. Guyott said he feels that he "successfully and faithfully followed the Provost's committee's visionary process." He also said the progress made with the Interfaith Council was encouraging and rewarding. "I really enjoyed working with Penn students, whether it was playing squash, counseling, or giving workshops to fraternities," Guyott said. At press time, he did not know what his future plans were. However, he did say that, even though he will not be at Penn, he would like to continue working in university religious services.