November, 2007…Nashville, Tennessee—The Reverend Dr. Kelly Miller Smith, Jr. of Knoxville Tennessee has been selected to serve as the Executive Director of the Sunday School Publishing Board of the National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc., as of June 2007. The Nashville-based publisher of church literature and Christian books is located at 330 Charlotte Ave., Nashville, TN 37201.

Dr. Smith, who was previously the Secretary for the Corporate Board of Directors of the Sunday School Publishing Board, assumes the position following the death of the previous Executive Director, The Reverend Dr. Earl L. Thomas in April 2007. The Reverend Dr. William J. Shaw of Philadelphia , PA is the President of the National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc. The Reverend Dr. John H. Rouse of East St. Louis, IL is the Chairman of the Corporate Board of the Sunday School Publishing Board.

Dr. Smith brings to this position over 30 years of religious and business leadership experience. He currently serves as Pastor of the Mt. Olive Baptist Church in Knoxville, TN. His accomplishments include the establishment of two church-related academies, one of which began this Fall as a pre-school. He also currently serves as the Vice-President at Large for the Tennessee Baptist Missionary and Educational Convention (TBM&E). His previous experiences include working as the Director of Continuing Education at the American Baptist College in Nashville.

A Nashville native, Dr. Smith is the son of Mrs. Alice Smith Risby and the late Reverend Dr. Kelly Miller Smith, Sr., former pastor of the First Baptist Church, Capitol Hill. A 1976 graduate of Morehouse College in Atlanta, GA with a B.A. in Music, Dr. Smith later received a Master’s of Divinity Degree from the Morehouse School of Religion of the Interdenominational Theological Center (1983), also in Atlanta. His doctorate is from the United Theological Seminary in Dayton, OH (1993). He is married to the former Sue Hall and they have three children and three grandchildren. Further, Dr. Smith is a long-term member of the Beta Theta Boulé fraternity in Knoxville, Tennessee. Dr. Smith is active in his church frequently displaying his athletic skills on the basketball court. To his fellow Archons, Smith is well known for his “instantaneous wit” and abundance of practical jokes.

Article printed with permission of the Sunday School Publishing Board, Nashville, Tennessee.