Grant J. Hagiya
Co-President
Professor of Leadership & Innovation
Grant Hagiya, the current Co-President and Professor of Leadership and Innovation at the Claremont School of Theology, brings over 25 years of denominational leadership and seminary education experience to this role.
As a member of the Council of Bishops of the United Methodist Church, he is an active member of the University Senate and Commission on Theological Education. He also serves on the Association of United Methodist Theological Seminary Presidents and Deans. He is serving on the General Board of Higher Education Course of Study Review Committee, and the New Bishops Orientation Team. His College of Bishops Episcopal assignments include the Western Jurisdiction Korean Ministries and the Course of Study.
Most recently, he served as the Resident Bishop of the California-Pacific Annual Conference and the Desert Southwest Annual Conference (2016-2022). Elected to the Episcopacy in 2008, he served for eight years in the Greater Northwest Annual Conference, which includes three annual conferences: Alaska, Oregon-Idaho, and the Pacific Northwest.
He is a graduate of the Claremont School of Theology, where he received M.A., M.Div., and D.Min. Degrees. He graduated with an Educational Doctorate in Organizational Leadership from Pepperdine University in 2012. He did Post-doctoral research at the Harvard-Kennedy School in Adaptive Leadership and studied with Ron Heifetz and Marty Linsky. Abingdon published his book, Leadership Kaizen, based on his dissertation on the “Traits, Qualities and Characteristics of Highly Effective UMC Clergy” in 2013.
A full faculty member of the Claremont School of Theology in the past, he continued to serve as an Adjunct Faculty member for over 25 years while serving the United Methodist Church. He is currently teaching Religious Leadership and UMC studies.
He is a certified professional coach with a Professional Certified Coach certification (PCC) from the International Coach Federation. He is also a Gallup StrengthFinder Certified Coach. He is a Certified Practitioner of the Leadership Circle, Certified Trainer for the Arbinger Institute, and Associate Member of the Institute for the Future. He completed the three-stage program as a Senior Practitioner in Systematic Team Coaching from the Global Team Coaching Institute.
Most recently, he has completed the program as a Certified Facilitator for the Institute for Organizational Science and Mindfulness.
Education
Resident Bishop of the California-Pacific Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church
MA, Claremont School of Theology
MDiv, DMin, Claremont School of Theology
EdD, Pepperdine University
