Alyce M. McKenzie Receives the Academy of Homiletics Lifetime Achievement Award

DALLAS (SMU) – The Academy of Homiletics presented its prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award to the Rev. Dr. Alyce M. McKenzie on Friday, December 5, 2025, honoring her extraordinary contributions to the field of preaching and to theological education.

McKenzie, the Le Van Professor of Preaching and Worship at Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University, has shaped generations of preachers and scholars through her accessible, thorough research and influential writing. She also serves as the founding Director of the Perkins Center for Preaching Excellence, a nationally recognized hub for continuing education and support for preachers.

In addition to her scholarly achievements, McKenzie has taught at Perkins School of Theology for more than 25 years. In recognition of her excellence in the classroom, SMU awarded her the university’s highest teaching honor in 2011, The Altshuler Distinguished Teaching Professor Award. In 2013, she founded the Perkins Center for Preaching Excellence, ensuring that her legacy of nurturing preachers will continue well into the future.

“Dr. McKenzie’s work at Perkins has been nothing short of transformative. She has helped position our school as a leader in homiletics while building a lasting legacy of excellence that will benefit generations of preachers,” said Dean Bryan P. Stone, Leighton K. Farrell Endowed Dean of Perkins School of Theology.

After nearly a decade of service in the United Methodist pastorate, McKenzie pursued doctoral studies in homiletics at Princeton Theological Seminary. 

Over the course of her career, McKenzie has authored 11 books, along with numerous articles and scholarly chapters. Her work is widely recognized for its distinctive focus in two intersecting areas: the preaching of biblical Wisdom literature, which grew out of her doctoral research and filled a significant gap in the field, and the role of imagination and creativity in preaching. She delivered this latter emphasis in her acclaimed 2015 Lyman Beecher Lectures at Yale University, published in 2018 as Making a Scene in the Pulpit: Vivid Sermons for Visual Listeners.

"Dr. McKenzie has been a leader in homiletical scholarship for the last quarter of a century, and the impact of her work on Wisdom literature and creativity in preaching will continue for many years to come,” said O. Wesley Allen Jr., Lois Craddock Perkins Professor of Homiletics and Co-director of the Perkins Center for Preaching Excellence. 

McKenzie has also served the Academy of Homiletics with distinction. From 2000 to 2008, she co-edited the Academy’s journal, Homiletic, alongside John Holbert, and she served as president of the Academy in 2012.

McKenzie prepares to retire at the conclusion of the academic year, and her colleagues and friends celebrate her remarkable accomplishments along with her generous spirit, mentorship, and deep commitment to the preaching vocation.

Perkins School of Theology, founded in 1911, is one of five official University-related schools of theology of The United Methodist Church. Degree programs include the Master of Divinity, Master of Sacred Music, Master of Theological Studies, Master of Arts in Ministry, Master of Theology, Doctor of Ministry, and Doctor of Pastoral Music as well as the Ph.D., in cooperation with The Graduate Program in Religious Studies at SMU's Dedman College of Humanities and Sciences.