Jossie Owens In the News

Eastern Nazarene College (ENC) recently appointed Jossie Owens to the newly created position of vice president for adult and graduate studies, the Christian liberal arts college announced today.

An alumna of ENC, Dr. Owens was the first African American woman in the United States and Canada to be elected district superintendent in the Church of the Nazarene. In this role, she had oversight responsibility for 103 churches.

Prior to serving as district superintendent, she served as pastor of Second Church in Dorchester and principal of Parkside Christian Academy.

She has also been involved with the Boston Ten Point Coalition, the Boston Education Collaborative and Boston Justice Ministries.

Her business experience includes serving in numerous management positions with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, where she was responsible for the administration of the corporate Assessment Center Program and served as manager of the Training and Organization Development department.

A Mansfield resident, Owens received her bachelor’s degree from ENC in 1974. She received a master’s degree in public administration from Northeastern University and a doctorate of education in planning, policy and administration from Boston University.