A key component of the Master of Divinity (M.Div.) program at Duke Divinity School is field education. These contextual learning opportunities give every M.Div. student the opportunity to serve in churches, nonprofits, or other settings under the guidance of a trained supervisor.
For many students, like Samira Foster, M.Div. '27, this is their first opportunity to work in a ministry setting. Foster just served her first placement at Mount Sinai African Methodist Episcopal Church in Pittsboro, N.C.
Foster recalled the hands-on experience as being invaluable to her education. "The most powerful part of this summer was having the chance to sit with my gifts and navigate their expression," said Foster.
"For the very first time, I was blessed with the opportunity to preach, and doing so surpassed my expectations. It is incomparable to experience God’s Spirit in such a manner that allows a message for his people to be birthed. Experiencing His glory in this capacity has provided so much clarity concerning my call and vocation."
Mount Sinai African Methodist Episcopal Church is led with the vision "Together we Grow" by Pastor Shontea L. Smith, who served as Foster's field education supervisor this summer.
The church, said Foster, has a rich history with communities of African descent dating back to its establishment in 1871.
The vision is rooted in the need for these communities to come together both in and out of the church, working "to progress toward deeper healing, increased racial reconciliation, and greater liberation amongst the people of Chatham County, " said Foster. "The African Methodist Episcopal Church was established in 1816 after protesting segregation within the sacred auspices of St. George’s Methodist Church located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania."
Mt. Sinai's goals align with that history and the overarching mission of the AME denomination: “To serve the spiritual, intellectual, physical, emotional, and environmental needs of all people by spreading Christ's gospel through word and deed.”
Smith has been a part of the Durham area for most all of her life. Growing up with housing insecurity, in a single-parent household, she eventually felt a calling into ministry and earned her B.A. and M.A. in religious studies with a concentration in Africana religious thought from UNC Charlotte.
She served as the director of a nonprofit organization that served her home community of Efland-Cheeks, a historically Black rural community, now facing challenges due to gentrification in Orange County. Smith also has spent years studying at Duke Divinity, earning both an M.Div. '17 and an M.T.S. '23 and now pursuing her D.Min. '26.
As a field education supervisor, Smith said she has enjoyed serving as a resource for students to bounce ideas off and learn ministry in practice.
"Field education is an embodied and practical ministry experience," said Smith. "It allows students to get an introduction to some of the gaps in ministry theories. It is an opportunity to serve in ministries one may not have considered and to stretch beyond one’s comfort zone.
"Field education for me, is not necessarily an exercise in one’s expertise; instead, it can be the lived embodiment of how God’s strengths are made perfect in our weaknesses (2 Corinthians 12:8-10). It has been a blessing to journey with the students through the transitions that come with the rigors of academic life and serving in ministry capacities."
Foster reflected on her supervisor's vision, noting that Smith always served with a mission in mind, as they interacted with groups like Community Organizing for Racial Equity (CORE) and Partners in Racial Justice (PRJ).
Said Foster, "Observing her active involvement throughout Chatham County and with organizations that work toward racial equity and justice has nourished critical enlightenment. I was exposed to the type of pastoral ministry I desire to engage in. Not only a ministry that is in the church itself, but also in the surrounding community.
"God’s people are not bound to the building. I believe that when we too closely associate his church with the physical location, we miss out on a greater embodiment, which includes people who have never sat amongst the pews."
Foster, who also has an Master of Social Work, said this type of ministry aligns with her social work training and the principle of meeting people where they are, "to come alongside the humanity of another human being."
Foster says she is still discovering her next steps and ministry vocation plans but is grateful for the ways this field education placement has shaped her as she continues her journey through Divinity School. "By faith, this is the path that has always been in existence but was not yet discernible until entering God’s perfect timing. All the glory belongs to my Heavenly Father. The God who opens doors. The God who provides. The God who sent me."
