The seminary was formed in 1904 to educate leaders for the growing number of progressive religious communities in the western part of the US.
The school emphasizes the practical skills of religious leadership through the lens of Educating to Counter Oppressions (ECO).
During the Civil War, the popular lecturer and activist spoke zealously in favor of the Union and was credited by Abraham Lincoln with preventing California from becoming a separate republic.
In addition, he organized the Pacific Branch of the United States Sanitary Commission, which cared for wounded soldiers and was the predecessor to the American Red Cross.
These steps included selling its building in Berkeley and moving to a new facility in Oakland in 2022, leaving the GTU in 2020, and staff/faculty reductions.