During the 49th session of its General Conference, the
African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church appointed Bishop Adam Jefferson (AJ)
Richardson, Jr. to lead the 11th district. The 11th district includes Florida
and the Bahamas.
Richardson, a FAMU alumnus, was elected and consecrated the
115th Bishop in the African Methodist Episcopal Church in 1996 at Louisville,
Kentucky. He was assigned to the 14th Episcopal District which includes six
countries in West Africa. In the 2000 – 2004 quadrennial, he served as chair of
the Lay Commission, member of the World Methodist Council, and as the Presiding
Bishop of the 19th Episcopal District with headquarters in Johannesburg, South
Africa.
In 2002, Bishop Richardson served as President of the
Council of Bishops. He is now the proud Episcopal leader of the Second
Episcopal District which includes North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, and
Washington, DC. For the second time, he chairs the Commission on Seminaries,
Universities, Colleges and Schools (formerly the Commission on Higher
Education) of the A. M. E. Church.
Bishop Richardson began his educational pursuit in the
public schools of Tampa, Florida. He received the B.A. degree from FAMU (where
he served as the head drum major of the Marching 100). He received the Master
of Divinity degree from the Turner Theological Seminary at the
Interdenominational Theological Center (ITC) in Atlanta and the Doctor of
Sacred Theology degree at the ITC through the Atlanta Theological Association.
He and his wife, Connie Speights, are the proud parents of
two adult children, Monique (an attorney), and Trey (a recipient of two
Master's degrees in music theory and classical saxophone).