The Most Rev. Dr. Will Boyd is the presiding Bishop of Zion Ministries and pastor of St. Mark Missionary Baptist Church—a 162-year-old church in Florence, Alabama.   

Boyd is a former assistant adjunct professor and Dean of Student Success. He was the first African American elected to the office of City Councilman in Greenville, Illinois. In 2016, he served as the Democratic nominee for U.S. Representative of Alabama’s Fifth Congressional District. Not long thereafter, he was elected chairman of the Lauderdale County Democratic Executive Committee.  Desiring to serve God and country, Boyd ran for the U.S. Senate seat won by Senator Doug Jones in 2017. Following the U.S. Senate primary, Boyd was elected to Alabama’s State Democratic Executive Committee.  Dr. Will Boyd was the nominee for Lt. Governor (D-Alabama) and is currently the nominee for U.S. Senate in Alabama.

Life and early career

Boyd was born in Florence, South Carolina. He graduated from Mayo High School and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering at the University of South Carolina. He later earned a Master of Business Administration (MBA) at Regis University, a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Religion from Christian Bible College, a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Organization and Management from Capella University, and a Doctor of Psychology with a Christian worldview (PsyD) from St. James The Elder Theological Seminary. Boyd received honorary doctorates in Divinity and Christian Counseling before being awarded a diplomate in Traumatology from St. James the Elder Theological Seminary whose President was the late and well-respected psychologist Dr. Heyward Ewart. 

Boyd served as the local chapter President of the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) while at the University of South Carolina, an Engineering Student Assistant at South Carolina Electric and Gas, Company, and a South Carolina House of Representative Page to Former State Representative Denny Neilson (D). 

Before transitioning into “full-time ministry” and public service, Boyd worked in the United States and The People’s Republic of China, serving as a Manufacturing Engineer, Production Manager, and Quality Manager A.O. Smith Water Products Company, Fedders Corporation, and International Filter Manufacturing.

Boyd is a member of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Incorporated and served in several offices in his local chapter, including Keeper of Records and Seal, Vice Basileus, and Basileus.  

Boyd is a consecrated Patriarch and International Presiding Prelate with oversight of churches around the world.  Prior to receiving the rank of patriarch, Boyd was elevated to the rank of metropolitan archbishop and then cardinal bishop.  He  was consecrated into these ecclesiastical offices by the late Patriarch Paul (former head of the Holy Catholic Church International)--placing him in apostolic succession which traces Boyd's bishopric back to the original apostles of Jesus Christ.  

Boyd also served on a number of boards in Illinois and Alabama which include the Board of Directors for the Health Care Authority of Lauderdale County and the City of Florence, Alabama.

Boyd’s higher education experience includes serving as Dean of Student Success & Adjunct Assistant Professor of Management at Greenville College and Chancellor at St. James the Elder Theological Seminary. He published three books entitled: Scratching the Surface; Can You Hear Me Now? How Active Listening and Continuous Articulation of Core Values Can Improve Leadership Effectiveness in Any Organization, Even the Church; and Watch God!

The Most Rev. Dr. Will Boyd is married to Vida Boyd.  They have three children and reside in Hoover, Alabama.