Dianne Anderson
Point Loma Nazarene University
Professor of Biology
Dianne L. Anderson has served as a professor of biology and director of the graduate program in general biology at Point Loma Nazarene University since 2005. She earned a B.S. in Biology at Northwest Nazarene College, an M.S. in microbiology at San Diego State University, and a Ph.D. in Math and Science Education at University of California, San Diego. Her research is on student learning in biology, with a specific focus on common errors associated with understanding natural selection. This work has produced teaching resources, including the Conceptual Inventory in Natural Selection, used in middle school, high school, and college biology classrooms. She enjoys encouraging students to learn how discoveries in biology can be compatible with faith.
Joseph Bankard
Northwest Nazarene University
Associate Professor of Philosophy
Dr. Joseph Bankard is an associate professor of philosophy at Northwest Nazarene University. His research is focused primarily on the interdisciplinary dialogue taking place between science, religion, and morality. He is the author of several journal articles including “Moral Instincts and the Problem with Reductionism: A critical look at the work of Marc Hauser” Theology and Science, vol. 9, num. 4 (November 2011), “Training Emotion Helps Cultivate Virtue: How loving-kindness meditation develops compassion and increases helping behavior” forthcoming, and “Is Christian Hope a Form of Long Term Economy?: An argument from the writings of Albert Camus?” in Gift and Economy: Ethics, Hospitality, and the Market, (Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2012). Dr. Bankard also serves as philosophy department chair at NNU.
Dan Boone
Trevecca Nazarene University
University President
Dan L. Boone became Trevecca's eleventh president in 2005 after having served in pastoral ministry for more than thirty years. A 1974 graduate of Trevecca, he earned a master's degree from Nazarene Theological Seminary in 1977 and a doctorate in ministry from McCormick Theological Seminary in 1996. He began his pastoral ministry when he was in high school, and his last pastorate was at the College Church in Bourbonnais, Illinois. Dr. Boone has taught on the university and seminary level and has been an instructor for the Salvation Army North Central Region.
Stephen Borger
Intermountain District Church of the Nazarene
District Superintendent
Steve grew up in an Iowa Nazarene parsonage and attended Olivet Nazarene College where he received a degree in Business Administration. He completed the M.Div. and D. Min. degrees at Nazarene Theological Seminary. Steve has been the pastor of four churches Potomac, IL, Clinton, IL, Colorado Springs Trinity, and Nampa First. His ministry has spanned 37 years, 2 years as an associate, 25 years as a pastor, and the past 10 years as District Superintendent. He also serves the denomination on the NNU Board of Trustees and Executive Committee and Nazarene Theological Seminary Board of Trustees. He has taught as adjunct faculty of Nazarene Bible College and Northwest Nazarene University.
Bob Branson
Olivet Nazarene University
Professor of Biblical Literature Emeritus
Robert (Bob) Branson is an ordained minister in the Church of the Nazarene and a product of the Nazarene educational system having graduated from Southern Nazarene University and Nazarene Theological Seminary. He received a doctoral degree in biblical studies from Boston University. In addition to pastoring two congregations of the Church of the Nazarene he has taught at Eastern Nazarene College, Warner Southern College, and Olivet Nazarene University, having retired from the latter as Professor of Biblical Literature Emeritus. His latest book is Judges: A Commentary in the Wesleyan Tradition which is part of the New Beacon Bible Commentary series, for which he also serves as a section editor.
Jennifer Chase
Northwest Nazarene University
Associate Professor of Biology
Jennifer R. Chase, Ph.D. has taught at Northwest Nazarene University for 17 years in the biology and chemistry departments. She is a graduate of PLNU (1990) and Yale (1998). Her research interests are in quantitative analysis of metabolic pathways in human disease, including studying the pathological mechanisms for alcohol. She has served as Bible Quizzing Director on the Intermountain District NYI council for over 10 years, after many years of local coaching in the Intermountain and New England districts.
John Cossel
Northwest Nazarene University
Professor of Biology
John Cossel Jr. DA is a professor and department chair for the Biology Department at Northwest Nazarene University, Nampa, Idaho. He graduated from Northwest Nazarene University with a B.A. in Biology Education in 1991. While teaching high school for six years, he completed his M.S. in Science Education with a marine emphasis from Oregon State University in 1996. He received a doctorate of arts in Biology from Idaho State University in 2003. While completing his dissertation he joined the faculty at Northwest Nazarene University in 1999. In addition to guiding students through their exploration of God's creation in the classroom and laboratory, he has developed an active teaching and herpetological field research program in South, Central and North America. He continues to be enthralled with amphibians and reptiles and loves sharing with others via live animals maintained at Northwest Nazarene University, field experiences and photography.
Tim Crutcher
Southern Nazarene University
Professor of Church History and Theology
Timothy Crutcher is a Professor of Church History and Theology at Southern Nazarene University. He is also a graduate of of SNU, obtaining his BA (1991) and MA (1993) there before moving on to the Nazarene Theological Seminary (M.Div., 1995) and the Catholic University of Louvain (S.T.D./Ph.D., 2003). He taught for three years at Africa Nazarene University in Nairobi, Kenya, before joining the faculty of SNU in 2003. His published work includes a monograph (The Crucible of Life: The Role of Experience in John Wesley's Theological Method) as well as journal articles, curriculum and a number of short books for the NMI Missionary Reading Program. He and his wife, Rhonda, have three children and live near Piedmont, Oklahoma, where he serves as a Teaching Pastor at Piedmont Church of the Nazarene.
John W. Dally
Pikes Peak Hospice and Palliative Care
Chaplain
Rev. John W. Dally holds an MA in Theology from PLNU and an MA in Spiritual Formation from NNU. He pastored for eighteen years in Southern California. During that time, John taught Bible and Theology for NBC in Pasadena, CA then for NBC Online. Since 2007, John has worked for Pikes Peak Hospice and Palliative Care as a chaplain. He has written several articles for Preacher's Magazine and Herald of Holiness. His most recent article is "Teaching Holiness to Generation X", Herald of Holiness, November 1996.
Steve Estep
Grace Church of the Nazarene
Senior Pastor
Steve Estep is the Sr. Pastor at Grace Church of the Nazarene in Clarksville, TN. He has a B.A. from Mt. Vernon Nazarene University, an M.Div from Nazarene Theological Seminary, and a D. Min in preaching from McCormick Theological Seminary. In addition to pastoring, Steve serves as adjunct professor of preaching at Nazarene Theological Seminary and has taught at MidAmerica, Trevecca, and through the TN District Course of Study. He also serves as team chaplain for the Rossview High School football team. Steve's passions are preaching and prayer.
Lowell Hall
Eastern Nazarene College
Professor of Chemistry
Lowell H. Hall, PhD is Professor of Chemistry at Eastern Nazarene College. He earned his BS degree in Chemistry from Eastern Nazarene College and PhD degree in Physical Chemistry from The Johns Hopkins University. During his fifty year career (46 years at ENC), he served as Head of the Department of Chemistry and also Chairman of the Division of Natural Science and Mathematics. He has also authored and co-authored four books as well as invited chapters in 14 books including two chapters in the standard reference work Comprehensive Medicinal Chemistry II, and also more than 120 papers in peer-reviewed scientific journals, many co-authored by his ENC chemistry majors. He has co-pioneered a new method for molecular structure representation so that properties of organic molecules may be modeled and predicted. Currently he is engaged in an NIH–supported research project to identify human endogenous metabolites, based in part on his modeling methods together with experimental data from the University of Connecticut, School of Pharmacy. He and his wife Dorla are longtime active members of the Wollaston Church of the Nazarene.
Nancy Halliday
University of Oklahoma College of Medicine
Associate Professor of Cell Biology
Nancy Halliday, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor of Cell Biology at the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine. She graduated with a B.S. in Biology from Southern Nazarene University in 1988. She received her Ph.D. in Cell Biology from the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine in 1994. After a post-doc at Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, she followed her passion for teaching to join the faculty of Biology at Southern Nazarene University in 1995. She joined the College of Medicine faculty at OU in 2010 where she currently serves as course director for the gross anatomy course. In 2012, the medical students presented her with an Aesculapian Award for Excellence in Teaching the Basic Sciences.
Bethany Hull Somers
Skagit Valley Hospital
Chaplain
Bethany Hull Somers is an ordained elder in the Church of the Nazarene. She has served as a pastor in various capacities for over ten years. Currently she is spending most of her time as a mommy to Nyah (almost 3) and Naomi (almost 3 months) and some of her time as a chaplain at her local hospital. Bethany loves to enjoy the wide and wonderful world that God created.
Thomas J. King
Nazarene Bible College
Professor of Old Testament
Thomas J. King is professor of Old Testament at Nazarene Bible College. He previously served as a Bible lecturer at St. Mary's College of California. He is an ordained elder in the Church of the Nazarene. Thomas earned a B.A. degree from Northwest Christian College, an M.Div. from Brite Divinity School/TCU, and a Ph.D. from the Graduate Theological Union. He is the author of The Realignment of the Priestly Literature in the Princeton Theological Monograph Series, and the forthcoming Leviticus volume of the New Beacon Bible Commentary.
Carl Leth
Olivet Nazarene University
Dean of the School of Theology and Christian Ministry
Carl Leth (Ph.D. – Duke University) is Dean of the School of Theology and Christian Ministry at Olivet Nazarene University and the Rev. Dr. Fay Quanstrom Chair of Pastoral Ministry. He teaches theology and pastoral leadership. He also serves as Pastor of the Wildwood Church of the Nazarene, a multi-cultural congregation in downtown Kankakee, Illinois.
Michael Lodahl
Point Loma Nazarene University
Professor of Theology & World Religions
Michael Lodahl is an ordained minister in the Church of the Nazarene and a theology professor in Southern California, where he enjoys the richness of God’s love and blessings with his wife Janice.
Mark Mann
Point Loma Nazarene University
Associate Professor of Theology
Mark H. Mann is Associate Professor of Theology and Director of the Wesleyan Center at Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego. He is author of Perfecting Grace: Holiness and the Human Sciences (2006), co-editor of Nurturing the Prophetic Imagination (2012) and Reconsidering Arminius: Wesleyan and Reformed Theology for the Church Today (forthcoming, 2013), and a regular contributor on issues related to dialogue between theology and science to "The BioLogos Forum". He is an ordained elder in the Church of the Nazarene, and serves as a pastor in Ocean Beach, CA.
Marty Michelson
Ordained Elder in the Church of the Nazarene
Professor and Peacemaker
Marty Alan Michelson (Ph.D., University of Manchester) learned as a child to marvel at the Creator's creation when he explored sea anemones in tidal pools of the Oregon coast or when the crushing power of the surf in the Pacific Ocean knocked him off balance. An intentional peacemaker, Marty enjoys teaching a University course on Biblical Theology and Global Stewardship at the Quetzal Education Research Center located in San Gerardo de Dota, Costa Rica.
Jon Middendorf
Oklahoma City First Church of the Nazarene
Senior Pastor
Jon Middendorf pastors Oklahoma City First Church of the Nazarene where he has served since 1990. After graduating from Southern Nazarene, Jon jumped into youth ministry and worked with the students at OKC First for the next 17 years. In August of 2007, Jon accepted the church's invitation to serve as senior pastor. OKC First is a church 103 years in the making, situated in the heart of NW Oklahoma City. Slowly but surely, this old church is shaping and reorganizing the surrounding neighborhood, putting flesh on the best hopes and ideas of Wesleyan theology.
Mark Quanstrom
Olivet Nazarene University
Professor of Theology and Philosophy
Rev. Mark R. Quanstrom, Ph.D. is a full-time professor of theology and philosophy in the School of Theology at Olivet Nazarene University. He is also the University Campus pastor at College Church of the Nazarene in Bourbonnais. He began teaching at Olivet in the fall of 2005. Prior to coming to Olivet, he was pastor for 23 years at the Belleville, IL First Church of the Nazarene. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Olivet, a Master of Divinity from Nazarene Theological Seminary, and a Ph.D. from St. Louis University. His Ph.D. dissertation was published in 2004 by Beacon Hill Press under the title A Century of Holiness Theology. His second book, From Grace to Grace, is a call to holiness which places priority on grace (hence the title) and was published by Beacon Hill Press in October of 2011.
Mike Schutz
Avon Grove Church of the Nazarene
Senior Pastor
Mike Schutz has served as Senior Pastor of the Avon Grove Church of the Nazarene in southeastern Pennsylvania since 2002. This local parish ministry includes a worshipping community, early childhood education and after-school programming, summer day camp; collaborative compassionate ministry efforts assisting a diverse population with food, clothing, furniture, household goods, and healthcare; a collaborative youth community center; and a relational support, health and educational program for young mothers. From 1979-2002 he served at Eastern Nazarene College, Quincy, MA.
Steven M. Smith
Geologist
Steven M. Smith earned a B.S. degree in Geology/Chemistry from Olivet Nazarene University in 1981 and an M.S. degree in Geology (specializing in Exploration Geochemistry) from the Colorado School of Mines in 1985. He has worked as a Mineral Exploration Geochemist and Environmental Geochemist for the U.S. Geological Survey in Denver, Colorado since 1982. This work has included mineral resource assessments of U.S. National Forests, BLM Wilderness Areas, and Indian Reservations; research in new geochemical exploration methodologies; and geochemical studies on the impact of mineral deposits and mining in the environment. Steve’s projects have involved fieldwork in remote mountains and wild places from Alaska to Mexico and from Virginia to California. Currently, Steve is the Project Chief for the USGS National Geochemical Database. Steve has served 21 years as the NMI president in his local church and currently serves as Worship Leader.
Henry Spaulding
Mount Vernon Nazarene University
University President
Henry Spaulding has served on faculty at Eastern Nazarene College, Trevecca Nazarene University, and Nazarene Theological Seminary. He has served in a number of roles in higher education as well as serving as a senior pastor in two Nazarene churches. His research interests have been in exploring the impact as intersection of postmodern philosophy on Wesleyan-Holiness theology. He has published four articles in the Wesleyan Theological Journal addressing several aspects of this intersection. Dr. Spaulding recently published We Believe: Engaging the Doctrinal Heritage of the Church of the Nazarene through MVNU. Dr. Spaulding currently serves as the President of Mount Vernon Nazarene University.
Rob L. Staples
Nazarene Theological Seminary
Professor of Theology Emeritus
Rob L. Staples, A.B. Trevecca Nazarene University, 1951; B.D. Nazarene Theological Seminary, 1954; Th.D. Pacific School of Religion, 1963. Was a pastor in California, 1954-1962. Professor of Religion, Southern Nazarene University (1963 to 1976), Professor of Theology, Nazarene Theological Seminary (1976 to 1998). A past president of the Wesleyan Theological Society. Author of three books, co-author of four other books and approximately 100 published articles.
Brent Strawn
Chandler School of Theology, Emory University
Associate Professor of Old Testament
Brent A. Strawn is associate professor of Old Testament at the Candler School of Theology and Graduate Division of Religion at Emory University, where he is also a Senior Fellow in the Center for the Study of Law and Religion. An ordained elder in the Church of the Nazarene, he is the author of numerous essays and editor of twelve books, most recently The Bible and the Pursuit of Happiness: What the Old and New Testaments Teach Us about the Good Life (Oxford University Press, 2012).
Randie Timpe
Mount Vernon Nazarene University
Assistant to the Provost for Administration
An alumnus of Southern Nazarene University with baccalaureate study in religion, Dr. Timpe completed graduate study in psychology at Wichita State and Oklahoma State Universities. His scholarly interests have focused on the integration of psychology and theology, which membership in the Christian Association of Psychological Study strengthened. He serves as peer reviewer for the integration journals of Journal of Psychology and Christianity and Journal of Psychology and Theology and contributed to both editions of the Baker Encyclopedia of Psychology. Professionally he held instructional and administrative responsibilities at Mount Vernon Nazarene University where his role is presently directed to accreditation, assessment and institutional effectiveness.
Alex Varughese
Mount Vernon Nazarene University
Professor of Biblical Literature
Alex Varughese, Ph.D. in Old Testament, professor of Biblical Literature at Mount Vernon Nazarene, also holds Bachelor of Science (Zoology), Master of Science (Marine Biology), Master of Arts (Religion), and Master of Divinity degrees.
Burton Webb
Northwest Nazarene University
Vice President for Academic Affairs
Burton Webb, PhD developed a love for biology at an early age, and growing up on a farm in central Michigan was the ideal place to begin exploring God's creation. He holds degrees in Zoology, Biology, Microbiology and Immunology. Dr. Webb is the Vice President for Academic Affairs at Northwest Nazarene University and maintains a part time faculty appointment at his alma mater, the Indiana University School of Medicine.
Dennis Williams
Southern Nazarene University
Professor of History and Geography
Dennis Williams has served as a professor of history at Southern Nazarene University since 1994, where he currently serves as Dean of Teaching and Learning. He earned a Ph.D. in history at Texas Tech University (1992) with an emphasis in American Environmental History and the History of American Science. His publications include God's Wilds: John Muir's Vision of Nature (Texas A&M University Press, 2002) and numerous essays, reviews and blog posts. He has also served as historian of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, editor of the American Society of Environmental History newsletter (ASEH News) and as managing editor of H-Environment, a Humanities Network (H-NET) forum and blog editor of the Davinci Institute blog (davinciok.org). As alluded to in his essay, Williams was raised on a cotton farm on the Texas South Plains. Currently living in Bethany, OK, he is happily married to wife Joyce and has three wonderful daughters all of whom provide him with constant inspiration and joy.
Donald Yerxa
Eastern Nazarene College
Professor of History Emeritus
Donald A. Yerxa is emeritus professor of history at Eastern Nazarene College and director of ENC’s Honors Scholar Program. He is a graduate of ENC (1972) and received his M.A. (1974) and Ph.D. (1982) from the University of Maine. He is senior editor of Historically Speaking (published for The Historical Society by the Johns Hopkins University Press); editor of Fides et Historia (the journal of the Conference on Faith and History); and a contributing editor of Books & Culture. Yerxa is author, co-author, or editor of ten books, including (with Karl Giberson) Species of Origins: America’s Search for a Creation Story (Rowman & Littlefield, 2002) and most recently the edited volume British Abolitionism and the Question of Moral Progress in History (University of South Carolina Press, 2012).
Shea Zellweger
Overland Park Church of the Nazarene
Ministerial Intern
Shea Zellweger has been a minister in the Church of the Nazarene for 5 years, and holds a Master’s Degree in Theology from Andover Newton Theological School. He has published two books, one fiction and one theology, and has contributed content for several theology-related websites. Shea currently resides in Lenexa with his wife and son.