Graduate Leadership Faculty

Fred Banke, Ed.S.
Lecturer, Gordon College Graduate Leadership

After completing 15 years in administration in the Resort Hotel & Spa Industry in Florida, the Lord called Fred into a different field. For the past 24 years he has been serving in Christian education, with the last 13 years as Headmaster at Community Christian in Stockbridge, Georgia. Previously he served as Middle School Principal at Mt. Bethel Christian Academy and Assistant Middle School Principal at Charlotte Christian.  Prior to that, Fred served as a teacher, college counselor and financial aid coordinator at Dade Christian School in Miami.  He also served as an adjunct faculty member at Trinity International University (Miami).

Fred holds an Education Specialist degree in Educational Leadership, and a Bachelor of Science in Education degree from Florida Atlantic University, and a Master of Science degree in Physical Education, majoring in exercise physiology, from Florida International University.

Fred and his wife, Dr. Susan Banke, have two grown children, and enjoy spending time with their five grandchildren.

William Brown, Ph.D.
Lecturer, Gordon College Graduate Leadership

Dr. William E. (Bill) Brown led two Christian universities as President - Bryan College (1993-2003) and Cedarville University (2003-2013). Currently, he divides his time among several initiatives. He is the Senior Fellow of Worldview and Culture at the Colson Center for Christian Worldview, where he also directs the Colson Fellows Program.  He is the Senior Executive of WorldAPP, an international technology firm with offices in Kiev, London, and Boston. 

Dr. Brown has written several books and more than a hundred articles for journals, magazines, encyclopedias, and newspapers. His books include Making Sense of Your Faith and Making Sense of Your World (with Gary Phillips and John Stonestreet), a book used by many colleges and universities as an introductory text to worldview/philosophical thinking. He is a member of the Society of Christian Philosophers and the Popular Culture Association. Dr. Brown is the Executive Producer and speaker for the multiple award-winning DVD series, re: View worldview study. 

He and Lynne married in 1976 and have two children and four grandchildren. They reside in Mars Hill, North Carolina, where they are active members of GracePoint Church. Dr. Brown enjoys playing guitar and hiking with his family, and when he’s indoors he enjoys reading C.S. Lewis. 

Hunter Chadwick, Ed.S.
Lecturer, Gordon College Graduate Leadership
Head of School, Calvary Day School

Dr. Hunter Chadwick began his educational career in lower school teaching K – 4. He taught Spanish and World History at the upper school level and became the program coordinator for students’ at-risk program at Bradwell Institute in Hinesville, GA. Then he served as the Director of Curriculum at Savannah Christian Preparatory School. After receiving his doctorate, Dr. Chadwick and his family moved to Roswell, GA, and he served in administration at Fellowship Christian School. Dr. Chadwick served as the Head of Upper School at King’s Ridge Christian School for 7 years before joining Calvary Day School as the Head of School. He is beginning his 4th year at Calvary while leading the school to over 64% enrollment growth over his tenure. Bringing financial stability to CDS while improving the co-curricular offerings and academic rigor of the school are just a few of the many transitions Dr. Chadwick has led in his time at Calvary. Assisting in the development of the CDS Board of Trustees and strategic plan for the future were tremendous accomplishments while building a newly created foundation endowment to set CDS apart from any school in the area. Hunter and his wife Erin have a large family with multiple grandchildren. He has four children at CDS along with several grandchildren. Erin serves as the Director of College Counseling at CDS.

Ron Farrar, Ed.D.
Upper School Principal, Westminster Academy
Lecturer, Gordon College Graduate Leadership

Dr. Ron Farrar currently serves as the upper school principal at Westminster Academy in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Prior to Westminster, he served as middle school principal at Whitefield Academy, a Christ-centered, college preparatory school, in Smyrna, Georgia. He also served as a teacher, coach, and administrator in the Massachusetts public school system. He earned his bachelor’s degree in education and history from Fitchburg State University and received his master’s degree in education from Cambridge College. Dr. Farrar has a biblical studies degree from The Master’s College in Santa Clarita, California. He earned his Doctorate in Educational Leadership and Certificate of Advanced Graduate Studies (CAGS) in Educational Leadership, both from Cambridge College. He also taught graduate courses at the university level. Dr. Farrar is married to Cheryl, and they have four daughters—Emma (19), Abigail (16), Ellie (15), and Annabel (13).

Jay Ferguson, J.D.
Headmaster, Grace Community School
Lecturer, Gordon College Graduate Leadership

Jay Ferguson is the headmaster of Grace Community School in Tyler, Texas, where has served in that position since June 2003. Grace Community School is the largest private school in East Texas, serving just under 1000 students in grades kindergarten through 12th. Grace’s mission is to assist Christian parents in educating, equipping, and encouraging their children to influence the world for Christ, or as they condense it, to “teach Jesus.”

Jay attended Highland Park High School in Dallas, Baylor University, and Texas Tech School of Law. He was a practicing attorney in Dallas and Tyler for ten years before joining Grace Community School in 2002 as its Director of Development. After the departure of the school’s long-time headmaster in summer 2003, Jay became interim headmaster. He assumed the full-time headmaster role in fall 2003. Since that time, Jay has worked to develop a “whole ministry” approach for Grace Community School through a unified relationship between the Upper and Lower Campuses, and a strengthened bond between church and school.

Jay has written extensively on Christian education and training up children in the Lord, and counsels parents on child-raising issues daily. He has authored “A Bowed Head and a Humble Heart: The Head of School's Pastoral Role”, in Building a Better School, published by Paideia Press, as well as several journal articles. He writes a weekly blog on spiritual, education and parenting issues called The Head and the Heart. He is an adjunct professor at Covenant College in Georgia, at Vanderbilt University, and at Gordon College in Massachusetts.

Jay is the recipient of the W.C. Windsor Award for outstanding service in the Tyler community. He was named Smith County Outstanding Young Lawyer of the Year. He currently serves on boards of organizations operating at the local, state, national, and international level, including the East Texas Communities Foundation, Texas Private School Association, the Council on Educational Standards and Accountability, and the executive board of the Association of Christian Schools International. He has a heart for mentoring groups of young men and couples.

Jay holds a Bachelors’ Degree from Baylor University, a Juris Doctor from Texas Tech University School of Law, and a Masters’ Degree in Educational Leadership from Covenant College. He is currently a PhD candidate in Leadership Studies at Dallas Baptist University. He and his wife, Ashley, are members of Grace Community Church, and have served over 20 years in small group and children’s ministries. He serves as an elder of Grace Community. He and Ashley have three teenage daughters, Emma, Annie, and Ellen. He has taught them to love Jesus and football, in that order, which he considers his gift to future sons-in-law, Lord willing.

Mark Jennings, Ph.D.
Director of Development, Mount Pisgah Christian School 
Lecturer, Gordon College Graduate Leadership

Mark has more than 20 years' experience in higher education and K-12 education as an executive, fundraiser, and teacher. He enjoys regular public speaking to groups of 10-1,000. Mark is committed to active communication and consensus building, which informs his personal management style and business practices. He is focused on the non-profit sector, specifically education, which he sees as the best vehicle for bringing goodness to our world. 
 
Mark's teaching interests are primarily in the teaching of ancient languages and social-dynamics and rhetoric in the ancient world. He is also a published author in the field. 

Dr. Harmon began his education career as a counselor in an all boys’ behavior rehabilitation facility. After serving several years in this capacity, Dr. Harmon was hired as a counselor at an independent Christian school in South Florida. During his tenure, Dr. Harmon was instrumental in developing a new upper school program, ultimately becoming the school’s first upper school principal. Since that time, Dr. Harmon has been the headmaster of schools in Florida, Texas, and Georgia for the past twenty years. Dr. Harmon is a VanLunen Fellow and a Vanderbilt Peabody Summer Fellow. He has been the Next Generation Chair for Rotary International and sits on the local board for Horizons Savannah. Dr. Harmon earned his Doctor of Education from George Fox University. 

Mike Hayes, Ed.D.
Head of School, Worthington Christian School
Lecturer, Gordon College Graduate Leadership

Hayes is currently the Head of School at Worthington Christian School in Ohio. Prior to 2022, he served as the Vice President for Student Development at Lee University in Cleveland, TN where he had served in several significant roles since 1995. His early career at Lee includes positions as Counselor, Coordinator of Academic Assessment, and Director of Student Development. He became a member of the President’s Cabinet in 2006 as an Assistant Vice President and was promoted to his current role as Vice President for Student Development in 2010.

While at Lee, Hayes oversaw campus ministries, counseling, health clinic, new student orientation, racial and ethnic relations, and residential life and housing, among many other functions. He has also spent consistent time in the classroom and taught many undergraduate and graduate courses in personal and team leadership, psychology, and educational practices. His work with younger students includes his oversight of an esteemed summer honors program for high school students that has grown substantially under his leadership.

An Ohio native, Mike earned his EdD in Educational Administration and Policy Studies and MEd in Counseling from the University of Tennessee, and a BA in Psychology from Lee College.

Brian Kennerly
Assistant Head of External Affairs
Lecturer, Gordon College Graduate Leadership

Brian Kennerly joined the Whitefield team in 2018 as assistant head of external affairs and also served as interim Middle School principal for the 2019-2020 school year. Before arriving at Whitefield, Kennerly served as head of school at Brookstone School in Columbus, Georgia, high school principal and assistant head of school at Wesleyan in Peachtree Corners, and a grade chairman at the Westminster Schools in Atlanta. Most recently he served as the executive director for the Council on Educational Standards and Accountability. Kennerly has earned a B.A. in political science from Vanderbilt University, an M.A. in education administration from Columbia University, and a doctorate of education in organizational leadership and policy from Vanderbilt University. On a professional note: I believe in Christian education. I believe there is no greater gift you can give a child than a strong academic education in a Christ-centered environment.  I love working in education, and there is no other profession in which, when asked the question “why?” the answer is always, "for the students." I love a student-centered school and education. Waking up in the morning and knowing that you are serving the leaders of the future is both exciting and invigorating. On a personal note, my family is my wife Holle and two daughters. My hometown is Houston, Texas.

Curtis G. Masters
Headmaster, Brentwood Academy 
Lecturer, Gordon College Graduate Leadership

Mr. Masters was mainly raised in Indonesia with his missionary parents. He attended Wheaton College, where he met his wife, Cindy, who also grew up on the mission field, and there he earned a bachelor of arts in psychology. Later, he earned a master of education in administration from the University of Puget Sound and a Ph.D. (ABD) in educational leadership from the University of Miami. Before coming to Brentwood Academy, Mr. Masters was headmaster and upper school principal of Dade Christian School in Miami, Florida; the dean of students at The Stony Brook School, Stony Brook, New York; and assistant principal at Life Christian School in Tacoma, Washington. 

Misty Overman, Ed.D. 
Head of School, Fort Worth Christian School
Lecturer, Gordon College Graduate Leadership

Dr. Misty Overman has served two schools for over thirty years with experience as a teacher, administrator, and Head of School. She holds a B.S. in Secondary Mathematics Education, a M.Ed. in Educational Leadership, as well as an Ed. D. in Educational Leadership from the University of Georgia. Following her graduation from UGA in 1986, Dr. Overman accepted her first teaching job at Greater Atlanta Christian School (GACS) where she taught high school math. In 2001, she continued her tenure at GACS as Middle School Principal. She was directly involved in school wide (K-12) initiatives including professional development, 1:1 student technology, learning differences programs, and facility design for learning. She finished her career at GACS as Vice President of Learning Initiatives. 

 In 2015, Dr. Overman was named Head of School for Alabama Christian Academy. In her five years at ACA, she spearheaded efforts focused on curriculum development, technology integration, spiritual formation of students, fundraising, communications, and athletics/fine arts.  

Dr. Overman also serves as the Chair for the National Christian School Association Board of Accreditation which accredits K-12 christian schools across the country. She also serves on the National Christian School Association Board of Trustees.  

Misty and her husband Jerry, who is the golf coach at Faulkner University, have been married for 36 years, and together they are the proud parents of three children and two grandchildren.  

Jason Powell, Ed.D.
Assistant Director of Development
Lecturer, Gordon College Graduate Leadership

Jason Powell is the Assistant Director of Development and Christian Life at Brentwood Academy near Nashville, Tennessee. His leadership experience includes serving as head of two independent Christian Schools, public school district administrator with school choice policy expertise, middle school principal, coach, dean and mathematics teacher. Jason received his Bachelor’s and Master’s from Florida State University and his Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) focused on Educational Leadership and Administration from University of Central Florida. 

Justin Smith, Ed.D.
Head of Upper School, VP, Little Rock Christian Academy
Lecturer, Gordon College Graduate Leadership

Justin Smith serves as the Head of Upper School | Vice President of Little Rock Christian Academy, a leading Christian independent Pre-K3 to 12th-grade school of over 1,400 students and 250 faculty in Central Arkansas. Justin also serves as a trustee on the board of an all-boys boarding school in Philadelphia. Committed to Christian education, Justin has contributed to think tanks, such as MindShift: Catalyzing Change in Christian Education, and serves on the CESA Annual Symposium steering committee.

A native Californian, Justin holds a Bachelor's Degree from the University of San Diego, a Master's Degree in Educational Leadership, and a Doctorate of Education from Sam Houston State University.

Justin, his wife Amanda, and their two children, Gracie and Raleigh, live in West Little Rock, attend Fellowship Bible Church.

Jared Squires, Ed.D.
Head of School, Heritage School
Lecturer, Gordon College Graduate Leadership

Jared Squires has been blessed to be a part of the classical, Christian, University-Model school movement for the past 20 years as a co-founder, trustee and headmaster of Kingdom Prep. He and his wife, Dana, first learned of the classical Christian university-model school movement in the fall of 1999 when his daughter, now 27, was in the first grade. At that moment in his life, the Lord began prompting him in a number of areas regarding what His plans were for his children’s education, as well as His plans for a career. After working “part-time” in education during the evenings and on weekends for eight years, he left his career as a healthcare executive in August 2008 to pursue his calling full-time as a school administrator. His educational background includes a bachelor’s degree in finance, a master’s degree in business, and a doctoral degree in education. He has been impacted dramatically by the formation and continued development of Kingdom Prep. He is extremely thankful for the opportunity to serve on a daily basis in the many varied capacities at a classical Christian school.

Jeff Stevenson, Ph.D.
Associate Teaching Professor of Spanish, Gordon College
Brazil Cohort Lecturer and Coordinator, Gordon College Graduate Leadership

Professor Stevenson’s teaching and research focuses on the development of linguistic and intercultural proficiency with a special interest in ethnographic interview techniques and in-country project-based research in collaboration with local students and faculty during study abroad. He is also the founder of Proyecto Nehemías, a Spanish-language publishing house which produces content on faith and work, whole-life discipleship, theological education, and resilience in ministry for digital and print distribution. Jeff received his B.A. from Central Washington University, his M.A. from University of Washington, his M.Div. from Reformed Theological Seminary and his Ph.D. from University of Washington. 

Kathryn Teston, Ed.D.
Head of School, Fellowship Christian School
Lecturer, Gordon College Graduate Leadership

Dr. Kathryn Teston, a native Texan, spent her high school years in London, England where she also met Jesus Christ as her personal Savior.  She received her BA from Florida Bible College in Biblical Education and Theology.  Her MEd in Educational Leadership and EdD in Curriculum and Instruction were both earned at Liberty University.  Dr. Teston began her teaching career in Maryland, followed by teaching assignments in Virginia, Florida and Michigan.  She and her husband were missionary teachers in the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific for two years where they greeted the birth of their first daughter.  The Testons also have two other married children and nine grandchildren.  Dr. Teston taught a variety of subjects, fifth grade through high school, and served as an administrator for nineteen years.  Currently, she is the Head of School at Fellowship Christian School in Roswell, GA.  FCS is a PK-12^th grade school with 930 students currently.

Susan Banke, Ph.D. 
Director
Graduate Leadership Program at Gordon College

Susan has been involved in education for her entire career, recently joining the Gordon Leadership Program as its Director of Graduate Leadership. Prior to accepting this position, she taught and continues to teach in the Graduate Leadership Program in courses such as Personnel and Strategic Planning and Liberal Arts Approach in Leadership. 

Serving in Christian schools for over 35 years in Florida, North Carolina, and Georgia, Susan has been a teacher, dean of students, assistant principal, and upper school principal.  In 2013 she became a certified executive leadership coach and founded CoachED, a consulting firm that supports independent schools and school leaders.  

During that same year, she stepped down as Upper School Principal at Whitefield Academy in Georgia to begin teaching Educational Leadership at Kennesaw State University. Her role included overseeing the coaching endorsement program and professional learning, with a focused effort dealing with independent and charter school educators.  

Susan received her Bachelor of Arts in Christian Education from Baptist Bible College and earned her Master of Science and Ph.D in Educational Leadership from Barry University.  

She serves as an accreditation chairperson with SAIS (Southern Association of Independent Schools) and as a CESA (Council on Educational Standards and Accountability) school audit team member. Susan also serves on the board at Mount Paran Christian School, and an advisory board member Cheer Division for Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA). She is a past board member for Academic Opportunities in America and World Children’s Center.  

Susan and her husband Fred (also a Gordon College instructor) have two adult children and five grandchildren.