Guiding to Become Innovator Leaders
I became a believer and a Nazarene in my senior year of high school. My life verse is Jeremiah 29:11: “’For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’” He has allowed me to encounter many different people in my education and my professional endeavors.
I hold a B.A. in Christian Education from MidAmerica Nazarene College, a M.A. in Christian Education from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and a Ph.D. in Organizational Leadership from Argosy University-Denver.
I have been married to my wife, Delberta, for 33 years, and we reside in Denver, CO.
I have had the privilege of serving as a youth and children’s pastor in Topeka and Garden City, Kansas; Springfield, Missouri; and Houston, Texas before taking on interim staff positions in Colorado Springs and Denver, Colorado.
I have served as vice president, program director, Christian education consultant, and trainer for national and international ministry organizations. I have also been involved in international training initiatives in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Africa.
In addition, I have been enmeshed in higher education as a professor in several colleges and universities along Colorado’s Front Range, including the metro Denver area.
My doctoral work focused on faith-based boards and how they contribute to the success of the organizations they serve. One of my passions is helping board members understand their roles and responsibilities to help organizations identify and achieve their missions and purposes more effectively. The experience of working with faith-based, non-profit organizations has helped me realize the need for greater accountability and understanding of how these organizations should function. My passion is to help board members understand the importance of governance issues and concerns.
Educators have an incredible opportunity to impact students with life experiences. Part of the educational philosophy must be to take the student’s life experiences and shape, mold, and develop these along biblical principles. Students come to their college experiences with various physical, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual needs. They come with enthusiasm, excitement, and energy. My job as an educator is to take these students as they come to us and help guide them into becoming faithful, committed disciples of Jesus Christ. Our students need to be innovative leaders that lead with integrity and are well-respected in the fields in which God has called them to serve.
Through the Leadership & Ethics programs that I oversee, students are equipped spiritually and emotionally to respond to an ever-changing culture that often conflicts with a biblical worldview. As program director, I want our students to be challenged and equipped to counter the message of the culture with the message of the gospel, to learn to live out the gospel in any place God leads them.
As a person who enjoys people and receives energy from working with and being around people, I find it rewarding to work with individuals who are ready and willing to learn. My experience in the five years that I’ve been serving at NBC tells me that this is exactly the type of student NBC has. I love the idea of working with adult students who are preparing themselves to go out to impact the world with a calling, career choices, and life experiences. If I can help influence and prepare students academically and spiritually, then I believe I have done my job as an educator.
Dr. Jerry W. Storz, Faculty and Program Director of Leadership and Ethics, and Christian Education Ministries
Published: 12/03/2019
Archived News