Kettering College has selected a senior pastor, Alex Bryan from Walla Walla University Church in Washington, as its sixth president.
Bryan, who holds a Doctor of Ministry from George Fox University, will take office June 1. He replaces Charles Scriven, who retires this spring after 12 years, Kettering announced.
Bryan, 43, takes over the college, which is owned by the Kettering Medical Center and chartered by the Seventh-day Adventist Church, during a time of record enrollment. More than 980 students are currently in the college’s medical programs.
“I’m particularly excited about the vision for training health care professionals to make a difference in the world not only with their craft but with their lives,” said Bryan, who is also a public speaker and author of a recent book, “The Green Cord Dream,” exploring a fresh vision for Seventh-day Adventist Christianity.
Bryan said as president he will work to continue and grow Kettering’s tradition of training men and women of excellence to make a difference in the world.
“Alex has a passion for education, learning and leadership,” Roy Chew, chair of the Kettering College board of directors and president of Kettering Medical Center, said in announcing the selection. “He will work with the Kettering College faculty and staff to continue to grow and improve the already excellent educational opportunities, making for an exciting future.”
At Walla Walla, Bryan served as senior pastor of the 2,400-member campus church and as advisor to the president, developing a 10-year vision for the 1,940-student university. He was recommended last summer to serve as president of the university by the search committee, but was not approved by the Board of Trustees.
Bryan also is co-founder and co-chair of “the ONE project,” a grassroots organization exploring Christ-centered service in the 21st century, according to Kettering College. He is the son of a pediatrician and a nurse. He and his wife, Nicole Ward Bryan, a high school counselor, have two children, Audrey (7) and William (2).