Wednesday, December 14, 2005
- Dr. Roger Hahn
On November 1, Dr. Dean G. Blevins delivered his induction address to the NTS community. Dr. Blevins officially joined the faculty at the start of the 2005 fall semester as Professor of Christian Education and as Director of the Master of Arts in Christian Education Degree Program.
His induction address titled “Castles of Sand or Heaven on Earth: Discipleship for the 21st Century” explored three approaches to Christian education, that of formation, discernment and transformation, which he stated provide a broad understanding of Wesleyan Christian Education through the means of grace. (Download the Address - PDF 50KB 
- Listen to the Address)
Prior to coming to NTS, Blevins served as Professor of Christian Education at Trevecca Nazarene University (1994 – 2005). His election to the NTS faculty was precipitated by the resignation of Dr. Ed Robinson who was elected President of MidAmerica Nazarene University last spring.
Dr. Blevins received his Ph.D. in Personality and Theology (with an emphasis on Religious Education) from the Claremont School of Theology (Claremont, CA) in 1999. He is also a 1991 graduate of Nazarene Theological Seminary (MRE) and a 1978 graduate of North Carolina State University (BA). At TNU, Blevins directed associate ministries in the School of Religion (including Christian Education, Youth Ministry and Compassionate Ministry), directed the Center for Church and Society, and directed the Christian Ministry Institute which includes continuing education programs for pastors and a new degree program with the Salvation Army Southern Territory. An active scholar, he has contributed to several books and published articles in Religion and Education, Christian Education Journal, Doxology: A Journal of Worship, The Journal for Youth Ministry, Youthworker Journal, Asbury Theological Journal and Wesleyan Theological Journal. He is a member of the Academy for International Education and is currently the senior editor of Didache: Faithful Teaching, an online academic journal dedicated to the exploration of faith, culture and higher education within the Church of the Nazarene and other Wesleyan institutions.
An ordained elder in the Church of the Nazarene, Blevins has served as youth minister and minister of Christian Education in churches in North Carolina and southern California. Prior to his call to ministry, he worked for eight years as a news photojournalist in broadcast television. He has worked in many diverse settings including prison outreach, with "at-risk" youth, singles ministry, divorce recovery, and as director of an inter-faith conference in Southern California. In addition to teaching for more than ten years at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, he has conducted workshops for national conferences (Church of the Nazarene and Children's Pastors' Conference) and for congregations in the southeastern U. S., is a national consultant in youth ministry and Christian education, and a member of the Course of Study Advisory Committee for the Church of the Nazarene.