Nazarene Theological Seminary

The Nazarene Theological Seminary Board of Trustees has elected Dr. Dean G. Blevins as Professor of Christian Education. Since 1994, Blevins has served as Professor of Christian Education at Trevecca Nazarene University. He will begin his new teaching assignment at NTS in the fall 2005 semester, also assuming the responsibility of Director of the Master of Arts in Christian Education Program. His election to the faculty was precipitated by the resignation of Dr. Ed Robinson, current NTS Professor of Christian Education, who was recently elected President of MidAmerica Nazarene University.

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 directs associate ministries in the School of Religion (including Christian Education, Youth Ministry and Compassionate Ministry), is the Director of the Center for Church and Society, and is the Director of 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.

Dr. Blevins is married to JoAnn a former medical missionary in Swaziland, Africa. A member of Nazarene Healthcare Fellowship, JoAnn currently serves as a nurse in the TNU clinic, adjunct faculty in public health, and coordinator for student missions at TNU. JoAnn also remains active in missions, both in her local Church and on the Tennessee District. The Blevins have one daughter, Rachel.