Presidential Inauguration

ABOUT THE PRESIDENT

Paul Cornelius, Ph.D. is the President of William Carey International University (WCIU). He previously served as the Regional Secretary of Asia Theological Association (ATA), India based in Bangalore, India. Paul has served as the Principal of the Hindustan Bible Institute and College (2006-2009) where he was instrumental in introducing and implementing the MA in Transformational Urban Leadership program. Over the years, he has served as a pastor, faculty member, and in his early days of ministry as Director of Youth for Christ in New Delhi/Delhi (1988-1996). He received an MTh in New Testament Studies from the South Asia Institute of Advanced Christian Studies in Bangalore and is a graduate of Fuller Theological Seminary where he received his PhD in Intercultural Studies.

Watch this interview to get to know Paul Cornelius better!

Gideon Banda is husband to Joy and a father of three boys: Jotham, Joshua and Jason. Since 2007, after his graduation from Scott Christian University, Gideon has served in various capacities in the church and academy. Gideon left his last assignment as Executive Pastor of Crossroads Fellowship in 2020 to launch Renewal Project Africa (RPA). In joining God’s mission, Renewal Project Africa seeks transformation and empowerment of communities by planting, establishing, and multiplying holistically missional churches to make the gospel explicit in marginalized places in Africa. 

Gideon is passionate about the Gospel of the Kingdom and it’s implications for holistic mission, especially in Africa. He holds a Bachelor of Theology, a Masters of Biblical Studies, a Doctor of Apologetics and is currently pursuing a Masters of Arts in Development at William Carey International University.

Gideon is also the chaplain of The University of Nairobi, Mombasa Campus, the Kenya  Field Leader for East West Ministries International, Founder and Coach at Naviza Consutancy and Global Liaison for Times12. 

Scott Bessenecker is Director of Global Engagement and Justice for InterVarsity Christian Fellowship. He oversees InterVarsity’s work of sending college students to the margins and the nations. Students encounter Christ and to learn how to participate in holistic mission through their Global Programs, Justice Programs and Study Abroad. "The insulation between communities is suffocating us,” Scott says, “and it prevents us from learning from and contributing to one another." To that end he created the Global Urban Trek - a summer immersion for students to sojourn with those living in slum communities of the developing world. 
 
Scott is author or editor of five books, most of which explore issues of global poverty. He received his Master’s degree in International Development from William Carey International University and hosts a blog and occasional podcasts on his website https://www.overturningtables.com/ He lives in Madison, WI with his wife Janine who is a watercolor artist and has three grown children.

Ellen Iyasu is from Eritrea and lives in California. With a passion for Educational Development, she seeks to establish schools for Eritrean children both in Eritrea and beyond her borders. She holds a BA in Computer Information Systems from California State University, Los Angeles, and is currently working on her MA in International Development at WCIU with a focus on Global Women’s Empowerment. 

Todd M. Johnson (PhD, William Carey International University) is the Eva B. and Paul E. Toms Distinguished Professor of Mission and Global Christianity and co-director of the Center for the Study of Global Christianity at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. Johnson is Research Associate at Boston University’s Institute for Culture, Religion and World Affairs leading a research project on international religious demography. He is co-author of the World Christian Encyclopedia (2nd and 3rd editions), co-editor of the Atlas of Global Christianity, and series editor (with Ken Ross) of the 10-volume Edinburgh Companions to Global Christianity series. He is co-editor of the World Christian Database and the World Religion Database (Brill). 

Mbu Mineva Enow is a Cameroonian  and a current student of  William Carey International University  MATUL Program since September 2022. 

She serves as Coordinator of Leadership and Theological Education Program with Development Associates International (DAI)-Cameroon since October 25th 2021 while serving as an adjunct lecturer at The Apostolic Bilingual Seminary (TABS) since 2021 

She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science from the University of Buea and a Bachelor of Theology (B.Th.) degree from The Apostolic Theological Seminary Amumara, Imo State Nigeria. 

She is passionate about the church holistic and prophetic role in community transformation through discipleship, community engagement and poverty alleviation through servant leadership. 

Linda P. Saunders and her husband have served as missionaries to the people of Venezuela for 19 years. Linda earned her Ph.D. in Intercultural Studies from Columbia International University, a Master of Divinity (MDiv), a Master of Arts in Global Studies (MAGS) from Liberty University, and a B.A. from Purdue University. She is a thought leader in missiology and the Black Church experience. Linda serves as the Vice President of Membership for the Evangelical Missiological Society (EMS) and serves on the advisory council for the National African American Mission Council (NAAMC). She is a director on the Board of Directors for William Carey International University. She is a subject matter expert and adjunct faculty at Columbia International University. She is a residential adjunct professor at Liberty University, where she received the 2023 Online Undergraduate Faculty of the Year Award. Her most recent publication is Reading Hebrews Missiologically. Linda and Mark enjoy traveling and spending time with their children and grandchildren.