Seminary Administration and Staff

David Kersten

Dean of the Seminary

Phone: (773) 244-6235

Nyvall Hall, 1st

Campus Box: 14

David Kersten came to North Park as the Dean of the Seminary in August 2012, having previously served as the executive minister of the Department of the Ordered Ministry in the Evangelical Covenant Church. Dave is an ordained minister in the ECC, having served congregations in St. Paul, Minn., Bellevue, Wash., North Miami, Fla., and Summerdale, Ala. He earned an MDiv from NPTS and a doctor of ministry in preaching degree from the Association of Chicago Theological Schools.

Debra Auger

Dean of Students and Community Life

Phone: (773) 244-6222

Nyvall Hall, 1ST

Campus Box: 14

Debra Auger has been the Dean of Students and Community Life at North Park Theological Seminary since 2007. She is an ordained pastor in the Evangelical Covenant Church and previously served as faculty member and Director of Worship Arts at Covenant Bible College in Quito, Ecuador. Her M.Div is from North Park Theological Seminary, where she graduated with high honors. She is a board member of Midwest Ministry Development Services, and co-teaches Embodiment, a Spiritual Formation course.

E. Kirsten Burdick

Director of Seminary Admission

Phone: (773) 244-5532

Old Main, 3RD

Campus Box: 40

Kirsten Burdick, Director of Seminary Admission, has been part of the North Park Theological Seminary community since 2005. She graduated from NPTS with her Master of Divinity in 2009 and has been serving in the Office of Seminary Admission since the fall of 2010. Kirsten has previous work experience in pastoral ministry as well as in undergraduate admissions at Westmont College in Santa Barbara, CA. In her capacity as Director of Seminary Admission, Kirsten's primary role is to oversee the admission process, guiding prospective students through the discernment process of coming to seminary and is also involved in the overall recruitment for all seminary programs.

Guylla Brown

Administrative Assistant to the President

Phone: (773) 244-6214

Nyvall Hall, 1ST

Campus Box: 14

In addition to serving as the administrative assistant to the Seminary President and Dean, Guylla Brown coordinates the Symposium and the Nyvall, Lund and Palmquist Lectures. She also oversees the Call to Ministry Process for graduating students. Guylla graduated from NPU with a degree in Human Development, and has worked at North Park for nearly 20 years, the last 15 at the Seminary.

Stephen Chester

Professor of New Testament

Phone: (773) 244-6238

Nyvall Hall, 3rd

Campus Box: 14

Stephen Chester serves as Acting Dean of Seminary Academic Programs in addition to his role as professor of New Testament. He joined the faculty at North Park in 2006, having previously served at International Christian College, Glasgow (Scotland). Stephen is an ordained minister of the Church of Scotland, with a particular interest in urban ministry. His passion in teaching is to equip students to think critically about the interpretation of scripture in the conviction that true faith grows through wrestling with the text of God's word.

Christine Dekker

Seminary Student Services Assistant

Phone: (773) 244-6219

Nyvall Hall, 1st

Campus Box: 14

Christine Dekker works with the Dean of Students and Community Life to coordinate events, forums, testing and evaluation. She is responsible for the weekly announcements, for the integration of databases and for communicating issues of community concern.

Timothy Johnson

Associate Professor of Ministry/Dir. of Field Education

Phone: (773) 244-5251

5149 N. Christiana, 1st

Campus Box: 14

Tim Johnson is the Director of Field Education and Associate Professor of Ministry. Tim came to North Park Theological Seminary after serving pastorates in Connecticut, Minnesota and the south suburbs of Chicago. He has held various elected offices for the denomination, including president of the Covenant Ministerium. He earned his M.Div from NPTS and a D.Min from Hartford Seminary.

Paul Koptak

Professor of Communications, Biblical Interpretation

Phone: (773) 244-6242

Nyvall Hall, 3rd

Campus Box: 14

Paul Koptak is Associate Academic Dean and Paul and Bernice Brandel Professor of Communications and Biblical Interpretation. In his role as Associate Academic Dean he directs and develops off-site programs and serves as a liaison to the Board of Ordered Ministry of the Evangelical Covenant Church. In addition to his administrative and teaching duties, he also edits the journal The Covenant Quarterly.

Alexandria Macias

Seminary Academic Services Coordinator

Phone: (773) 244-6217

Nyvall Hall, 1ST

Campus Box: 14

Alex Macias is the Seminary academic services coordinator. She oversees the Seminary academic catalog and manages Seminary policy, scheduling of courses, advising, and registration. In addition, she assists the academic dean with administering faculty issues. Alex has a BS in Psychology and a BA in English from the University of Arizona.

Deborah Penny

Associate Director of Field Education

Phone: (773) 244-5259

5149 N. Christiana, 1st

Campus Box: 14

Deborah Penny graduated from North Park Theological Seminary with an MDiv degree in 2006. As the Associate Director of Field Education, she helps students develop skills and competencies for ministry through assessment, career planning, internships and Clinical Pastoral Education.

Deidre Robinson

Associate Coordinator of Seminary Academic Serivces

Phone: (773) 244-5240

Nyvall Hall, 1ST

Campus Box: 14

Deidre Robinson coordinates the pastor in residence program and the professor in residence program for the Making Connections Initiative. She also serves as advisor to the Kern Scholars and as the Seminary transcript evaluator. Deidre earned her BS in Business Administration from the University of Illinois and a MEd in Higher Education Administration from Loyola University.