Huntington’s Board of Trustees elects new members
FOR RELEASE: Thursday, October 19, 2006
Huntington, Ind.-The Huntington University Board of Trustees met Oct. 19-20 on the Huntington campus. New board members and officers were elected, among them the Rev. Luther Whitfield, Dr. Lee Balzer, Greg Will, and Justin Miller. The Rev. Luther Whitfield is the senior pastor of New Covenant Worship Center in Fort Wayne, Ind. The church opened in 2004 with six families and now has more than 300 members. In addition, he serves as an associate pastor at The Chapel in Fort Wayne, urban ministries director of Primetime Community Center in Fort Wayne, and the national community ministries consultant for Youth for Christ. A well-known speaker, he has been recognized with a number of honors. He resides in Fort Wayne, Ind.
Dr. Lee Balzer served as president of John Brown University from 1994 to 2004 and Tabor College from 1988-1994. He now works as a strategic planning and leadership consultant. Balzer holds Bachelor of Science and Master of Natural Science degrees from the University of Oklahoma and a Ph.D. in biology and science education from Ohio State University. In addition to belonging to a number of professional organizations, he has served on the national board of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities and as a member and chair of various other boards and committees. Balzer resides in Bella Vista, Ariz., with his wife of 49 years, Alice.
Greg Will, an ex-officio member, is president of the Huntington University Alumni Association Board of Directors. He owns Investment Realty Advisors, a company that works primarily with multi-family development. Will earned a Bachelor of Science degree in business management and accounting from Huntington University in 1990. He has held positions with National Church Residences and Paramount Financial Group. He is a member of the National Association of Realtors, Columbus Board of Realtors, National Apartment Association, Ohio Housing Council and the Real Estate Investors Association. Will resides in Galena, Ohio, with his wife Trea and sons Jacob and Samuel.
Travis Holdman returns to the board as an ex-officio member for his role as president of the Huntington University Foundation Board of Directors. He is chairman of the board of directors for Independent Alliance Banks, the two-bank holding company of MarkleBank and Grabill Bank. He holds a Doctor of Jurisprudence from Indiana University, a Master of Science from the University of St. Francis and a Bachelor of Arts from Southeast Missouri State University. He serves on several local boards and volunteers for EQUIP, an organization founded by John Maxwell to effectively support Christian leaders around the world with training, resources and encouragement. Holdman resides in Markle, Ind., with his wife Becky.
Ex-officio member Justin Miller is president of the Huntington University Student Senate. Miller, of Parker, Col., is a junior majoring in English education. He served as treasurer for the 2005-2006 Student Senate and freshman class president for the 2004-2005 school year. He is the scene shop foreman for the Huntington University Scene Shop and is a recipient of the Barnabas Award, given to theatre students who display a servant's heart throughout the year and "go the extra mile" in and out of productions. Miller is the son of David and Joye Miller.
Reelected to the board were Edward Souers, Dr. Carol Clark and Junior Geiger. Souers serves as president of Christen-Souers LLC, a CPA firm in Fort Wayne, Ind. In addition to retaining his seat on the board, Souers was reelected as chairman. Clark is a physician with Community OB-GYN in Anderson, Ind., and Geiger is a research and development advisor from Huntington, Ind.
