Strategic Discernment Committee

Reverend Brian Beckstrom, D.Min., serves as associate vice president for mission at Valparaiso University. He previously served as dean of spiritual life at Wartburg College and taught religion and leadership courses. Brian received his bachelor of arts (magna cum laude) from Gustavus Adolphus College and his master of divinity and doctor of ministry from Luther Seminary. In 2020, his book, “Leading Lutheran Higher Education in a Secular Age,” was published by Fortress Academic. He has also written for the Journal of Lutheran Ethics, Intersections, and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA)’s Living Lutheran website.

A 1990 graduate, Deaconess Lisa Polito ’90, returned to Valparaiso in 2001 to serve at the Lutheran Diaconal Association and assumed the role of executive director in 2008. She is married to Carmine Polito, a professor of civil engineering.

Kevin Goebbert ‘03, Ph.D., currently serves as the assistant provost and professor of meteorology at Valparaiso University and has been on the faculty since the fall of 2009. As assistant provost, he represents the Provost Office on faculty governance committees, oversees the Registrar Office, the Center for Innovations in Teaching and Learning, the Access and Accommodations Office, the Office of Sponsored and Student Research, and other faculty human resources issues. He also serves as the general education officer and previously served as executive director of strategic planning that resulted in the current Uplift Valpo: A Beacon for our Journey Forward Strategic Plan. As a life-long Lutheran and 2003 graduate of Valparaiso University, he works to ensure the ongoing high-quality education he received is continually renewed as we continue to prepare students to lead and serve in church and society.

Deaconess Adrainne Gray, MAPT, was consecrated a Lutheran Diaconal Association (LDA) deaconess and ordained an ELCA deacon in 2017.  She served four years as an ELCA missionary in the Holy Land with her partner Ben (a seasoned photojournalist), and their two children: Sylvia and James Everett. Later, she served three years as a communicator for the Lutheran World Federation in Geneva, Switzerland. Adrainne is the LDA executive director designate and will assume the position January 2025. She is an alum of the University of Florida and Columbia Theological Seminary.

Reverend Kathryn “Kit” Kleinhans ’80, Ph.D., is dean of Trinity Lutheran Seminary at Capital University, Columbus, Ohio.  Prior to her current call, she was a member of the religion faculty at Wartburg College for over 24 years, where she held the Mike and Marge McCoy Family Distinguished Chair in Lutheran Heritage and Mission. She was a Christ College Scholar at Valparaiso University, where she completed a bachelor or arts in theology. She earned an M.Div. at Christ Seminary–Seminex and the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago, and a Ph.D. in theological studies at Emory University. An ELCA pastor, she writes frequently on vocation and on the contemporary relevance of the Lutheran theological tradition.

Reverend Mark Koschmann ’07, Ph.D., serves as vice president of faith and ministry, chief mission officer, and chairperson of the department of theology and ministry at Concordia University in St. Paul, Minnesota. Since joining Concordia’s faculty in 2015, Mark has taught courses on Lutheran theology, faith and justice in the city, and the intersection of Christ and culture.

Prior to coming to Concordia, Mark served as associate pastor at Chapel of the Cross – Lutheran in St. Louis. He has a bachelor of arts in philosophy from Valparaiso University, a M.Div. from Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, and a master of arts and Ph.D. from Saint Louis University. His scholarly research on 20th century religion, race, and urban history examines how Protestant and Catholic congregations adapted to the changing urban environment in the post-World War II era. Currently, he is researching how Christianity thrived in urban contexts in the early church. He also speaks frequently on law and gospel theology and topics related to the challenges and opportunities of Christian higher education. Mark assists his congregation, Jehovah Lutheran Church in St. Paul, Minnesota, as a pastor, liturgist, and bible study teacher. He and his wife, Kara Koschmann ’07, Ph.D., have three children.

Reverend Fred Niedner, Ph.D., taught biblical studies and Hebrew language in Valpo’s department of theology from 1973 to 2014. He graduated from Concordia Seminary and was ordained into the ministry of the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS) in 1971. He received his Th.D. from Christ Seminary—Seminex in 1979. In addition to teaching, he also filled several roles in the Chapel of the Resurrection’s ministry and terms as director of freshman seminars, teaching resources center director, associate director of the Institute of Liturgical Studies, and chair of the theology department. In addition to many scholarly and devotional publications, he wrote a bi-weekly op-ed column on religion, values, and culture for the northwest Indiana Post-Tribune from 1995 to 2020. He currently serves as senior research professor in theology and contributes regularly to publications that serve the ministry of preaching.

Jennifer Prough ’91, Ph.D., serves as dean of Christ College and professor of humanities and East Asian studies. As a Christ College and Valparaiso University alumna, Jennifer is deeply devoted to the transformative experience that a cohort-based, interdisciplinary honors education, delivered by a dedicated faculty, can provide. As an anthropologist of Japan, she brings attention to community and culture to her role as faculty and dean. Through her roles in Christ College and the Lilly Network for Church Related Colleges and Universities, Jennifer’s work frequently touches on institutional mission and Lutheranism. She is excited to be a part of this dialogue about where God is calling Valparaiso University for the 21st century.

Jakob K. Rinderknecht ’02, Ph.D., is the director of the honors program and associate professor of religious studies at the University of the Incarnate Word, San Antonio, Texas. He studies Christian ecumenism, with an emphasis on Caltholic-Lutheran relationships and the role of culture and language in shaping theology.

Recent works include, “Mapping the Differentiated Consensus of the Joint Declaration” (Palgrave, 2016, winner of the Harding Meyer Prize in Ecumenism) and a critical translation of Karl Rahner’s “An Ecumenical Priesthood: The Spirit of God and the Structure of the Church” (Fortress, 2022). His current research argues that the field of ecumenism must attend to wounds that Christians have inflicted on other Christians by participating in colonialism, enslavement, and the structures of abuse and exclusion.