Alan Shlemon –Alan Shlemon is an author and speaker for Stand to Reason and trains Christians to share their convictions in a persuasive, yet gracious manner. Known for teaching on some of the most controversial issues of our time, he tackles topics such as abortion, evolution, homosexuality, bioethics, and Islam. Alan has been a guest on both radio and television and has spoken to thousands of adults and students across the country at churches, conferences, and college campuses.
Brett Kunkle – Brett Kunkle is the founder and president of MAVEN (www.maventruth.com), a movement to equip the next generation to know the truth, pursue goodness and create beauty for the cause of Christ. He has more than 25 years of experience working with youth and parents. Brett has developed a groundbreaking approach to mission trips, creating a one-of-a-kind experience that immerses participants in real-life engagement in apologetics and evangelism in Berkeley, California, and Salt Lake City, Utah. In addition, Brett is a Teaching Fellow at the Impact 360 Institute. He was an associate editor for the Apologetics Study Bible for Students and co-authored A Practical Guide to Culture: Helping the Next Generation Navigate Today’s World. He received his Master’s degree in philosophy of religion and ethics from Talbot School of Theology. Brett lives with his wife and kids in Southern California.
Christopher Yuan – Dr. Christopher Yuan has taught the Bible at Moody Bible Institute for twelve years and his speaking ministry on faith and sexuality has reached five continents. He speaks at conferences, on college campuses, and in churches. He has co-authored with his mother their memoir, Out of a Far Country: A Gay Son’s Journey to God, A Broken Mother’s Search for Hope (100,000 copies sold and now in seven languages). He is also the author of Giving a Voice to the Voiceless. Christopher graduated from Moody Bible Institute in 2005 and received a master’s in biblical exegesis in 2007 and a doctorate of ministry in 2014. Dr. Yuan’s newest book, Holy Sexuality and the Gospel: Sex, Desire, and Relationships Shaped by God’s Grand Story, was named 2020 Book of the Year for Social Issues by Outreach
David Galvan –David has been teaching, training, and facilitating conversations with students about whole-person health since 2010. During that time, David has been in 24 High Schools in Colorado Springs and has personally spoken to over 20,000 students. His vast amount of experience with students, informed him as he co-produced Who Can Relate which focuses on the issue of teen suicide prevention. He is an engaging and dynamic speaker, who has spoken at numerous parent seminars/workshops around Colorado Springs, in addition to the Springs Mental Health Summit. David is a certified trainer in Youth Mental Health First Aid and has trained over 300 individuals in just over a year, and recently became a trainer in Adverse Childhood Experiences, which focuses on trauma-informed care. David is part of the El Paso County Youth Suicide Prevention Workgroup, where he co-chairs the Faith-Based Community subgroup.
David Knopp – David has been a musician and performer for 20 years. In addition, to being a classically trained violist, Suzuki instructor, and experienced worship leader, he spent 10 years in worldview instruction and biblical studies. He loves nothing more than long conversations that examine the intersection of form and content. He also hates writing pretentious bios about himself.
Derek McCoy – Rev. Derek McCoy is a transformational executive leader and organizational consultant with years of experience in business and non-profit sectors. As a media commentator, urban-renewal activist, and leader of coalition efforts, he leads efforts to advance and encourage solutions, and partnerships.
Derek is currently leading efforts to launch the Urban Leadership Alliance, which provides a platform for leaders across all age groups to be educated and create solutions in their respective communities and cultures. He has been instrumental in conducting educational summits with pastors, community leaders, and citizens.
Most recently, McCoy has served as the Executive Vice President for The Center for Urban Renewal and Education (CURE), which works to fight poverty and restore dignity through the message of faith, freedom, and personal responsibility. McCoy has an extensive background in policy, political strategy, and advocacy on vital cultural issues, including race, poverty, life, marriage, and religion.
Rev. McCoy has served as the President of the Maryland Family Alliance, SVP for the High Impact Leadership Coalition, Coalitions Director, and Outreach Director on crucial initiatives and issue campaigns. He has been a consistent voice of championing issues of justice and righteousness in our nation.
Rev. McCoy serves on the board of Directors for the Pregnancy Clinic in Annapolis, Heartbeat International, and Summit Ministries.
He has been featured on NBC, CBS, FOX, ABC, NPR, FOX Business, EWTN, Gospel Today, and Family News in Focus, WYPR, KKLA, WAVA, EWTN, KQED, and KJLH, Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, New American Media, LA Sentinel, and The Washington Times, and The Wall Street Journal.
Rev. McCoy served our great nation in the United States Army In Reserve. He has also held management positions and has received regional and national awards from Fortune 500 companies.
He has been married for 28 years to his wife, Cathy, and they have three incredible children. Two are Summit graduates.
Dustin Jizmejian – Dustin Jizmejian is the Vice President of Programs at Summit Ministries. Starting in 2003, Dustin has been working on Summit’s Summer Staff while pursuing an undergraduate degree from Biola University and a graduate degree from Denver Seminary. In 2011, Dustin was brought on full-time as Director of Summit Semester. Dustin speaks on topics ranging from God’s Will, The Christian Worldview, Christian Community, Leadership, The Worldview of Work, The Biblical Meta-Narrative, and Pornography. He recently completed an additional Masters in Leadership, Theology, and Society from Regent College in Vancouver, Canada. Dustin and his wife Ruthann have been married for twelve years and have five children, Rafferty, Cosette, Briar, Trask, and Land they call Colorado Springs their home.
Esther (Fleece) Allen – CNN has called Allen one of “Five Women to Watch in Religion,” USA Today has named her one of the “New Faces of Evangelicalism” and Christianity Today has called her “one of the 50 women shaping the church and culture.” She is a best-selling author of No More Faking Fine: Ending the Pretending and her newly released title, Your New Name: Saying Goodbye to the Labels that Limit.
Allen’s insights into the experiences and aspirations of millennials have appeared in The Washington Post, CNN as well as in Barna Research President David Kinnaman’s book You Lost Me: Why Young Christians are Leaving Church and Rethinking Faith. Esther is the subject of an I Am Second video documenting her remarkable grace journey.
Allen has an extensive background in non-profit leadership and currently serves as the Senior Director of Communications for the Alliance for The Peace of Jerusalem. She has a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Communications from Oakland University and is a graduate of the Oxford Centre for Christian Apologetics where she met her husband Joel. Her favorite new names are “wife” and “mama” and you can learn more at www.EstherFleeceAllen.com.
Haley McNamara –Haley McNamara is the Vice President of Advocacy and Outreach at the National Center on Sexual Exploitation where she develops and executes national campaigns to change policies and raise awareness. Most notably, she promotes corporate social responsibility by constructing annual activism campaigns like the Dirty Dozen List, which names 12 mainstream private companies that facilitate sexual exploitation. Her advocacy work has contributed to instigating policy improvements in the native online advertising, retail, and hotel industries.
She is a member of the Washington DC Mayor’s Advisory Committee on Child Abuse and Neglect, September 2018-2019. This Committee advises DC Mayor Muriel Bowser on the multi-faceted continuum of the District of Columbia’s child welfare services, including prevention, early intervention, treatment, and sources of permanency.
Haley regularly speaks and writes on topics including child sexual abuse, sex trafficking, prostitution, sexual objectification, the exploitation of males, and more. She has presented before officials at the United Nations, as well as at several national symposia before influencers from the Department of Justice, Department of Health and Human Services, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Croatian government officials. She has provided training to Arlington County Child & Family Services on the social media grooming, recruitment, and advertising for sex trafficking. She is currently pursuing a Master of Arts at Johns Hopkins University.
Previously, Haley served as Director of Communications for the National Center on Sexual Exploitation where she oversaw strategic messaging development, press outreach, email marketing, and social media marketing. Prior to working at NCOSE, Haley wrote for Media Research Center. Haley graduated from Hillsdale College (summa cum laude) with a double major, and conducted a senior thesis on the abolitionist argument regarding prostitution. During her studies, she studied abroad at Oxford University and established a background in policy research through several internships in the DC area.
Haley has appeared on, or been quoted in, several outlets including the New York Times, NBC’s The Today Show, BBC News, New York Post, USA Today, Chicago Tribune, Fox News, San Francisco Chronicle, the Washington Post, Yahoo News, Voice of America, Dr. Drew Midday Live, The DeMaio Report, the New York Daily News, the Washington Examiner, USA Radio Network, the Washington Times, CBC News, The Rod Arquette Show, The Detroit News, Lifezette, The Christian Post, Lifeline with Neil Boron, EWTN News Nightly, KCBS San Francisco Radio, LifeSiteNews, The Drew Mariano Show on Relevant Radio, News Talk KGVO, and American Family News.
She has written op-eds for the Washington Post, the Huffington Post, FoxNews.com, Townhall.com, Darling Magazine, the Daytona-Beach News Journal, and has been published in the Journal of Internet Law and the journal Dignity: A Journal on Sexual Exploitation and Violence.
J. Warner Wallace –Warner Wallace is a cold-case homicide detective, popular national speaker, and author. He continues to consult on cold-case investigations while serving as a Senior Fellow at the Colson Center for Christian Worldview, and an adjunct professor of apologetics at Biola University. J. Warner’s professional investigative work has received national recognition; his cases have been featured on NBC’s Dateline, TruTV, and Fox News. He appears on television occasionally as an investigative consultant (i.e. REELZChannel’s Behind the Screams) and has been featured as an expert in a number of documentaries such as Mining for God and Jesus Revealed. He also had a role in God’s Not Dead 2.
Jason Jimenez – Jason Jimenez is the founder of STAND STRONG Ministries and a faculty member at Summit Ministries. He is a pastor, apologist, and national speaker who has ministered to families for over twenty years. In his extensive ministry career, Jason has been a Children’s, Student, and College Pastor, and has spent a great deal of time investing in marriages, families, and helping churches have a greater impact in their communities. The three groups Jason largely focuses on are parents, millennials, and pastors leading churches.
Jason is a worldview expert that specializes in cultural, theological, and religious issues, and speaks on popular topics, such as Christian apologetics, religious freedom, Islam, same-sex marriage, America’s Christian heritage, the reliability of the Bible, biblical leadership, and many more. Jason conducts numerous interviews in the media and has appeared on CBS Radio, Focus on the Family radio with Jim Daly, the Christian Post, World Net Daily (WND), Family Talk with Dr. James Dobson, TBN’s Praise the Lord, and Sky News.
Jason has authored several books: The Raging War of Ideas: How to Take Back Our Faith, Family, and Country, co-authored The Official Study Guide to I Don’t Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist, and The Bible’s Answers to 100 of Life’s Biggest Questions with Dr. Norman Geisler (Baker Books), and co-authored Stand Strong America: Courage, Freedom & Hope for Tomorrow with Dr. Alex McFarland, Abandoned Faith: Why Millennials Are Walking Away and How You Can Lead Them Home (Focus on the Family and Tyndale), and Stand Strong in Your Faith. Jason travels all over the country speaking at various conferences and churches. He and his wife, Celia, live in Charlotte, NC with their four beautiful children.
Jeff Myers –Dr. Jeff Myers is president of Summit Ministries. As an educator and entrepreneur, Dr. Myers has become one of America’s most respected authorities on youth leadership development. Focus on the Family founder James Dobson referred to him as “a very gifted and inspirational leader.” Evangelist Josh McDowell called him “a man who is 100% sold out to preparing the next generation to reflect the character of Christ in the culture.” Through his speaking engagements and media appearances, Dr. Myers has become a fresh voice offering humor and insight from a Christian worldview. He is the author of 14 books, including Understanding the Faith, Understanding the Times, and Understanding the Culture textbooks which are studied by tens of thousands of students. Dr. Myers holds a Doctor of Philosophy degree from the University of Denver. He continues to engage college students and adult learners by serving as a trustee of Colorado Christian University and through a Signature Leadership Course offered by the Lumerit Corporation, which serves the training needs of many Fortune 100 companies. Jeff and his wife Stephanie and their family live in Colorado.
John Stonestreet –John Stonestreet serves as President of the Colson Center for Christian Worldview. A gifted communicator on areas of faith and culture, theology, worldview, education, and apologetics, John is a sought-after speaker, published author, and respected cultural commentator.
Since 2012, John and Eric Metaxas have co-hosted BreakPoint, the nationally syndicated radio commentary founded by the late Chuck Colson. He is also the voice of the Point, a daily one-minute radio feature on worldview, apologetics, and cultural issues.
Before coming to the Colson Center in 2010, John served in various leadership capacities with Summit Ministries and was on the Biblical Studies faculty at Bryan College (TN).
John has co-authored three books: Restoring All Things (with Warren Smith, 2015), Same-Sex Marriage (with Sean McDowell, 2014), and Making Sense of Your World: A Biblical Worldview (with Gary Phillips and William Brown, 2007).
John holds degrees from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (IL) and Bryan College (TN). He and his wife Sarah have three daughters and a dog and live in Colorado Springs, CO.
Connect with John at BreakPoint.org, or follow him on Twitter (@jbstonestreet).
Josh Bales –Josh is equal parts Singer-Songwriter, Anglican/Episcopal Priest, and Licensed Mental Health Counselor. He holds an M.Div. and M.A. in Counseling from Reformed Theological Seminary, as well as a Certificate in Anglican Studies from Nashotah House Theological Seminary. He is the Senior Fellow for Music and Art at the Colson Center. Josh’s music has gained a following of fans from all walks of life after recording four diverse albums and touring for more than 15 years. In 2006 Josh released “Underneath The Armor” (Only The Sinner, A Hymn For All The World, Ten Thousand Places). In 2012 Josh’s fans funded “Count The Stars,” an album recorded with multi-award-winning producer, Ed Cash. In 2015, in addition to “Somehow I Knew,” Josh issued a collection of hymns and sacred songs called “The Birds Their Carols Raise.” His latest album is the second volume of hymns called “Come Away From Rush & Hurry,” released in 2018. Originally from Chattanooga, TN Josh now lives in Orlando, FL. where he serves as Canon Priest at the Cathedral Church of Saint Luke.
Kathy Koch –Dr. Kathy Koch (“cook”) is the Founder and President of Celebrate Kids, Inc., based in Fort Worth, TX, and the co-founder of Ignite the Family, based in Alpharetta, GA. She has influenced thousands of parents, teachers, and children in 30 countries through keynote messages, seminars, chapels, and other events.
She is a featured speaker for the Great Homeschool Conventions and a regular presenter for Care Net, Summit Ministries, Axis, and other organizations. She speaks regularly at schools, churches, and pregnancy resource centers. Dr. Kathy is also a popular guest on Focus on the Family radio and other radio talk shows. Kirk Cameron chose her as the technology expert to interview in his movie, Connect: Real Help for Parenting Kids in a Social Media World. She has authored six books including five published by Moody Publishers.
Dr. Kathy’s practical, relevant, and results-oriented concepts and engaging, honoring, and humorous speaking style draw enthusiastic raves from children, teens, parents, and educators. They leave her events armed with new beliefs, attitudes, practical tools, and increased hope to build healthy relationships and increase success in family, life, and school.
Dr. Kathy earned a Ph.D. in reading and educational psychology from Purdue University. She was a tenured associate professor of education at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, a teacher of second graders, a middle school coach, and a school board member prior to becoming a full-time conference and keynote speaker in 1991. She has loved Jesus for years and her faith and desire to serve and glorify God is the foundation of her ministry.
Megan Almon –
Megan Almon, a former University of Georgia gymnast, was a part of the 2002 SEC Championship team. She worked as an award-winning journalist until 2008, joined Life Training Institute in 2009, and was awarded a Master of Arts degree in Christian apologetics from Biola University in 2011. Megan and her husband, Tripp, who served as a pastor and a gymnastics coach, have been married since 2003 and have two children, Neely and Rogan.
Megan enjoys spending time with her family at their log cabin in Newnan, Ga., and is still known to practice handstands in her living room and occasionally coach the sport she still loves. She and her family compete in motorcycle trials competitions throughout the Southeast U.S. On her own, she can most often be found in the company of a good friend or a good book and a mug of coffee on her front porch swing, or enjoying a challenging workout.
Megan’s favorite part of her job at Life Training Institute — aside from sharing life-saving training material and getting to help students nationwide understand who they are and why they matter — is being a student of her craft. She enjoys following her curiosity on topics that relate to pro-life apologetics and is currently most interested in questions related to aesthetics; the power of great stories and how they relate to human dignity and the Gospel; the vital importance of true community and its impact on human flourishing: and human limitations and creativity.
Scott Klusendorf –Scott Klusendorf is president of Life Training Institute, where he trains pro-life advocates to make a persuasive case for life in the public square. Scott’s talks have been featured on nationally syndicated programs like Focus on the Family, The Albert Mohler Radio Program, Truths that Transform, and Moody Radio—to name a few. Scott is also a staff speaker for the Rethink Conferences and Summit Ministries. His book “The Case for Life: Equipping Christians to Engage the Culture” is published by Crossway (Wheaton, IL). In addition to reaching students with pro-life presentations, Scott helps pregnancy resource centers raise money to reach women most at risk for abortion. Scott is a graduate of UCLA and holds a Master’s degree in Christian Apologetics from Biola. He and his wife Stephanie have been married since 1985 and have four children.
Tim Barnett – Tim Barnett has worked as a speaker for Stand to Reason since 2015. He is a dynamic speaker who provides a perfect blend of expertise and humor in each talk. Using easy-to-follow and visually engaging presentations, Tim trains Christians to think clearly about what they believe and why they believe it. Tim’s passion and energy will help motivate you and your group to love God with all your mind.
Tim has worked as a professional teacher since 2008, employed in both the private and public sector. He has earned a Bachelor of Science in Physics from York University, a Bachelor of Education from the University of Ontario Institute of Technology, and a Master of Arts in Philosophy from Southern Evangelical Seminary. Tim serves as an adjunct Bible and Science teacher at Innova Academy, a classical Christian school, and serves on the pastoral staff at Cedarview Community Church.
Tripp Almon – Tripp Almon joined Summit in 2018 and serves as the Director of Summit Semester. He relocated to the great state of Colorado with his wife, Megan, and their kids, Neely and Rogan, from the little town of Newnan, Georgia — just south of Atlanta. Tripp’s passion for educating students in the areas of Christian theology, worldview, and apologetics grew in large part from growing up in a Christian home and then struggling profoundly with the tidal wave of cultural ideas that engulfed him as he entered a secular university. Thankfully, his experience taught him that Christianity not only stands in the marketplace of ideas — it soars. Since then, he and Megan, an apologist and speaker with Life Training Institute, seek to cultivate environments where students feel the freedom to ask big questions and are encouraged to pursue real answers. Before joining Summit, Tripp, a former elite gymnast, coached gymnastics for more than two decades and served as a pastor for 10 years. He and his family love the outdoors and adventure sports, particularly off-road motorcycling. Tripp is also a rally car co-driver with Almon Brothers Racing Team — 2017 champions of the NASA Rally Atlantic Cup Series.