IWU Hires New Campus Pastor/Dean of Spiritual Formation

IWU-Marion Chancellor Dr. Rod Reed announced the appointment of Reverend Dr. Andrea Summers as Campus Pastor/Dean of Spiritual Formation. Summers is an IWU alumna and has served as an adjunct faculty member for Indiana Wesleyan University and Wesley Seminary.

Through her experiences, Summers has served as a speaker and author who travels internationally to churches and conferences, as she shares her passion for seeing the transformative power of Scripture come alive in various communities and contexts.

“As an ordained minister in the Wesleyan Church, I am a pastor at heart who gets excited about spiritual formation, building new ministries, preaching, strategic thinking and sending out the next generation of leaders for the church,” says Summers.

“We are so excited to welcome Rev. Dr. Andrea Summers to the IWU family as our new Campus Pastor/Dean of Spiritual Formation,” commented Reed. “Dr. Summers brings a wealth of pastoral and academic experience to the university, and has a deep love for university students, and the faculty and staff who teach them. She will provide key spiritual leadership in helping us pursue the life of holiness and justice God desires for us individually and as a community.”

Summers graduated from Indiana Wesleyan University in 2000 with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Intercultural Relations, earned a Master of Divinity from Asbury Theological Seminary in 2008 and a Doctor of Ministry degree from Candler School of Theology at Emory in 2020. As an ordained minister, she served on staff at both College Wesleyan Church in Marion, IN. and at Heritage Wesleyan Church in Rock Island, IL.

Summers served as The Wesleyan Church’s Director of Ministry for Women from 2012 to 2016, where she played a key role in launching several key initiatives such as: ALIVE, a national, multi-site women’s conference that helped redefine Wesleyan women’s ministry, the Wesleyan Justice Network, the Annesley Writers Forum and Mustard Seed Gatherings.

“Leadership, teaching, strategic thinking and preaching are strengths God has given me,” says Summers. “I have an intuitive ability to see where a group or organization needs to go, bring together the right people, communicate vision in a way that allows others to take ownership, and then release leaders to minister effectively. This highly relational and demanding style of leadership energizes me because I love seeing others live in to all God has created them to be.”

Summers is the first person to hold the Campus Pastor/Dean of Spiritual Formation title. The position title was formerly titled Dean of the Chapel. Three persons held the Dean of the Chapel title prior to Summers accepting the Campus Pastor/Dean of Spiritual Formation position. Dr. John Bray served from 2015 to 2020, Dr. Jim Lo served from 2008 to 2015, and Dr. Stephen Lennox served from 2005 to 2008. The position title was changed in 2005 from University Chaplain to Dean of the Chapel.