Faculty and Staff

Faculty

Rev. Dr. W. Duncan Rankin / Systematic and Historical Theology

Dr. Rankin serves Professor of Systematic and Historical Theology at BRITE, as well as Scholar-in-Residence. Pastoring Harvestwood Covenant Presbyterian Church (PCA) in Floyd, Virginia, he is also Adjunct Professor of Systematic Theology at Reformed Theological Seminary.

Raised in a Southern Presbyterian home with shared roots in the Moravian ministry, Dr. Rankin graduated summa cum laude from Clemson University in Ceramic Engineering, where he was founding president of the campus Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship. After working for DuPont at the Savannah River Laboratory and Ph.D. studies in Materials Science at the Massachusetts Institutes of Technology, the Lord redirected Dr. Rankin’s steps from a successful career in the sciences towards the Gospel ministry in the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA). After completing his Master of Divinity studies at Covenant Theological Seminary and Reformed Theological Seminary (RTS) in Jackson, Mississippi, he took his Ph.D. at the New College of the University of Edinburgh by writing on “Carnal Union with Christ in the Theology of T.F. Torrance.”

Appointed to the Department of Systematic Theology at RTS-Jackson in 1993, Dr. Rankin served 10 years full time, teaching courses in dogmatic and historical theology. Active on the Theology and Strategy Working Group of the Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization, Duncan was also a recipient of a John Templeton Foundation 1999 Science and Religion Course Prize. At the Millennium, the Rankin family escaped the ravages of Y2K by sojourning in the quiet Scottish Highland village of Muir of Ord, before Duncan served as guest minister at St. Peter’s Free Church of Scotland in Dundee, home of the historic pulpit of Rev. Robert Murray M’Cheyne.
Dr. Rankin has been a member of the Board of Directors for GRACE (Godly Response to Abuse in the Christian Environment), Visiting Professor for Ligonier Ministries’ Reformation Bible College, and Distinguished Professor of Systematic Theology at Erskine Theological Seminary.

Dr. Rankin and his wife, Shirley, have three fine children.

Dr. Rankin serves BRITE as one of our regular faculty members, teaching courses at all our various locations.

Rev. Dr. Keith Goad / Systematic Theology and Practical Theology

Keith was raised in a Christian home in the Carolinas, but was not converted to Christ until his freshman year of college. After living recklessly throughout high school, God called Keith to himself, and created in him a desire to know Him more and proclaim the gospel to others. In 1997, he transferred to Liberty University (because of a basketball game –you will have to ask him about it) where he did not expect to stay long because he only had a few questions about the Bible at the time. He left Liberty asking more and better questions (the evidence of a good education) and a growing desire to study God’s Word and went to Southern Seminary where he earned an MDiv (2004) and a PhD (2010) in Systematic Theology.

He was called to be an elder at Third Avenue Baptist Church in Louisville, KY in 2006. In 2009, he served as pulpit supply at Jefferson Park Baptist Church (Charlottesville) in February, after which he and his wife walked away impressed with the love and unity of the church. A series of events made it crystal clear that God had called Keith to be the under-shepherd of JPBC. He preached his first sermon on Reformation Day (October 31st) 2010.

His goals for the future are to love his wife and family, to serve the body faithfully, and to hike every mountain in Virginia. Keith has been married to his wife, Lisa, since the summer of 2002. They have three daughters, Lillian (2009), Ivy (2012), and Edith (April 2017).

Keith serves BRITE as one of our adjunct professors at the Charlottesville campus.

Dr. Peter Moore / New Testament Studies

After earning his B.A. from New Saint Andrews College in 2003, Peter went on to earn an MDiv (2006) from Westminster Theological Seminary and a PhD (2020) in Hermeneutics and Biblical Interpretation, also from Westminster. After completing his MDiv degree and before pursuing his PhD, for nearly eight years Peter served as Pastor of English and Youth Ministries at China Grace Christian Church in the Philadelphia area.

Peter serves BRITE as one of our adjunct professors offering various courses online.

Rev. Kyle Ferguson / Biblical Languages (Hebrew), Old Testament Studies

Kyle Ferguson is the pastor of Westminster Presbyterian Church in Roanoke, Virginia. A graduate of Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, Kyle is currently working on a PhD in Old Testament studies at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Kansas City Missouri. Kyle enjoys teaching Hebrew and the Old Testament.

Kyle and his wife Michelle met in the 8th grade and together they have six children. While using the term “free time” loosely, Kyle enjoys running and doing home maintenance.

Kyle serves BRITE as one of our regular faculty members, teaching courses at all our various locations.

Rev. Timothy Martin / Biblical Languages (Greek), Practical Theology

Born in 1962, Tim grew up in Roanoke, VA, and graduated in 1985 with an Electrical Engineering degree from the Virginia Military Institute. After graduation, he served as an officer in the US Air Force in Dayton, OH.

Very shortly thereafter, Tim met his wife-to-be, Nancy. They were married on August 26, 1989 and the next year headed out to California where after 4 years Tim graduated from The Master’s Seminary. He spent the following four years serving a church in Northern California. In 1998, seeking clarity as to God’s calling, Tim returned with his family to Roanoke – now with two precious daughters, one amazing son, and another on the way. Here he took a teaching post at the one-year old Faith Christian School.

Three years later it was becoming clearer through a strong desire and the affirmations of his Grace Church family that his calling as a pastor was still very much alive. So in 2001, he left Faith Christian School to serve as an assistant pastor at Grace Church, followed in 2003 with a call to the senior pastor role, a position in which he faithfully served until 2019. Sensing a call to further studies, Rev. Martin is currently pursuing his MA in Counseling at Liberty University in Lynchburg, where he resides with his family.

Tim serves BRITE as one of our adjunct instructors at the Lynchburg campus.

Rev. Roland Mathews / Old Testament Studies, Practical Theology

Roland Mathews serves as the Associate Pastor of Draper’s Valley Presbyterian Church in Draper, Virginia. Roland received his MDiv from Greenville Presbyterian Theological Seminary, and is currently working on a ThM thesis in Old Testament studies at Greenville Seminary. Roland enjoys teaching in the areas of Biblical Theology and Old Testament Theology.

Roland and his wife Josie have two young boys who are a source of great joy to them. Hobbies include, but are not limited to, reading, reading, and more reading. When Roland is not reading, he enjoys spending time with friends, jogging, playing pool, (billiards, for the aficionados) and ping-pong (table tennis, for the more refined), among other things.

Roland serves BRITE as one of our regular faculty members, teaching courses at our Radford and Roanoke campuses.

Mr. Andrew Hodge / Biblical Languages

Born and raised in Virginia, Andrew has been a member of Jefferson Park Baptist Church (Charlottesville) for about half his life. While in high school, he developed an interest in Bible translation work which led him to take opportunities available to him to learn both Greek and Hebrew. He received a BA in Applied Linguistics Interdisciplinary (2017) from The Moody Bible Institute where his interdisciplinary focus was in biblical languages. He later received an MA in Linguistics (2022) from the University of North Dakota.

Andrew and his wife Darrah are blessed with two young girls, Anna (2021) and Shiloh (2022). Outside of academic interests, hobbies include juggling, hiking, spending time with the family, and more.

Andrew serves BRITE as one of our adjunct biblical language instructors at the Charlottesville campus.

Dr. Scott Amos / Historical Theology, Church History

N. Scott Amos (PhD, University of St. Andrews) is professor of history and chair of the Department of History at the University of Lynchburg. He is the author of Bucer, Ephesians, and Biblical Humanism: The Exegete as Theologian and the coeditor of The Education of a Christian Society: Humanism and the Reformation in Britain and the Netherlands.

BRITE is delighted to have Dr. Amos teach various courses from time to time as an adjunct professor. Dr. Amos serves BRITE at the Lynchburg campus. Visit this link to view Dr. Amos’ Publications and Resources page.

Rev. Dr. Timothy Decker / Biblical Languages (Greek), New Testament Studies, Practical Theology

Timothy was born in Charlotte, NC but has lived and ministered in a variety of locations and settings ranging from the beaches of eastern NC, to the city of Tegucigalpa, Honduras, and most recently in the mountains of Virginia. He has 8 years of experience in pastoral ministry and is currently an elder of Trinity Reformed Baptist Church. God has graced him with a wonderful wife (Liz, married in 2005) and 4 beautiful children. He holds a B.A. and M.A. in Biblical Studies from Piedmont International University as well as a Th.M. from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary with a focus on New Testament and Greek. Recently, he completed a Ph.D. in Biblical Studies at Capital Seminary & Graduate School.He has also published articles in various scholarly journals such as Neotestamentica, Andrews University Seminary Studies, Journal of the Institute for Reformed Baptist Studies, Puritan Reformed Journal, and Old Testament Essays and is a member of the Evangelical Theological Society and the Institute for Biblical Research. When he is not reading, writing, or researching, Timothy enjoys spending time with his family, golfing, wood-working, fishing, and hunting.

Dr. Decker serves BRITE as one of our regular faculty members, teaching courses at all our various locations.

Rev. Sean Morris / Historical Theology and Church History, Practical Theology

Born and raised along America’s snowbelt in North Kingsville, Ohio, Sean attended Grove City College in Grove City, Pennsylvania, earning his BA in Biblical and Religious Studies. He went on to earn his Master of Divinity (MDiv) from Reformed Theological Seminary in Jackson, Mississippi in December of 2014 and his MTh (Master of Theology) from the University of Glasgow (Scotland) in 2020, focusing on Scottish Theology and Church History. Sean previously served as the Associate Pastor of Westminster Presbyterian Church (PCA) of Roanoke, Virginia from May of 2015–May of 2022. While in Virginia, Rev. Morris labored along with several others to help found the Blue Ridge Institute for Theological Education (BRITE).

Sean currently serves as a minister at Covenant Presbyterian Church (PCA) in Oak Ridge, Tennessee and is pursuing his PhD in Historical Theology at Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary.

Sean continues to serve BRITE as the Academic Dean from afar, providing program, academic, and administrative oversight for the institution as well as guest lecturing and team-teaching with other faculty in a number of courses. He also teaches various courses in the departments of Systematic, Historical, and Practical Theology. He is a member of the Evangelical Theological Society, the Society of Biblical Literature, the American Academy of Religion, the Scottish Evangelical Theological Society, and is a Fellow with the Twin Lakes Fellowship, a ministerial fraternal. Additionally, he served as an Honors Scholar and Teaching Assistant for the Academic Dean and the Chancellor during his time at RTS and has also taught at several seminaries and pastoral training centers in Asia and Africa.

Sean also serves BRITE as the Director of its Global Ministry Partnership endeavor, working closely with our network of friends and partner churches in places throughout Europe, West Africa, Asia, and elsewhere. This endeavor seeks to bring high-level theological education to the mission field, both in congregations and in formal training centers, at the request of local church pastors and leaders. As able, BRITE provides or coordinates both online and in-person training and education suited to the needs of the areas’ churches.

Beyond theology, writing, and good literature, Sean is enthusiastic about good coffee and the “Three Bs”–Bach, Brahms, and Beethoven. He has written for various academic and popular level periodicals including Reformation21, Humane Pursuits, Ad Fontes, and the Puritan Reformed Journal. Sean and his wife, Sarah, live in Tennessee with their three children and a useless beagle.

Sean serves BRITE as one of our regular faculty members, teaching mainly distance courses, but also occasional in-person intensive courses as well. Visit this link to view Sean’s Publications and Resources page.

Rev. Dr. David Weber / Practical Theology

As the son of a military man David lived in Washington State, Belgium and Georgia while growing up. He received a B.A. in Political Science (2003) from The University of Georgia, a Master of Divinity (2008) from Reformed Theological Seminary, and a Doctor of Ministry (2017) from Reformed Theological Seminary. David presently serves as the Senior Pastor of Rivermont Presbyterian Church in Lynchburg.

Prior to joining the Rivermont staff in 2017, David was the Pastor of Overbrook Presbyterian Church of Gaffney, South Carolina (2008- 2017). David and his wife, April, were married in 2002 and are grateful to God for their five children, Amelia, Judah, Annalise, Evangeline and Josephine. With his family David enjoys traveling, hiking and watching Georgia Football.

David serves BRITE as one of our adjunct instructors at the Lynchburg campus.

Rev. Douglas Hart / Practical Theology

Born in Roanoke and reared in Altavista, VA, Doug attended Furman University and graduated with a B.A. in History in 1973, later earned a Master of Arts in Religion from Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, PA in 1978. Doug has also completed two certificate levels of training in Biblical Counseling from the Christian Counseling and Educational Foundation in Philadelphia.

Doug has started three businesses, and later spent over 20 years in enterprise software sales. He has served as deacon, ruling elder, clerk of session and moderator of presbytery. Licensed to preach by New River Presbytery in 1992, he later served as church planter of Hope Presbyterian Church in Martinsville, VA and as Associate Pastor of Christ the King Presbyterian Church in Roanoke and also from 2015-2016 as Interim Pastor.

Doug is married to Ginnie for over 40 years and they have three daughters and 3 grandchildren. Doug serves on the Board of Directors of BRITE, also The Aquila Report, and Blue Ridge Biblical Counseling and is a member of Blue Ridge Presbytery of the PCA.

Doug serves BRITE as one of our adjunct instructors at the Roanoke campus.

Rev. Randy Pizzino / Practical Theology

Beyond his work with BRITE, the other main thrust of Randy’s vocational ministry is serving with Equipping Pastors International, a ministry dedicated to equipping national pastors and their wives in nations where Christianity is nascent and enabling those leaders to equip others for the work of the ministry to bring the body of Christ to maturity and unity.

Randy was blessed of God with Christian parents who gave him faithful nurture in the truths of the word. His father was a pastor, and Randy’s close relationship with his dad was used of God to teach Randy many practical lessons on pastoral ministry. Randy marks his conversion in the summer of his 16th year, and that conversion was followed, almost immediately, with opportunities to speak publicly in youth meetings and church services. Randy’s formal training for the ministry came in five years of study at Piedmont Baptist College in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Randy’s first pastorate of 8 years in Staunton, VA was followed by the remainder of his 41 years of pastoral ministry in the Roanoke Valley of Virginia. Most of these Roanoke years were given to establishing and maturing one congregation, Trinity Church.

The Roanoke years began in serving with Jack Arnold at Grace Church, and the Pizzinos are now grateful to return to Grace Church as members, serving EPI with the encouragement of Pastor Tim Martin and the elders of Grace Church. Randy and his wife Julie are blessed with three children, two sons and a daughter. Julie teaches at Faith Christian School in Roanoke, and hopes to travel more in the future to East Africa with her husband. Randy’s entire pastoral ministry has been given to careful study and exposition of Scripture, and he rejoices in the open doors with EPI to impart some of what he has learned (and continues to learn) to pastors in East Africa, and wherever the Lord will guide his steps in the future.

Randy serves BRITE as one of our adjunct instructors at the Roanoke campus.

Rev. Michael Gembola / Practical Theology

Michael Gembola (MAR, MAC) is Executive Director of Blue Ridge Christian Counseling in Roanoke, VA. He previously worked at CCEF as a licensed professional counselor and served as Director of Congregational Care at City Line Church in Philadelphia. He is also a lecturer in practical theology at Westminster Seminary and has taught as an adjunct professor at Biblical Seminary (Hatfield, PA). He holds a Master of Arts in Religion (Biblical Studies) and a Master of Arts in Counseling from Westminster Seminary, and he has a Certificate in Advanced Professional Counseling from Biblical Seminary. He is the author of several articles and a forthcoming devotional book on spiritual and marital restoration after infidelity.

Michael is married to Kelly and they have two sons, Adriano and Shane.

Michael serves BRITE as one of our regular faculty members, teaching courses at all our various locations.

Staff

Dr. W. Duncan Rankin / Dean of Students and Scholar-in-Residence

Dr. Rankin and his wife, Shirley, have three fine children.

Dr. Rankin serves BRITE as one of our regular faculty members, teaching courses at all our various locations.

Rev. Sean Morris / Academic Dean and Director of Global Ministries

Sean currently serves as a minister at Covenant Presbyterian Church (PCA) in Oak Ridge, Tennessee and is pursuing his PhD in Historical Theology at Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary.