Threshold Weekend

Dr. Bryan Bademan is Executive Director of Anselm House. Raised in Minnesota, he has a B.S. from the Carlson School of Management. As an undergrad he was especially inspired by the study of the Christian, and continued his historical studies at Wheaton College (M.A.) and the University of Notre Dame (Ph.D.). His interests are in the history of Christianity with a focus on American Protestantism. Prior to joining the Anselm House team, Bryan taught history at universities in New Jersey, Connecticut, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. He speaks regularly on a range of topics including religion and American higher education; religion and emerging adults; Christianity and secularization in America; and a theology of work and vocation. Bryan also serves as Assistant Secretary for Finance for the American Society of Church History.

Dr. Derek Halvorson is the Director of Advancement for Anselm House. He has spent the bulk of his career serving in Christian higher education, including as the president of Covenant College (Lookout Mountain, GA), the president of Providence Christian College (Pasadena, CA), and the founding executive director of the Brock-Barnes Center for Leadership at Covenant College. Derek earned his B.A. in history from Covenant College, his M.A. in history from the University of Arizona, and his Ph.D. in history from Loyola University Chicago. He also studied abroad at Oxford University as an undergraduate and as a graduate student. His historical interests are in late medieval/early modern European religious and intellectual history, monastic history, and the history of the university. He is an elder at Lookout Mountain Presbyterian Church (PCA) and a lifelong fan of the Green Bay Packers.

Dr. Andrew Hansen is Program Director at Anselm House. He studied history and philosophy (B.A.) at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, before studying abroad in Germany and completing a Ph.D. in history at the University of Notre Dame. His historical interests are in modern European and American intellectual and religious history, especially the history of higher education and academic knowledge. Among other projects at Anselm House, Andrew has developed our Fellows Program, seeking to bring Christian formation and theological education to students at a public university, and has authored and co-authored several publications on character formation in Christian educational contexts.

Dr. Phil Letizia is the Director of the Healthcare Initiative at Anselm House. He is a theologian, pastor, and writer, who holds a Ph.D. degree in Practical Theology from the University of Aberdeen. Phil was born and raised in South Florida. He is married to Jenny, and they have two children, Oliver (13) and Jane (11), who was born with Down syndrome and also lives with profound autism. After 20 years of pastoring and church planting, Phil has joined the staff of Anselm House and the Center for Faith and Learning to spearhead a new Healthcare Initiative focused on leveraging the significant number of committed Christians serving as faculty of the University of Minnesota’s healthcare fields, and healthcare students who are seeking faith support in their studies. The Healthcare Initiative aims to provide intellectual and relational support across the vast Christian healthcare communities in the Twin Cities and the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. Phil also serves as an Adjunct Professor at Knox Theological Seminary in Ft. Lauderdale, FL, and in 2024 he became the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Disability and Religion. Last fall, his book Held in the Love of God: Discipleship and Disability was published by Baylor University Press.

Dr. Arend (AJ) Poelarends is the Director for the Center for Faith and Learning. He joined Anselm House in 2022, coming from Wheaton College (IL) where he was Associate Professor of Physics and Astronomy, managed the Wheaton College Astronomical Observatory, and co-directed the Wheaton College Field Station in the Black Hills (South Dakota).

Dr. David Weerts is Professor of Higher Education in the College of Education and Human Development (CEHD) at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, and Associate Vice Provost for Public Engagement for the University of Minnesota System. Over the past 25 years, Professor Weerts’s research and teaching have focused on higher education leadership and organizations, particularly in the areas of university-community engagement, state financing of higher education, and institutional advancement. Professor Weerts is active in leadership initiatives to support university engagement and outreach across the U.S. and internationally. He served two terms on the executive committee for the Council on Engagement and Outreach for the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities (APLU) and on the board of directors for the Seed Coalition, a Midwestern collaborative to advance the civic purposes of higher education. Professor Weerts earned a Ph.D. in educational leadership and policy analysis from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He was inducted into the Academy of Community Engagement Scholarship (ACES) in 2025.

Dr. Eric Watkins is a professor of horticultural science in the University’s College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences (CFANS), and Vice Provost for Distributed Learning at the University of Minnesota. As vice provost, he collaborates with faculty, instructional staff, and academic leaders across the entire university system to advance planning around the University’s online education strategy. Eric is respected throughout the university as a professor, academic administrator, and faculty leader who has championed teaching excellence, innovative instructional delivery, and expanded pathways for learners. He earned his doctorate from Rutgers University in Plant Biology and has been at the University of Minnesota since 2004. His research interests focus on developing low-input turfgrasses for cold climate and on the selection and use of turfgrasses for roadsides, home lawns, golf courses, and other managed landscapes. Eric has been involved with Anselm House for over 15 years, including as a member of the faculty advisory board and a faculty leader of the Faith & Agriculture group. Over the years, many at Anselm House have benefited from his wisdom, resolve, and strategic insight, and we’re thankful to continue to closely collaborate with him.