International Christian Professors Forum:
Toward a Comprehensive Biblical Worldview
Hosted By the Wagner Faith & Freedom Center at Spring Arbor University
JUNE 2 - 5
SPRING ARBOR UNIVERSITY
The Presenters:
11
FEATURED THOUGHT LEADERS
01
Speaker
Hon. William Wagner (ret.)
Michigan
Following distinguished service as a federal judge and tenured university professor, William Wagner dedicated his life to full-time ministry. Now holding the rank of Distinguished Professor Emeritus, he is the Founding President of Salt & Light Global. He is also a Ben Franklin Fellow and holds the WFFC Distinguished Chair for Faith & Freedom at Spring Arbor University.
Seasoning the public dialog with Truth, Wagner fights to protect free expression, religious conscience, and good governance under the rule of law. A frequent speaker at world conferences, his writing is published in a number of articles, books, and other publications, including an Amazon national best seller (#1in its category). As lead amicus counsel in many matters before the United States Supreme Court, he authored briefs on behalf of various organizations. He also authored written testimony, evidence, and briefs in such forums as the Swedish Supreme Court, the U.S. Congress, and the U.K. Parliament. He has further addressed many executive, legislative, parliamentary, and judicial audiences throughout the world, and presented at various diplomatic forums including the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva.
As a Federal Judge, Wagner adjudicated cases arising under the Constitution and laws of the United States. Prior to his appointment on the federal bench, he served as the chief American diplomat for the Department of Justice at an American Embassy in Africa. There he led a diplomatic mission charged with strengthening good governance and the rule of law.
During his career in public service, he provided international assistance to the justice sector institutions of numerous countries on five continents. Professor Wagner also served as Senior Assistant United States Attorney, litigating hundreds of federal cases and serving as chief of appellate litigation for the Office of the United States Attorney. Professor Wagner served as legal counsel in the United States Senate and as chief counsel to the Senate Judiciary Committee of the Michigan legislature. Most recently he served as Senior Advisor for Global Criminal Justice at the Department of State.
Dr Vishal Mangalwadi
California
Dr. Vishal Mangalwadi is a social reformer, political columnist, Indian Christian philosopher, writer and lecturer. Vishal Mangalwadi graduated from the University of Allahabad in 1969 and earned an MA in philosophy from the University of Indore in 1973. In 1974, Mangalwadi co-founded The Theological Research and Communication Institute (TRACI) and began to develop his master’s thesis into his first book, The World of Gurus. In 1984, he was appointed the Convenor of the Peasant’s Commission of the Janata Party. In 1987, he initiated a national movement against the revival of sati. From 1988 to 1994, he was an assistant to Kanshiram, the founder of the Bahujan Samaj Party. Since 1996, he has been writing, lecturing and publishing around the world. In 2003, the William Carey International University awarded him a Doctorate in Laws. In 2009, he published the US edition of Truth and Transformation encouraging local churches around the world to double up as centers of learning and service, offering tuition-free, internet based college education. In 2010, a pilot project began in Indonesia. The vision of Church and internet based college education has been institutionalized in two organizations: CACHE (Church and Community Centred Higher Education) is implementing it in Africa and other non-western nations, and Virtues Inc is implementing the concept in the USA. From 2014-17 he served as an Honorary Professor of Applied Theology and the Director of the Centre for Human Resource Development at Sam Higginbottom University of Agriculture, Technology, and Sciences. Dr Mangalwadi continues to travel around the world to promote the vision of church and internet based higher education.
02
Speaker
03
Speaker
Dr Pierro Tozzi
Washington DC
Dr Tozzi is the Staff Director of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China. His previous positions include Republican Staff Director of the bipartisan Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission and Staff Director and Counsel for the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights and International Organizations. He has also served as Senior Foreign Policy Advisor and Counsel to Representative Christopher H Smith (R-NJ). Mr Tozzi received his J.D. from Fordham University School of Law, and his B.A. from Columbia University. Mr Tozzi speaks Mandarin Chinese, and is the author of several works on international law and comparative constitutional law, including Constitutional Reform on Taiwan: Fulfilling a Chinese Notion of Democratic Sovereignty.
Dr Miguel Moreno
Dr Miguel Moreno is a visionary leader and accomplished professional with extensive experience in higher education, strategic planning, international outreach, artificial intelligence (AI), and leadership development. With a proven track record of success in building partnerships, mentoring global leaders, and fostering innovation Dr Moreno has impacted more than 100,000 leaders worldwide through his seminars and training programs. As Director of Outreach at the University of North America (UoNA), Dr Moreno champions the university’s mission, facilitates international collaborations, and supports applicants while adhering to rigorous standards of confidentiality, inclusivity and integrity. His career spans expertise in Total Quality Management ™, re-engineering, AI, and market based management, with a commitment to excellence across education, government and business sectors.
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04
Speaker
05
Speaker
Professor Natt Gantt
North Carolina
Gantt assumed his position at HPU Law in September 2022, after serving for 22 years in a variety of esteemed roles in legal education. Through his teaching, presentations and scholarship, he has focused primarily on law school academic support, legal education reform, legal ethics and professional identity formation. Gantt is recognized as a national leader on law student and lawyer well-being, and how legal education should foster integrity as an important personal and professional value. With extensive experience in both law and theology, Gantt most recently was the inaugural executive director of the Harvard Law School Program on Biblical Law and Christian Legal Studies and a lecturer on law. Prior to his role at Harvard, Gantt served for 21 years in various roles at Regent University School of Law, most recently as a professor, associate dean for academic affairs and co-director of Regent’s Center for Ethical Formation and Legal Education Reform. Gantt earned his Juris Doctor at Harvard Law School, his Master of Divinity at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, and his Bachelor of Arts in psychology and political science at Duke University. In his role as executive director of Harvard’s Program on Biblical Law and Christian Legal Studies, Gantt encouraged discussions on the relationship between faith and the study and practice of law, and on the character formation of law students and lawyers. Gantt currently serves as an advisory member of the American Bar Association’s Commission on Lawyer Assistance Programs (CoLAP) and chairs CoLAP’s Well-Being Committee. He also serves as a faculty presenter at the Christian Legal Society Fellows Program and as a visiting fellow of the Mockler Center for Faith and Ethics in the Public Square at Gordon-Conwell.
Dr Tom Metallo
Virginia
THOMAS J. METALLO was born in Baltimore, Maryland. He and his wife, Joyce, were missionaries with Youth With A Mission for six years, and much of that time was spent on the foreign field. Dr. Metallo lived in Belize, Central America for two years and has traveled extensively throughout Mexico and Central America. While living in Belize, he worked among the Kekchi, Mopan Maya, and Garífuna people groups, and he was Youth With A Mission’s liaison to the United Nation’s High Commission on Refugees’ Office. Dr. Metallo has also worked with displaced peoples in the Petén, Guatemala. In 1986, Dr. Metallo returned from Central America to the United States to finish his education. He earned an A.B. in Political Science, History, and Mathematics from Indiana Wesleyan University in 1988 and then completed an M.A. in Public Policy at Regent University in 1990. He worked on his doctorate in International Studies at the Graduate School of International Studies at the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida from 1991-1996, and received his doctorate in 1998. His areas of concentration were Latin America and Security and Conflict. He is fluent in Spanish and has conducted academic research in Nicaragua and Guatemala while doing research on his Master’s thesis and his doctoral dissertation, respectively. Before joining the faculty at Liberty University, Dr. Metallo taught at Oral Roberts University, Indiana Wesleyan University, and Lee University. In 2004, Dr. Metallo accepted his current position with Liberty University to help establish the Jesse Helms School of Government and to expand offerings in Biblical Christian Worldview, comparative politics, area studies in Latin America, Middle East and Asia, U.S. foreign policy, international law, political economy and public policy, and American government. Dr. Metallo has taught in Canada, Singapore, Australia, Indonesia, Guatemala, and Cuba. He and his wife, Joyce, continue to have an outreach to students both in and outside of the classroom.
06
Speaker
07
Speaker
Dr Darrell Furgason
British Columbia, Canada
Dr Darrell Furgason has been involved in Christian education for more than 40 years. He has taught in Christian schools in Australia, the USA and Canada, and was Dean of the College of Humanities & International Studies at the University of the Nations, Canberra, Australia from 1994-97. He has also taught in the Political Science Department at Trinity Western University, Langley, BC. (2002). From 2006-2019, Dr Furgason was an Adjunct Professor in the Jesse Helms School of Government, at Liberty University, Virginia. From 2018-2022 Dr Furgason was elected to the Chilliwack School Board, working to address the many non Biblical ideas and values permeating the School District. He continues to be active in addressing and challenging philosophical and ideological issues in education today. Dr Furgason has lectured on “Thinking Biblically” and “Developing a Biblical Worldview” in more than 15 countries. He is currently the Director of The Worldview Studies Center. Dr Furgason has a BA and B.Letters in Philosophy from the Australian National University, an MA in International Studies, and a PhD in Religious Studies, both from the University of Sydney. He lives in Chilliwack, BC, Canada.
Dr Kevin Clauson
West Virginia
Dr. Kevin Clauson is the President and founder of The Patrick Henry Institute, Inc.,a Christian educational organization focusing on biblical principles of government, law, economics, public policy, education (especially Christian higher education), and culture in society. He has recently served as Vice President of Academics at Bryan College in Dayton, Tennessee, as well as Professor of Government and Director of the Center for Faith, Freedom, and the Constitution. (He is retired from Bryan College.) Prior to those assignments, Dr. Clauson was founding Chair of the Government Division and Professor of Government at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia, and President of Christ College, also in Lynchburg. Prior to that, he was a professor of Political Science at Grove City College in Pennsylvania. He has served as a Ruling Elder and Elder-at-Large (Presbytery) in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church and the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America (the "Covenanters"). Dr. Clauson has authored numerous articles and book chapters. He was a candidate for public office three times (once losing by one vote after three recounts). He and his wife, Marcia are originally from West Virginia, where he earned his B.A. in International Affairs, B.S. in Chemistry, and M.A. in Political Science at Marshall University, and Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D.) at West Virginia University. Dr. Clauson is an avid admirer of Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of England and devoted Puritan. He has been married to Marcia (who has been the chief homeschool teacher of five children) for 44 years. He and Marcia have 14 grandchildren.
08
Speaker
09
Speaker
Dr C.B. Peter Morgan
Trinidad & Tobago
Dr Morgan has developed a Kingdom Theology built on the foundation of the Fatherhood of God. He has produced other dynamic themes on nationhood especially as they relate to ‘Church Government and Church Leadership in our Global Environment’; ‘Community Transformation and the Quiet Revolution’. In all these initiatives, his major passion is to guide Churches and their leaders to prepare their members to become effective Kingdom ambassadors within their communities, cities and nations using their occupational opportunities as their field of ministry. Dr Morgan is the Chairman of the International Association of Kingdom Churches and Ministries (IAKCM). He is also a founding Director of the Caribbean Israel Leaders Coalition (CILIC). He is currently the Dean of Post Graduate Studies at the Caribbean Nazarene College in Trinidad and Tobago.
Hon. John B. Crane
Indiana
The Honorable John B. Crane is a highly respected leader and educator whose passion is to empower leaders to get better at becoming their best, no matter what their leadership context or title may be. In that pursuit, John spends much of his time speaking to audiences and equipping leaders across the United States and around the world. In 2016, John was elected as a Senator in Indiana where he served honorably for two terms until term-limiting himself in November 2024. During his career, he served as the Assistant Majority Caucus Chairman. He also served on six different legislative committees, including the Education and Career Development committee, where he was the Ranking Member. Currently, Senator Crane is the Founder and Principal of JBC Leadership Strategies (craneleadership.org). He works with political, corporate, and non-profit leaders to help them develop a values-driven, legacy-focused approach to their leadership in order to find greater success and impact with people. Senator Crane graduated from Taylor University with a B.A. in History and Psychology. He went on to receive his M.A. in Communications and Culture from Trinity International University. In 2008, John completed a two-month apologetics training program through the Oxford Centre for Christian Apologetics, in partnership with Wycliffe Hall, Oxford University. Previously, Senator Crane has served as a pastor, as well as an adjunct professor at Marian University and Grace College: Indianapolis. He was one of the inaugural Colson Fellows with the Chuck Colson Center for Christian Worldview and has served on the Colson Center Board of Directors since 2020. Senator Crane and his wife, Jean, have been married since 2002. They have four children and live on Crane Acres just outside of Indianapolis, Indiana
10
Speaker
11
Speaker
Dr Alvin Kauffman
Michigan
Biography Dr. Kauffman joined Spring Arbor University as an adjunct faculty in 2006. Since that time, he has held positions as Director of the RN-BSN program, Chair of the Nursing Department, and is the current Dean of the School of Nursing and Health Sciences. Prior to arriving at SAU Dr. Kauffman held staff nurse and multiple nursing management positions in the Detroit Medical Center and was Vice President of Clinical Services and CNO of a Surgical Specialty Hospital. He lived for two years at the Jianxi School of Traditional Chinese Medicine in the Peoples Republic of China. Outside of Spring Arbor University Dr. Kauffman is a Colson Fellow, serves on the Boards of the Helping Hands Pregnancy Resource Center, Spring Branch Academy, and serves in several capacities at Countryside Bible Church in Jonesville Michigan. Academically, his interests center around the impact of a Biblical worldview on healthcare and nursing. A native of Michigan's Upper Peninsula, Dr. Kauffman lives with his wife in Litchfield, Michigan. They have three adult children and five grandchildren. When not working Dr. Kauffman enjoys spending time with his wife, creating memories with their grandchildren, working around their ten-acre mini-farm, and caring for an 1899 farm house.
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DAYS
SPEAKERS
COMING SOON...
AGENDA
The Venue
106 E Main Street
Spring Arbor, MI 49283
Join us on the beautiful campus of Spring Arbor University for an engaging and inspiring symposium experience! Our distinguished speakers deliver their presentations in a premier venue designed to foster thoughtful dialogue and meaningful exchange.
Enjoy a complimentary lunch provided by Chartwells, Spring Arbor University’s trusted dining partner, our gift to you as part of the day’s experience.
Breakfast is included with your hotel stay, and dinner is yours to enjoy at your leisure. The hotel features an on-site restaurant, with several additional dining options conveniently located nearby.
We look forward to welcoming you for a day of rich conversation, excellent hospitality, and memorable fellowship!