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April Maskiewicz Cordero, PhD, is a professor of biology and Vice Provost at Point Loma Nazarene University. Her research focuses on developing more effective approaches for teaching ecology and evolution that enable students to develop not only factual knowledge, but biological ways of thinking and reasoning about the living world. As a Christian biologist trained in science education research, she is in a unique position to investigate science students’ perceptions of the relationship between scientific issues that evoke controversy (i.e. origins, evolution, human origins) and Christian faith. Dr. Maskiewicz Cordero gave a TEDx talk on evolution and faith and she was featured in “From the Dust,” a BioLogos sponsored documentary. She is also active in several professional development projects with schoolteachers as well as university biology faculty, is one of the six authors of the <a href="http://biologos.org/integrate">BioLogos Integrate curriculum</a>, and was one of four professors coordinating the PLNU/BioLogos Biology by the Sea Christian school teacher program.

Board Vice-Chair

BioLogos Voices

Board of Directors

Biology

Creation Care

Evolution

April Maskiewicz Cordero

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christy-hemphill

Christy Hemphill and her husband Aaron work as linguistic consultants on a minority language Scripture translation project in southern Mexico, where she homeschools her three children. Prior to her work in Mexico, she worked as an educator for eight years in various contexts including high school, museum education, college, and adult education. Christy has a master’s degree in Applied Linguistics/TESOL from Old Dominion University, and a master’s degree in Applied Linguistics/Bible Translation from the Graduate Institute of Applied Linguistics at Dallas International University.

Christy serves on the curriculum development team for <a href="https://biologos.org/integrate/">BioLogos Integrate. </a> She has also served as a moderator on the <a href="https://discourse.biologos.org/">BioLogos discussion forum</a> since 2015, and you can often find her there sharing her pursuit of good biblical exegesis and good science with anyone who wants to join in.

Author

Christy Hemphill

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Sarah Bodbyl Roels is Associate Dean at the Van Andel Institute Graduate School where she supports the curriculum, student fellowships, and student internships. Sarah earned her doctorate in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from the University of Kansas, where she studied mating system evolution, behavioral ecology, and conservation. Postdoctoral experiences at Michigan State University formed Sarah's continuing interests in science communication and the scholarship of teaching and learning.

Prior to her current appointment, Sarah supported faculty development at Colorado School of Mines, offering professional teaching and learning opportunities across the university. Sarah enjoys assisting continuous improvement of teaching and learning across all instructional levels.

Sarah is a member of the BioLogos Voices speakers bureau and the BioLogos <a href="https://biologos.org/integrate/">Integrate</a> curriculum development team. Sarah passionately explores the relationship between science and faith and appreciates opportunities to learn from others.

She and her husband Steve, also a scientist, are avid birders and their family includes a horse, a donkey, a dog, and numerous chickens.

Sarah Bodbyl Roels

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Diane Sweeney is a veteran instructor and curricula developer with over 25 years experience in education. She is currently an AP biology instructor and department head at Sacred Heart Preparatory in Atherton, CA. She previously taught at the Punahou School in Honolulu, HI; Crystal Springs Uplands School in Hillsborough, CA; and Prince of Peace Lutheran School in Fremont, CA. Her publications include writing for the biology textbook program Biology Exploring Life (lab manual and teacher’s instructions) by Campbell, Williamson, Heyden (Pearson 2009). Diane has a BS in biochemistry from UC Riverside and an MA in education from Stanford University.

Diane has been active with BioLogos for many years. Through a BioLogos grant, she co-created with Pastor Joshua Hayashi Author of Life, a collection of 7 short documentary films and companion curricula for churches and schools. Diane is served on the curriculum development team for <a href="https://biologos.org/integrate/">Integrate</a>.

Diane enjoys cultivating native Californian plants and growing fruits and vegetables in her garden when she is not hiking or biking in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Diane Sweeney

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Kendra Terpstra is a homeschool teacher with 15+ years of experience in education. She earned her degrees in Secondary Education, English and History at Central Michigan University and began her career teaching at a large urban high school in Michigan. For the past 8 years, Kendra has homeschooled her 3 children which has involved researching the varying curriculum options and approaches as well as modifying and supplementing curriculum to fit the needs of her children. In addition to her teaching experience, Kendra has worked on a variety of curriculum development projects, including <a href="https://biologos.org/biologos-integrate/">BioLogos Integrate</a>.

Kendra Terpstra

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2021 with Jacket 3

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Mark Witwer served for 41 years in four Christian schools, teaching many courses but especially Earth Science, Physics, Zoology, and middle school life and physical science. Mark also served as an administrator, leading curriculum in three schools and serving as Dean of Faculty in one. He is currently adjunct Professor of Christian Education at Knox Theological Seminary in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, and loves helping teachers, pastors, and homeschooling parents explore what it means to teach Christianly.
Mark has a bachelor’s degree in English with a science minor (Grace College, Winona Lake, Indiana), a master’s degree in secondary school science (Villanova University), and a PhD in religion and society studies, focused on Christian education (Omega Graduate School, Dayton, Tennessee). In 2000 he was invited to be one of two teachers representing the Association of Christian Schools International (ACSI) at the National Teacher Forum in Washington, D.C. More recently, he was selected to participate in the Faith-and-Science-Teaching (FAST) project that created the units at <a href="http://teachfastly.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://teachfastly.com&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1636656020495000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHswasWDgiJHCBKNEEgjflrjO7T3w">teachfastly.com</a>.
Mark’s primary academic interests are in Zoology, especially herpetology (the study of amphibians and reptiles), and the intersection of faith and learning, especially in science. He enjoys walking, <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/mwitwer/">nature photography</a>, reading novels aloud with Andrea, his wife of 40 years, and spending time with their son’s family.

Mark Witwer

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Kathryn Applegate

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Kathryn Applegate supports Development and Programs at BioLogos, having been with the organization since 2010.

With a Ph.D. in computational cell biology from Scripps Research in San Diego, CA, Kathryn combines scientific expertise with a deep passion for advancing conversations at the intersection of faith and science. After a fulfilling 12-year tenure at BioLogos, Kathryn took a hiatus to focus on family before returning in 2025, more committed than ever to its mission.

As the organization’s first Program Director, Kathryn played a pivotal role in organizing transformative events, including two landmark Celebrating Creation conferences with Rev. <a href="https://biologos.org/people/tim-keller">Tim Keller</a> (2010, 2011) and the Biology by the Sea series of workshops for science teachers. She later led a $5.3 million subgrant program, funding 37 teams across six countries to explore the integration of evolution and Christian faith through scholarly work and accessible resources (2012-2015).

Kathryn also launched the Public Engagement program at BioLogos, which included establishing a <a href="https://biologos.org/voices">speakers bureau</a> and organizing <a href="https://conference.biologos.org/">national conferences</a> aimed at fostering public dialogue on science and faith. As Resources Editor, she co-edited <a href="https://www.amazon.com/How-Changed-Mind-About-Evolution/dp/0830852905">How I Changed My Mind About Evolution</a> (InterVarsity Press, 2016) alongside <a href="https://biologos.org/people/jim-stump">Jim Stump</a> and led the creation of <a href="https://biologos.org/integrate">Integrate</a>, a curriculum designed to equip parents and educators to navigate the complex relationship between science and faith.

Outside of her work at BioLogos, Kathryn serves as Vice Chair of the Board of Directors for the American Scientific Affiliation, an organization that has been connecting Christians in science since 1941. She also leads the meals ministry at church and helps organize the annual book fair at her children’s school. In her free time, Kathryn and her family love traveling and discovering Michigan’s state parks and beaches. She also enjoys curling up with a good book, accompanied by their adorable Cavapoo, Teddy.

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