Youth Ministry International (YMI), an international youth ministry training organization headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, has announced the appointment of Dr. Karen Jones as its President.
Dr. Jones will begin her duties on September 1, 2023, from Dr. Gary Almon, who has served as Interim President.
Karen has been an Executive Board member with YMI for almost a decade and served as a professor in its Masters of Youth Ministry program in China, Cuba, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico, Nepal, Nigeria, and Romania. Additionally, she has led seminars, taught courses, and facilitated mission projects in more than fifteen countries.
Dr. Jones is a Professor of Christian Thought and Practice at Huntington University and has been a faculty member since 1997. She is the department chair and the director of their Veritas Theology Institute for high school students. Karen is also the current President of the Society of Professors of Christian Education.
Karen served as a youth minister for more than fifteen years before joining the faculty at Huntington and is the author of numerous articles, book chapters, and curriculum resources. Karen served on the Board of the International Association for the Study of Youth Ministry for nearly a decade and is currently engaged in a research project on Global Youth Values.
Karen holds a Ph.D. in Youth Ministries and a Master of Arts in Religious Education from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. She also earned a Master of Science in Education with a concentration in remedial reading and a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education with a concentration in Spanish from Southwest Missouri State University.
The President will establish policies and strategic direction, both for the near term and foreseeable future, while ensuring the organization follows its mission, policies and procedures that are in place, and is benefiting and advancing God’s Kingdom.
Dr. Bob Miller, Chairman of the Board, said, “Dr. Karen Jones is a valued colleague, as well as an exceptional and internationally recognized educator, having taught hundreds of students in the disciplines of practical, local church ministry. Her appointment as President is a positive and forward looking in educating, training, and equipping the next generation of Christian leaders.”
In addition, YMI welcomes Dr. Gary Almon and Dr. Daniel Broyles to the Board of Directors.
