Staff
 

Sherry Kirksey, Founder and President, is also an adjunct faculty member at the University of Alabama, Department of Human Development and Family Studies, where she teaches Child Development and Interpersonal Relationships.  Previously she was an instructor in Sociology and Psychology at Shelton State Community College for twenty years.  In addition to directing the S.S.C.C. Child Development Center, she managed an on-site childcare center for the Veterans Affairs Medical Center where she still serves as the Program Director.  Her specialties include child development, parenting, marital issues, and spiritual issues.  She speaks and presents seminars on discipline, the Reggio Emilia approach to childcare, staff development, motivation, accreditation, and marital communication.  Sherry and her husband, Robert, led groups at the Foundry Rescue Mission and Recovery Center, where Robert served on the Board of Directors for six years. They have been married for thirty-three years.

• Birthplace: Birmingham, Alabama

• Family: Married with one daughter, and two grand-children

• Hobbies: Reading, cooking, gardening, travel

• Education: University of Alabama, B.S., M.S.

• Personal Quote: "Your relationship with God influences all other relationships."

• Email: sherry@educaretuscaloosa.org

Dick Hastings serves as Executive Director of Educare.  Prior to joining Educare, Dick served in the pastorate for ten years.  He is a Marriage and Family Relationship Coach and a Certified Christian Conciliator^TM.  Dick and his wife, Nancy, have been married thirty years and are former staff members of Campus Crusade for Christ International.  They lived for three years in Germany and traveled extensively throughout Europe performing with the music group, MasterPeace^TM.  Dick and Nancy are speakers with the National Speaker Team for FamilyLife^TM and Peacemaker^TM marriage conferences.  They have conducted marriage seminars for units of the United States Marine Corps, the Los Angeles Police Department, and the New York Police Department and Fire Department.  Dick provides individual and couple counseling, dispute resolution services, and speaks extensively in seminar and conference settings.

• Birthplace: Syracuse, New York

• Family: Married with four sons

• Hobbies: Motorcycling, playing drums

• Education: Western Conservative Baptist Theological Seminary, M.Div.

• Personal Quote: "In any relationship, we teach others how we want them to treat us."

• Other: Viet-Nam Veteran (USMC 1967-70)

• Email: dick@educaretuscaloosa.org

Dan Arsenault is the founder and host of Church for Skeptics, where he works regularly with those who have intellectual doubts about the validity of Christianity and the Christian faith.  Dan personally came to faith in Christ after a careful, reasoned consideration of the evidence for the gospel.  A graduate student in philosophy at the time, Dan later moved from Nashville, Tennessee, to the Atlanta, Georgia, area in the southern United States.  Soon afterwards he became a street missionary in the city of Atlanta, where he later joined a church staff as a youth minister.  From there his career in vocational ministry took him into pastoral work and the role of senior pastor/teacher.  After 30 years in local church ministry, Dan launched Church for Skeptics, which is produced and aired through WVUA-TV in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.  Dan has taught at Unitarian Universalist Fellowships in five states; at the United Nations in Vienna, Austria; and has spoken to the Icelandic Scientific Research Institute in Reykjavik, Iceland.  He has taught at international churches in Berlin, Germany, and he remains active in international missions and teaching projects.  Dan provides counseling services and is available for speaking engagements and seminars.

• Birthplace: Boston, Massachusetts

• Family: Married with five children, and five grandchildren

• Hobbies: Motorcycling, music, hunting

• Education: Oglethorpe University, B.A.; Vanderbilt University, M.A.

• Personal Quote: "The evidence for Christianity is overwhelming and rarely heard."

• Other: Guitarist in the band, Inside Out

• Email: dan@educaretuscaloosa.org

Rick Mitchell served in the pastorate for 20 years with emphases on disciplemaking and leadership development prior to joining Educare.  Since 1999 he has worked with individuals, businesses, and churches around the areas of core values and effective leadership.  Within Educare he focuses on career, business, and executive coaching.  He also works around the themes of reclamation and recovery for those who wish to overcome spiritual estrangement and reengage in their personal fellowship with Christ.  Rick is the author of the teaching resources for Step by Step Through the Old Testament and Step by Step Through the New Testament (Copyright LifeWay Christian Resources).  In addition to providing coaching and organizational development services, Rick is available for speaking engagements and conferences.

• Birthplace: Tuscaloosa, Alabama

• Family: Married with two children, and one grandchild

• Hobbies: Reading, motorcycling, travel

• Education: University of Alabama, B.S.; New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, M.Div.

• Personal Quote: "Those who ignore the lessons of history are doomed to repeat its mistakes and re-live its hardships."

• Other: Veteran (USMC 1972-76)

• Email: rick@educaretuscaloosa.org