Barry Gibson, a veteran teacher and two-time graduate of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, is joining the faculty of Boyce College as the Associate Professor of Teacher Education, according to an announcement from R. Albert Mohler Jr., president of Southern Seminary.
Gibson will support the growing teacher education program at Boyce College, which trains students for the challenges of teaching and leading a classroom from a biblical worldview. His appointment is a strategic step in extending the reach of one of the most important programs at Boyce College, said Mohler in his statement.
“The addition of Barry Gibson to the Boyce College faculty will bring a skilled classroom teacher with rare experience into the training of teachers, ready to be sent out into the classrooms and fields of service around the world,” Mohler said. “Our teacher education program is so very important and Dr. Gibson’s appointment is good news on so many fronts. Our students will love him and, through our graduates, his teaching ministry will extend into the cities and on to the nations.”
Gibson has significant academic and practical experience in the field of education, including five degrees and more than a decade of teaching. Two of those degrees (a master of arts in theological studies and a doctor of education) he earned at Southern Seminary. He also earned a master of education degree from the University of the Cumberlands and a bachelor of science and master of science from Union University.
“I consider the opportunity to teach at Boyce College a tremendous privilege,” Gibson said. “As a Southern graduate, I am well acquainted of the commitment to biblical fidelity and worldview with which both Boyce College and Southern Seminary strive to uphold and promote. Boyce College is unique in that it combines this dedication with a culture of academic excellence preparing students to serve the kingdom well, both in the local church and the public arena. I am looking forward to being a part of equipping students to serve with distinction as educators, pointing those in their spheres of influence to the glory and goodness of Christ.”
Since 2013, Gibson has been a teacher at Lassiter Middle School, which is in the Jefferson County Public School system. He also serves as the senior pastor of Chapel Park Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky. Previously, Gibson was a teacher at the Christian Academy of Louisville and Bell County High School.
Matthew J. Hall, provost of Southern Seminary and dean of Boyce College from 2016-2019, said Gibson is well-suited to extend the reach of the teacher education program at Boyce College.
“Boyce College’s teacher education program has become one of our fastest growing majors for good reason,” Hall said. “It’s difficult to imagine a vocation where one can have a more immediate impact for Christ than teaching. That’s why I am so overjoyed at Dr. Barry Gibson’s appointment to the faculty. A veteran educator and a committed Southern Baptist, Dr. Gibson brings together everything we hope to see in this program and, for that matter, in the life of the college. For students who want to learn not only how to teach, but how to do so as faithful believers in Christ, Dr. Gibson will be a valuable mentor and advisor.”
Dustin Bruce, the new dean of Boyce College, echoed Hall’s enthusiasm for Gibson’s appointment:
“Barry Gibson has first-hand experience living out his commitment to Christ in the classroom,” Bruce said. “Furthermore, he has demonstrated himself to be a skilled educator on the collegiate level. Gibson makes a great addition to Boyce College and the teacher education program, and I’m thrilled to have him on board.”
Gibson is married to Julie, and the two have four children: Isaac, James, Anna Kate, and Maggie Ellen.