Barbara Mutch was appointed to the ATS staff as director of accreditation in September 2015, and was named senior director of accreditation in 2021. She oversees the accrediting staff, who report to her for supervision, goal setting, and development. Her work includes facilitating accrediting reviews, providing education and support to member schools about the process of accreditation, and providing staff support to the work of the Board of Commissioners of the ATS Commission on Accrediting.

Prior to coming to ATS, Mutch completed nearly 20 years of service at Carey Theological College in British Columbia, most recently as chief academic officer. She has taught courses in preaching, spiritual formation, issues in women’s faith and development, supervised ministry, and DMin theological reflection in ministry as well as a doctoral project seminar. She also taught at Regent College from 1996 to 2014, teaching a variety of courses including, most recently, the Seminar in Women’s Faith and Development.

In service to ATS, she contributed a chapter to the book C(H)AOS Theory: Reflections of Chief Academic Officers in Theological Education and an article on “Assessing a Doctor of Ministry Program” in the Theological Education journal. She has also served a full term on the ATS Board of Commissioners as well as on multiple comprehensive accrediting evaluation visits, and on the ATS Faculty Advisory Committee.

A graduate of Briercrest Bible College with both a Bachelor of Religious Education and a Master of Arts in Christian Ministry, Mutch earned her DMin at Princeton Theological Seminary. She is ordained in the Baptist Union of Western Canada and served as associate pastor of First Baptist Church in Regina, Saskatchewan, for 15 years while pursuing her graduate studies.

Stephen R. Graham joined the ATS staff in January 2008 as director of faculty development and initiatives in theological education, was named senior director of programs and services in 2013, began assisting as a director of accreditation in 2020, and was named strategic director of context and continuity in 2021. Prior to joining ATS, he served as the dean of faculty and professor of American church history at North Park Theological Seminary in Chicago. A member of the American Academy of Religion and the American Society of Church History, he was active in the Chief Academic Officers Society of ATS and now provides staff leadership for the ATS School for New Deans.

Graham oversees the Association’s work of leadership education with presidents, assists with the ATS Organizational and Educational Models in Theological Education project, and provides the historical perspective of who ATS is and what it has been as an organization. He works to contextualize the Association's past legacy and its present, and studies how the two contribute toward the future. He has published two books—Cosmos in the Chaos: Philip Schaff’s Interpretation of Nineteenth Century American Religion and Come to the Table: North Park Covenant Church, 1898–1998, A Century of Heritage and Hope—as well as numerous articles on the history of Christianity in the United States and theological education.

He holds an MA from Wheaton College and a PhD in the history of Christianity from The Divinity School of the University of Chicago.

Heather Campain Hartung (formerly Vacek) was named director of accreditation for ATS in 2023. She is responsible for facilitating accrediting reviews, providing education and support to member schools about the process of accreditation, and providing staff support to the work of the Board of Commissioners of the ATS Commission on Accrediting.

Hartung most recently served as vice president and dean of Moravian and Lancaster Theological Seminaries for the past two years. She began teaching at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary in 2012, where she was appointed associate dean for academic affairs in 2015, and vice president for academic affairs and dean of faculty in 2016. She held the position of associate professor of church history at both schools.

Ordained in the Moravian Church, Hartung served as a trustee of Moravian Theological Seminary for ten years. Among her publications, her book, Madness: American Protestant Responses to Mental Illness, explores reactions to mental illnesses from the colonial era through the 21st century. Her service in theological education follows a career in engineering and marketing in technology companies.

Hartung holds a ThD and MDiv from Duke University Divinity School, and an MBA and MEM (engineering management) from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University.

James R. Moore was named director of accreditation for ATS in 2021. He is responsible for facilitating accrediting reviews, providing education and support to member schools about the process of accreditation, and providing staff support to the work of the Board of Commissioners of the ATS Commission on Accrediting. Moore comes to ATS after 26 years at Trinity International University and Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He most recently served as associate professor of educational ministries at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School of Trinity International University. Moore’s other roles have included associate dean of Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, assistant dean of Trinity Graduate School, and director of administration for doctoral programs. He has been an active accreditation visitor and provides experience in the Commission’s work with accreditation and with the schools. In 2020, he was elected vice chair of the ATS Board of Commissioners.

Moore also previously served as assistant pastor and director of Christian education at Lifeway Wesleyan Church in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and he was a public school teacher in Indiana and Illinois. He is an ordained minister in The Wesleyan Church and a member of the Wesleyan Theological Society. His articles appear in the Baker Dictionary of Christian Education, Theological Education, Evangelical Missions Quarterly, Wesleyan Theological Journal, and Trinity Journal. He recently contributed “Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi: Advocate for Child-Centered Education” to A Legacy of Christian Educators, edited by Elmer Towns.

Moore earned his MA from Indiana Wesleyan University and his PhD from Trinity International University.

Emanuel D. Naydenov was named director of accreditation for ATS in 2023. He is responsible for facilitating accrediting reviews, providing education and support to member schools about the process of accreditation, and providing staff support to the work of the Board of Commissioners of the ATS Commission on Accrediting.

An educator with more than 30 years of experience in theological education and formation for ministry, Naydenov comes to ATS from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School of Trinity International University (TEDS). He served as director of the master’s programs and director of the MA in Theological Studies Program, and he led the Office of Extension and Affiliated Education. He recently served on the Board of Commissioners of the ATS Commission on Accrediting where, along with many other responsibilities, he contributed to the work of the Global Awareness and Engagement Initiative of ATS. Prior to TEDS, he was involved in launching Bulgaria’s first accredited seminary after the fall of Communism.

Naydenov, an ordained minister in the Evangelical Free Church of America, is a member of the Evangelical Theological Society, the American Academy of Religion, a cofounder of the Roundtable for Distance Education, and a contributor to the Bulgarian Journal of Theology and other indigenous theological and educational projects.

He earned an MDiv from Bethel Theological Seminary and a PhD in religious studies in the area of systematic theology from Marquette University.

Valerie Rempel was named director of accreditation for ATS in 2021. She is responsible for facilitating accrediting reviews, providing education and support to member schools about the process of accreditation, and providing staff support to the work of the Board of Commissioners of the ATS Commission on Accrediting. Prior to accepting her role at ATS, Rempel most recently served as vice president and dean of Fresno Pacific Biblical Seminary at Fresno Pacific University. She joined the seminary faculty in 1996, was appointed dean in 2014, and became vice president in 2019.

Rempel also served at Fresno as associate professor and J.B. Toews Chair of History and Theology, and she was a past director of the Center for Anabaptist Studies. She is an experienced accreditation visitor and was a member of the ATS Redevelopment Task Force. Rempel was elected to the ATS Board of Commissioners in 2020. Her scholarship includes contributions to the California Mennonite Historical Society Bulletin, Direction, The Conrad Grebel Review, and the Global Dictionary of Theology.

Rempel earned an MA from Mennonite Brethren Biblical Seminary (now Fresno Pacific Biblical Seminary), and an MA and PhD from Vanderbilt University.

Lester Ruiz joined the staff of The Association of Theological Schools (ATS) in August 2008, and he currently serves as director of accreditation and global engagement. His work includes facilitating accrediting reviews, providing education and support to member schools about the process of accreditation, and providing staff support to the work of the Board of Commissioners of the ATS Commission on Accrediting. In addition, he focuses on continuing to explore opportunities to build strategic partnerships with theological educators worldwide on behalf of ATS.

Prior to ATS, Ruiz was a faculty member of New York Theological Seminary (NYTS) in New York City beginning in 1997, where he was professor of theology and culture. He became vice president for academic affairs and academic dean in 2006. Before NYTS, Ruiz was associate professor of political science at International Christian University, Tokyo, Japan, teaching courses in peace and world order studies, international relations, and politics and culture. He is ordained in the Convention of Philippine Baptist Churches.

Ruiz is coeditor of four published works, including Re-Framing the International: Law, Culture, Politics, with Richard Falk and R.B.J. Walker, and he has contributed numerous chapters to books and has been widely published in journals and other periodicals. He received an ATS Lilly Theological Research Grant and a Sohn Foundation Award for sabbatical research in 2005. He serves on the editorial committees of Alternatives: Global, Local, Political, the Journal of World Christianity, and Silliman Journal, is on the advisory board of Global Action to Prevent War, and is on the board of the Foundation for Theological Education in South East Asia.

A graduate in pastoral care and counseling from Ottawa University (Kansas), Ruiz holds a Master of Divinity with an emphasis on religion and society and a PhD in social ethics from Princeton Theological Seminary.