Newbigin House of Studies is an ecumenical study center developing leaders through theological education. By training and mentoring a new generation of missional leaders, in partnership with churches and seminaries, we are committed to renewing a vision for Christian ministry in a rapidly changing world. Our staff along with senior fellows bring rich experience in church and non-profit work, social justice ministry, vocational discipleship, counseling and pastoral care.
The Vital and Thriving cohort program at Newbigin House helps pastors and churches increase the vitality of churches through a multi-stage design thinking process. One-time webinars, continuing education courses, regional and national conferences and retreats are also offered throughout the year.
Our Team
Director of Operations
Nic Hughes
Director of Research and Consulting
Patrick Keifert
Executive Director
Scot Sherman
Reflective Practitioner and Consultant
Rachel Stout
Program and Event Coordinator
Jessica Uhl
Senior Fellow
Paul Weston
Director of Operations
Nic Hughes
Nic is director of operations at Newbigin House. He has spent the past 14 years as a management consultant in a diverse range of industries. His focus has been on creating strategic and operational frameworks that empower executives to implement their vision. He now brings this gift and experience to the Newbigin House team. Nic lives in Portland with his wife and two daughters.
Director of Research and Consulting
Patrick Keifert
Pat is Director of Research and Consulting at Newbigin House of Studies. He founded the Church Innovations Institute and has worked with hundreds of congregations and dozens of denominations on four continents. He is also professor emeritus of systematic theology at Luther Seminary.
DEGREES AND CERTIFICATIONS Ph.D., University of Chicago M.Div., Christ Seminary-Seminex B.A. Valparaiso University
Executive Director
Scot Sherman
Scot Sherman is an Episcopal Priest, the Founder and Executive Director of the Newbigin House of Studies, a center for graduate theological education and spiritual formation based in San Francisco, and a member of the consortial faculty at the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley. He leads the Vital+Thriving Congregations initiative, a collaborative partnership between Newbigin House and the Episcopal Diocese of California supporting congregational renewal and development through research, teaching and consulting. Scot co-hosts the annual Lesslie Newbigin Summer Institute held at Cambridge University. He has taught courses in systematic theology, historical theology, ecumenical theology, the theology of mission, homiletics, and church planting. Prior to coming to San Francisco, Scot served as pastor in New York City for eight years and Atlanta for seven years.
DEGREES AND CERTIFICATIONS Ph.D., University of Wales Trinity Saint David Th.M., Princeton Theological Seminary M.Div., Westminster Theological Seminary B.A., Mercer University
Rachel serves as a Reflective Practitioner and Consultant with Newbigin House of Studies. She is a Lutheran (ELCA) pastor and mission developer and serves as a clergy coach for her Synod in North Western Minnesota.
Program and Event Coordinator
Jessica Uhl
Jessica manages events, assists with the logistics of the Fellows program, and manages social media for the Newbigin House of Studies. She holds a degree in architecture from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, and has a passion for organization and high attention to detail. Jessica has lived in San Francisco since 2008, and loves exploring the city and taking care of her growing houseplant collection.
Paul teaches mission studies at Ridley Hall, Cambridge and in the Cambridge Federation, and is the Director of the Newbigin Centre for Gospel and Western Culture in Cambridge, England.
As a teacher he aims to excite students with the breath-taking wonder of God’s good news and to explore how this can be understood and communicated in today’s world. Along the way he looks to uncover the unexamined assumptions of our contemporary (increasingly secularised) culture in the West, exploring how they came to be, and how they might be addressed in the light of the good news. Over the years Paul has taught a number of courses in this area (both here and abroad), and he enjoys the way in which it brings together a number of disciplines, including theology, history, philosophy, sociology and cultural studies.
As Director of the Newbigin Centre for Gospel and Western Culture, Paul oversees research students working for Masters and Doctoral degrees in association with the Centre, and in partnership with the Newbigin House of Studies in San Francisco, hosts the annual ‘Lesslie Newbigin Summer Institute’ at Trinity Hall Cambridge, with attendees from the States, Europe, and Asia.
