Concordia University Wisconsin and Ann Arbor has appointed the Rev. Aaron Moldenhauer, Ph.D., to serve as the first Vice President for Mission and Church Relations, a position that places him among the university’s executive team of vice presidents.
In this new position, which Moldenhauer officially began on Jan. 1, he will serve as a university-wide advisor on all theological matters. He will work proactively to establish consistent, doctrinally sound approaches to the challenges and opportunities that arise for Concordia amid the ever-evolving landscape of higher education.
The responsibilities of the role will extend outside of the university as well. Alongside the president, Moldenhauer will help to articulate and promote Concordia’s Lutheran mission as he connects with congregants, church leaders, and other Lutheran constituents, both regionally and beyond.
“We take mission very seriously at Concordia,” Moldenhauer said. “Our commitment to teaching faith, grace, and Scripture alone is what makes us uncommon and sets us apart from so many institutions worldwide. I hope to build upon the good work that is already taking place at the university and spur all of us to continually renew our resolve for Concordia’s important mission.”
Moldenhauer joined CUW’s faculty in 2018 as Assistant Professor of Theology. Most recently, he served as Interim Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences. Prior to Concordia, he received his first call to Zion Lutheran Church and School in Beecher, Illinois, where he served as Associate Pastor from 2006-2018. In addition to his responsibilities at Concordia, he currently serves as a doctrinal reviewer for The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod and as Senior Editor of LOGIA: A Journal of Lutheran Theology. In 2019, he earned his Ph.D. in religious studies from Northwestern University.
Theological leadership emphasized
Moldenhauer is one of four theology faculty members CUWAA leadership has promoted over the past several months. The following promotions come after a resolution that was passed at the 2023 LCMS Synodical Convention which sought to strengthen the Concordia University System schools’ connection to the Synod and the Lutheran confessions.
The Rev. Jason Lane, Dr. Theol.
In addition to his ongoing role as Associate Professor of Theology, Lane now serves as Vice President of Academics for the Core Curriculum for the university and the Harry R. and June J. Rouse Theology Chair of Pre-Seminary Studies for CUW. His responsibilities within the Office of Academics are to help strengthen CUWAA’s core curriculum, which is a distinctive part of the undergraduate experience for students who attend the university. The Core is centered upon the liberal arts, the foundation and hallmark of Lutheran education, and is designed to help students grow in their knowledge of God and the world, and love their neighbor.
As the new Rouse Chair of Pre-Seminary Studies, Lane has assumed the task of guiding young men from their undergraduate studies at CUW to the seminary and into the pastoral office. He succeeds the Rev. Dr. Ronald Mudge, who accepted a position as Provost at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis last year. CUW currently enrolls the most pre-seminary candidates of any LCMS university nationwide.
Lane’s tenure at Concordia began in 2015 when he joined the theology department as Associate Professor of Theology. Since that time, he has received multiple fellowship and scholarship awards. He currently serves as an appointed member of the LCMS’s doctrinal review board.
The Rev. Theodore “Ted” Hopkins, Ph.D.
Hopkins, who is based on the Ann Arbor campus, has been promoted to Assistant Vice President of Academics. In his new role, he serves as an extension of Concordia’s Chief Academic Officer Dr. Leah Dvorak and is assigned to work with deans, chairs, program directors, and faculty to provide CUAA students with a seemless and exemplary academic experience.
Hopkins also continues to oversee the campus’s Faith and Vocation at a Lutheran University program. Started in 2022, the program is a faculty seminar designed to help full-time faculty at CUAA further delve into their understanding of LCMS doctrine. Hopkins joined Concordia’s faculty in 2015 and, shortly after, earned his PhD in doctrinal theology from Concordia Seminary, St. Louis.
The Rev. Brian German, Ph.D.
German now serves as Chair of the Department of Theology for Concordia. As such, he oversees theology faculty on both the CUW and CUAA campuses and ensures the quality of program offerings for students. He joined the CUW theology faculty in 2014 and earned his Ph.D. the same year from Wycliffe College in Toronto, Canada.
In addition to his responsibilities as department chair, German – along with Sandra Jahns, who serves as an instructor in CUW’s communications department – teaches the new Lutheran Faith and Learning faculty orientation courses. He also serves as Director of the Concordia Bible Institute, a servant institute of Concordia University Wisconsin.
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