David Hoag, Ph.D., is the president-elect of the Council for Christian Colleges & Universities (CCCU), the leading voice of Christian higher education. Hoag, a CCCU board member, was most recently the president of Warner University, a CCCU institution in Florida, from 2016-2024.

Dr. Hoag demonstrated his lifelong dedication to Christian higher education through decades of leadership in Christ-centered universities, where he served in advancement and executive capacities. His record of success in accreditation, gift-giving and grant management effectively resourced the vision and mission of the schools he served as well as Christian higher education more broadly.

Throughout his career, Dr. Hoag served at four different CCCU institutions: Warner University, Trinity International University, Greenville University, and Asbury University.

Dr. Hoag holds a bachelor’s degree in education from Asbury University, a master’s degree in education from the University of Kentucky, and a Ph.D. in higher education from St. Louis University.

He previously served on the executive committee on the Independent Colleges and Universities of Florida (ICUF) and the Council of Presidents for the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA).

He is married to Joanna, his wife of 38 years, and they have two married daughters who are graduates of CCCU institutions.

Hoekstra has been serving as a professor of education at Dordt University for 25 years. Her husband, Erik, became president of Dordt University 10 years ago, and they have been serving together ever since. Prior to her work at Dordt, Hoekstra was a middle school science teacher and athletic director. Barb and Erik have four children between the ages of 22 and 26, two married and two eligible bachelors. Hoekstra enjoys traveling to see her kids in South Dakota, Colorado and California. In her spare time, she delights in golfing and reading fiction.

Shirley Hoogstra became the seventh president of the CCCU in September 2014. In this role, Hoogstra combines her zeal for the rule of law and her passion for Christian higher education as she promotes the value and purpose of high quality, Christ-centered liberal arts education that shapes students who love the Lord with all their heart, soul, and mind. Prior to the Council for Christian Colleges & Universities, Hoogstra served for 15 years as vice president for student life at her alma mater, Calvin University, and spent more than a decade practicing law as a partner at a firm specializing in litigation in New Haven, Connecticut.

Silas McCormick serves as the executive director of Lincoln Christian Institute (LCI), an organization devoted to educating, equipping and encouraging churches and those who lead them.

Silas served as the final president of Lincoln Christian University (LCU) from 2020 to 2024, leading it through COVID, restructuring, and ultimately the gifting of its seminary to Ozark Christian College, cessation of degree-granting activities, debt elimination and rebirth as LCI. Before becoming president, Silas held a number of roles at LCU, including executive vice president, vice president of academics and assistant university counsel.

Before joining LCU in 2012, Silas served as a litigator in the Springfield, Illinois, office of a large civil defense law firm.

Silas received his Bachelor of Arts (Christian education) from Lincoln Christian University, his Master of Education and Doctor of Philosophy (higher education administration) from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and his Juris Doctor (law) from the Ohio State University’s Moritz College of Law. He is currently enrolled in a Doctor of Ministry program focusing on pastoral leadership at Wheaton College.

Silas has spent his whole life in Christian communities that have encouraged him follow Jesus. His only real passion in life is helping to create more of such communities.

Joy Mosley is the CCCU’s associate vice president for government & strategic relations. She graduated from Covenant College, where she subsequently worked as the senior human resources partner for over 10 years. She received her MBA from Belhaven University and her J.D. from Emory University. Before coming to the CCCU, she also worked for Congressman Gary Palmer and the Center for Public Justice.

Stephen Newby, Worship Leader/Composer, currently holds The Lev H. Prichard III Endowed Chair in the Study of Black Worship and Professor of Music at Baylor University. His scholarly works are published by Rowman & Littlefield, and his worship and praise choral compositions are published by Fred Bock. He is currently co-authoring with Robert Darden, the book, “Soon & Very Soon: The Transformative Music and Ministry of Andrae Crouch, to be released April 2025 with Oxford University Press. Stephen is married to Stephanie Ashe Newby and they have one adult son Silas Michael Newby.