BeADisciple is a ministry of the Richard and Julia Wilke Institute for Discipleship at Southwestern College.

Director of Online Education
Lisa Buffum is the Director of Online Education for the Institute for Discipleship. She makes sure that everything at BeADisciple.com runs smoothly and serves as our resident expert when it comes to online learning, course development, instructor training, customer service, and much more.

Director of Administration
Melissa Hanson is the Director of Administration for the Institute and BeADisciple.com. She works to keeps the website up to date, payments for instructors and keep processes efficient within BeADisciple. Also works in finance within IFD.

BeADisciple Registrar
Beth Galbreath is the Course Registrar for BeADisciple. She builds courses and manages course enrollments. She’s also a popular instructor on BeADisciple.com!

Communications Manager
Sara Weinert is the Communications Manager for the Institute for Discipleship. She works toward clarity and accuracy in the ways we communicate with all of our constituents–learners and instructors, the media, donors, and others who might interact with the institute. This includes editing course descriptions for BeADisciple.com, and newsletters for its many audiences.

BeADisciple Instructor Coach
Beth Perry is the BeADisciple Instructor Coach. Her role is to come alongside brand-new and experienced IFD instructors as needed to coach them in Blackboard course design and/or marketing strategies as needed. Beth has been a popular instructor on BeADisciple.com since 2008.

Director of Faith Formation
Lori Richey is the IFD Director of Faith Formation and the program director for the IFD certifications. Lori began working for the Institute with the Timothy Circle in 2018 before moving into a role with BeADisciple. She is also an experienced Lead Instructor for the IFD Certification in Youth Ministry and oversees administration and programming for the Summit Youth Academy.

Program Director for the Wesley Academy for Advanced Christian Studies
Michael Beardslee is the Program Director for the Wesley Academy for Advanced Christian Studies. Michael began working for the Institute for Discipleship and BeADisciple in early 2016, developing and facilitating courses for a new project called the Wesley Lay Academy.