Education

• Bachelor of Arts in Communication from Bethany Lutheran College
• Master of Arts in Speech Communication from Minnesota State University, Mankato
• Additional work at Regents University

Academic Interests

Communication, specifically public speaking and argumentation. Helping students to understand their audience, craft a message to affect that audience, and respond to feedback.

Research

• Public speaking
• Competitive speech and debate
• Professional Memberships
• American Forensics Association
• National Forensics Association
• National Parliamentary Debate Association
• National Christian College Forensics Association
• Communication and Theatre Association of Minnesota
• Minnesota Collegiate Forensics Association
• Minnesota Speech Coaches Association

Awards

• Dr. Bob Derryberry Memorial Coach of the Year – 2015
• Robert Littlefield Award for “service and dedication to the educational focus and progression of forensics” – 2014

Service

• Executive Council Member, National Christian College Forensics Association
• Previous member of executive board for Minnesota Collegiate Forensics Association
• Presentations/Publications
• “Using Debate in the Classroom” – Lutheran College Conference, 2023
• “The Art of Communication” – Leadership Institute of Greater Mankato, 2007 and 2008
• “Improving your Presentations” – Minnesota Association of Government Communicators, November 2007
• Respondent, National Communication Association Convention 2007 – “Debaters or Students? Parliamentary Debate as a Co-Curricular Activity”
• “At-Risk Students at Bethany Lutheran College” – National Communication Association Convention, 2004
• Contributing writer to Forensics Series Volume 3: DUO Practice & Competition

Teaching Philosophy

College students should want to learn. It is my job to guide them to the information they are looking for. I am there to help them hone their skills necessary to be successful. The students must do the work. My job is to teach them how to do the work and hold them accountable for the work. Those students who don’t want to learn simply allow me more time with students who do want to learn.

Additional Campus Responsibilities

Long-time Curriculum Committee member and officer.

Biography

Born and raised in southern Wisconsin, Jon attended St. Paul Lutheran School in Lake Mills and then Lakeside Lutheran High School.

After high school, Jon joined the United States Navy, serving as an Aviation Storekeeper for five years. After training, Jon spent nearly three years at Naval Air Station Keflavik, Iceland. He spent the rest of his time in the Navy aboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71).

Jon came to Bethany as a student in 1997. He was active in a number of areas of campus. On the Speech and Debate Team he won a number of awards, including a national gold medal in debate at the Phi Rho Pi national tournament. Jon participated in Theatre as an actor and set constructor for many of the shows during his time as a student. Jon was elected Student Body President for his sophomore and junior year of college.

Jon was in the first four-year graduating class, graduating with a B.A. in Communication in 2001. He continued his education at Minnesota State University, Mankato, earning a Masters degree in Speech Communication. He taught Communication classes and coached the Speech and Debate Team as an adjunct professor starting in 2001. In 2004, he became a full-time faculty and Director of Forensics for the Speech and Debate Team.

During his time at MSU, Mankato, Jon met Kate Winkels. They married in July of 2006. Their first daughter, Zoey, was born in 2010. Their second daughter, Evie, was born in 2016.

Hobbies/Interests

• Avid woodworker and handyman
• A military aviation enthusiast and collector