Dr. Alisha Biler
Writing Center Coordinator
Originally from Ohio, Alisha comes to The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary after spending several years in South Carolina working on helping students develop writing skills. She earned her undergraduate degree at Bowling Green State University and her M.A. and Ph.D. at the University of South Carolina. With an educational background in Linguistics, she enjoys all things related to language, reading, and writing. She is excited to join the community here at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary to support both students and faculty in their writing and ministry.
Kathy Driver
Prior to coming to The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in 2014, Kathy Driver worked for seven and a half years in the Writing Center at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas. She enjoyed working with students of all ages and nationalities there and has had the privilege of serving students at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary since 2014. She and her husband came to The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary due to his appointment as seminary librarian and church history professor. She graduated from the University of Alabama (Huntsville) with a B. A. in English and Music minor and a M.A. in Theological Studies from Southwestern Seminary.
Zak Tharp
Zak Tharp is an editor, writer and lay pastor. He is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Church History at Ridley College Melbourne and completed an M.A. in Theological Studies from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in 2019. He grew up in rural East Texas and holds a B.A. in Communications Studies with a minor in Leadership from Stephen F. Austin State University. He has served in camp ministry and as a pastoral intern in Nacogdoches, TX. Currently, he teaches high school English in Weatherford, TX. Zak is married to Hannah and enjoys coffee, hammocks, hiking, theology, and seeing people savor Jesus.
Laura-Lee Alford
Thanks to her parents’ military and subsequent missionary service, Laura-Lee grew all over the American South (minus a three-year stint in Japan). North Texas became home in high school. In 2010, Laura-Lee graduated from Champion Christian College with a B.A. in Christian Education. She then completed a certificate program in descriptive linguistics and cultural anthropology through Baptist Bible Translators Institute. Eight years of teaching ministry in India, the U.S., and Papua New Guinea highlighted the need for further theological training. In May 2022, Laura-Lee completed an M.A. in Biblical Counseling at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary; she hopes to continue in further studies next year. When blessed with free time, she enjoys hiking, camping, and spending time with friends.
Steph Chang Avila
Having grown up in Austin, Texas, Steph spent the past 10 years studying and working in Boston, London, and Singapore. In 2019, she moved to Louisville to pursue an M.Div. along with her husband, Dav. Prior to this, she worked as an editor at a London start-up company and served as a full-time women’s worker at her church in Singapore. She earned her B.A. in Political Science from Wellesley College and her M.A. in History of Art from the University of London. In her spare time, she enjoys watering her plants and baking sourdoughs.
Dr. Nick Campbell
Growing up just north of Chicago, Nick attended Trinity Evangelical Divinity School for a B.A. in Biblical Studies and continued there for an M.A. in Near Eastern Archaeology and Languages and an M.Div. After a few years of pastoral ministry, he felt the call to return to academics and came to Louisville to pursue a Ph.D. in Old Testament at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in 2018. His primary passion is Near Eastern literature and its interaction with the Old Testament. Outside of studying Near Eastern literature and obscure history, Nick enjoys playing music and hiking on any trail that he can find.
Esther Lim
Esther is half-Taiwanese but was born in Malaysia. She came to the United States at 19 to pursue a degree from Northern Illinois University. While there, she earned her B.A. in English with a double minor in Linguistics and Japanese Studies. During her junior year, she participated in an exchange program to Hyōgo, Japan. In 2018, she was accepted to the M.F.A. program at the University of New Hampshire to study Creative Writing with an emphasis on Fiction. By divine providence, she became an M.Div. student in Apologetics at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in August 2020 and graduated in December 2023. She is now pursuing a Th.M. in Philosophy and Theological Studies. She loves a good classical story with a cup of tea, and when she needs a break from academic English, she’ll dabble in amateur art, go on a walk in the neighborhoods surrounding campus, or try her hand again at some creative writing.
Gracie Owens
Gracie is originally from Kansas City, Missouri but has long called Louisville home. Currently, she is pursuing a B.S. in Humanities with a minor in ESL at Boyce College. She is grateful for the opportunities the Lord has given her to serve as a teacher assistant at Landmark Christian Academy and to help students improve their writing skills through the Writing Center. In her spare time, she tends to meander through one of the nearby parks, bake bread, or enjoy a cup of coffee and a good book on her grandparents’ front porch.
Dr. Todd Bernard
Originally from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Dr. Michael Todd Bernard graduated from George Washington High School. After serving four years in the United States Army, he returned home and completed his B.A. in English and Secondary Education at Mount Mercy University. After teaching at his alma mater for two years, he and his family moved to Louisville, Kentucky, where he has taught on both the college and high school levels for over 20 years. He completed his M.A. in Educational Administration at Western Kentucky University and he obtained an Ed.D. at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Dr. Bernard preaches the gospel around the country, participates in local distance races frequently, and enjoys time with his four children, eight grandchildren, and his wife of over 35 years.
Noah Moon
Born and raised in Albertville, Alabama, Noah Moon lives in Auburn, Alabama with his wife, Tristian. Currently, he is earning his M.Div. in Christian Ministry through The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary while participating in a pastoral internship at Lakeview Baptist Church. As an ordained minister, Noah previously served as the pastor at Waverly Baptist Church in Waverly, Alabama. In May 2023 Noah graduated with a B.A. in English Creative Writing from Auburn University, where he also worked as a tutor and consultant. He has published both a poem and a creative nonfiction essay through Auburn University’s student Creative Writing magazine, The Auburn Circle, and he hopes to continue his passion of writing both fiction and non-fiction for the glory of God.
Dr. Ann Riedling
Dr. Ann Riedling grew up in a small town in Indiana. She holds a B.S. in Education, an M.Ed. in Library Science, and doctorates in Educational Administration and Theology. Ann served as a professor for over thirty years, teaching primarily Library and Information Science. For approximately ten years, she owned an online editing company, WordWizard, and during that time edited thousands of materials from a wide variety of topics. Ann also wrote twenty books, eighteen textbooks, and two trade books. Her passion is travel and she served as a Fulbright Scholar for three years in the Middle East. She has visited over fifty different countries.
Jenn Stec
Jenn lives in Lancaster, Kentucky and has been married to her husband Tim for 25 years. Jenn holds a B.S. in Commerce from Washington and Lee University, with emphases in Accounting and Finance. She enjoyed a number of years working for IBM prior to leaving the professional workplace to focus on home-educating their three children. Tim completed his M.A. in Biblical Counseling at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in May 2022. Jenn and Tim have three children and a son-in-law: daughter Hannah Miller, who graduated from Boyce College in 2023, son Raigan, who begins his freshman year at Boyce in Fall 2023, and son Bryant, who is in 9th grade. Their son-in-law, Titus Miller, is a Boyce student in Biblical Counseling. Jenn started working for the Writing Center in 2021 and assumed the role of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary’s Doctoral Style Reader in July 2023. When she is not teaching, she enjoys visiting national parks, drinking dark roast coffee, and crocheting.
Sam Garcia
Sam was born and raised in Cuba. He earned an M.Div. and Th.M. from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, where he also is currently a Ph.D. student in Systematic Theology. In addition to serving as a Writing Center Mentor for Hispanic students, he serves as Minister of Education and Outreach at Bellevue Baptist Church in Memphis, TN. He has been married to Janet for more than 15 years and they have two daughters.
Skylar Jones
Skylar Jones is pursuing her M.A. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. In 2024, she received her B.S. in Biblical Counseling from Boyce College. Skylar has written articles for The Gospel Coalition, where she currently serves as an editorial intern. Recently, she received her certification as a Gracie Jiu-Jitsu instructor under the training of Eve and Rener Gracie in Torrance, California. In her free time, she enjoys running, reading, and writing.