This website has been created both as a tribute and a thank you to Dr. Anna Harper (Psychology), Dr. Dora Hawthorne (English), Dr. Eric Vail (Theology), Professor Carrie Vail (Worship Arts), Dr. Doug Van Nest (Pastoral Practices), and Dr. Brad Whitaker (Mathematics).

On January 30, 2025, these six MVNU faculty were notified that their teaching contracts would not be renewed, thus ending their employment after the completion of the current semester.

Students and community members alike have been expressing the desire to pay tribute to these wonderful professors, and to affirm the good work they each have done during their respective tenures at MVNU.

Please enjoy reading their profiles, which detail their remarkable accomplishments and contributions to the university, their reflections on their callings to Christian higher education, their favorite MVNU memories, and their parting words of wisdom to their students.

If you feel so led, please submit thanks, meaningful memories, or words of encouragement on each of their respective profile pages (click on their photos below). Messages received will be collected and placed into a keepsake album for each faculty member to take with them as they depart MVNU.

Additionally, please click the “Support” tab at the top of this page to access the educational scholarship established for the children of the Vails and Hawthornes to offset the loss of employment-dependent tuition assistance.

Let’s honor the faithful and impactful service of these special professors!