Leadership
Jerel Skeith
Executive Director
Jerel has a considerable background working with “access people groups” and has a heart for the impact Adults in Custody can make peer to peer. God is drawing those in the prison system toward Himself. Jerel graduated from Seattle Pacific University with a BA in Communication and Youth Ministry and has extensive experience and certificates in Intercultural Ministry, Apologetics, and Missiology. He recently has been accepted into Western Seminary. Jerel has worked with several nonprofits as a church executive consultant, vice president of strategic relationships, and director of development.
Dr. Amit Bhatia
Program Director, Corban University
Dr. Bhatia comes to Corban University from Trinity International University in Deerfield, IL, where he taught courses in Trinity’s undergraduate program at Waupun Correctional Institution, a maximum security prison in Waupun, WI. As a Christian with a Hindu background, he has also served as a pastor in several different multi-ethnic congregations.
Our Board of Directors
Tom Kohl
Founder & Board Member
Senior Judge Tom Kohl has been a State of Oregon circuit court judge for over 20 years. He was president of the Oregon Circuit Court Judges’ Association, founder and presiding judge for Washington County Adult Drug Court, author and public speaker.
Senior Judge Tom Kohl is a graduate of the University of Kentucky (BA) and the University of Toledo (JD). In 2006 he lost his daughter, Megan, to a brutal murder. Judge Kohl wrote a book about the murder of Megan and his experiences in drug court. The book opened the doors for him to begin speaking in prisons in Oregon and around the country which eventually led to the idea of placing a fully accredited college program in prison. He retired from full time judging on January 1, 2016 and currently is on assignment, part time, as a Senior Judge for the State of Oregon.
Ryan Hoppes
Board Member
Ryan has been working in the technology sector for over 15 years. Ryan is the CEO of several companies. He has a passion for building a business culture that empowers employees to do good in the world. He serves on several non-profit boards, with a focus on education. Ryan, along with his wife and two young boys, also runs a local non-profit focused on community youth.
Clifford Jones
Board Member
Clifford was in the first graduating class at the New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary extension at Angola prison in Louisiana in 1999. He was released from prison in 2006 and began to pastor in New Orleans. He is currently the pastor of Light My Way at Sonrise Church in Hillsboro, Oregon. Light My Way is a unique ministry for men and women reentering our community from prison and local jails. The ministry has been hugely successful in helping ex-prisoners assimilate back into our local community in a healthful and meaningful way.
Caryn Ogle
Board Member
Caryn Ogle was raised in Springfield, MO and graduated from Missouri State University. During her college years she grew in her faith and developed a heart for evangelism through her involvement with Cru (Campus Crusade for Christ). After graduation she joined Cru’s Music Ministry and traveled the US spreading the Good News with their band, The Convertibles.
Over the past 25 years Caryn has been committed to raising her 3 children alongside her husband John. She developed a heart for prayer through her involvement with Moms In Prayer, leading groups in multiple schools. Caryn now serves as a member of the Luis Palau National Women’s Prayer Team as well as the Women’s Leadership Team at 26 West Church.
Mike Day
Board Member
Mike is a marketplace executive business leader with more than 35 years of construction management, general contractor and owner’s representative experience providing comprehensive project management expertise in both the public and private sectors.
In 1989, Mike co-founded IMPACT (International Mission Projects and Construction Teams) Ministries, a non-profit, construction-focused ministry building houses, churches and orphanages, and well water drilling in third world countries. Mike currently serves as a Trustee at Pacific Life University in San Dimas, California.
Brad Parker
Board Member
Brad Parker is the Founder and President of La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries in Portland, Oregon. He founded the organization in 1995 and now operates 6 stores in the Portland, Salem, and Eugene, Oregon markets. His relentless focus on improvement, challenging the status quo, and innovation allowed Portland La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries to be one of the fastest growing businesses in Oregon.
Brad has won various awards for business leadership including The BBB large business of the year, three Top Ten awards from La-Z-Boy, Power User of the Year from GERS Retail Systems, and an International Shingo Prize for Operational excellence for his TWI sales training program.
Brad serves on numerous boards including 5 Rock Ranch, a ministry and camp for fatherless kids and single moms and the Tualatin Chamber of Commerce. He is a past president and learning chair for the Young Entrepreneur’s Organization.
Brad is an avid outdoorsman who enjoys golfing, skiing, biking, snowboarding, and waterskiing. He is married to Tess Parker and has two children: Ross and Ellie.