Cal Lutheran pastor to fill new VP position

(THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. – July 22, 2015) A California Lutheran University alumna who has served as a campus pastor for 15 years has been promoted to the newly created position of vice president for mission and identity.

In the new position, the Rev. Melissa Maxwell-Doherty now oversees the Office of Campus Ministry, Congregational Relations, the Segerhammar Center for Faith and Culture, the Office of Seminary Relations and interfaith efforts. She also works closely with Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary (PLTS) administrators, the Belgum Chair in Lutheran Confessional Theology, and Theology and Christian Leadership Program faculty.

Maxwell-Doherty will spearhead efforts to communicate the inclusive principles of Lutheran higher education that are central to the university. Cal Lutheran’s mission is to educate leaders for a global society who are strong in character and judgment, confident in their identity and vocation, and committed to service and justice.

A double alumna, the Thousand Oaks resident earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Cal Lutheran in 1977 and a master’s degree in divinity from PLTS in 1981. She served as a pastor of churches in Glendale, Phoenix and Grand Forks, North Dakota, before she and her husband, Scott Maxwell-Doherty, returned to their alma mater. They have both served as university pastors since 2000.

Melissa Maxwell-Doherty has served as a member of Cal Lutheran’s leadership team since 2007. She assisted with the development of the university’s strategic plan and has served on the President’s Diversity Council since 2008. In spring, the Council of Independent Colleges selected her to participate in the yearlong Senior Leadership Academy that prepares mid-level administrators and faculty leaders for vice presidencies.

She received the President’s Award for Distinguished Ministry from PLTS in 2001 and has been very active within the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Locally, she served on the Habitat for Humanity Ventura County Board of Directors for four years.

Cal Lutheran is a selective university based in Thousand Oaks, California, with additional locations in Woodland Hills, Westlake Village, Oxnard, Santa Maria and Berkeley. With an enrollment of 4,200 students, Cal Lutheran offers undergraduate and graduate programs through its College of Arts and Sciences, School of Management, Graduate School of Education, Graduate School of Psychology and PLTS. Members of the Cal Lutheran student body come from across the nation and around the world and represent a diversity of faiths and cultures. For more information, visit CalLutheran.edu.