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 Ted Parge, Executive Vice President, Interim Director of the Wackerlin Center for Faith and Action
Ted Parge has served as Executive Vice President at Aurora University for the past year two years. Prior to his current position he served eight years as the university’s Vice President for Advancement. Under Ted’s leadership, the Aurora University development program experienced significant growth with over $64 million in philanthropic support received during his tenure.
In his current role Ted continues to oversee the university's advancement programs while also providing administrative leadership to select strategic program initiatives at Aurora University including the Wackerlin Center, the George Williams Conference Center and the university's initiative in the Servant Leadership program.
Ted earned undergraduate and graduate degrees in music education from Illinois State University and has over 30 years experience in not-for-profit management and higher education.
To contact Ted, call him at 630-844-5262 or e-mail him at tparge@aurora.edu
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Barbara Calvert, Director of Programming, Wackerlin Center for Faith and Action
Barb joined Aurora University in 1997. Prior to her work within the Wackerlin Center she served as the Director of Alumni Relations for 8 years and in various roles in Student Life for 4 years.
Barb's current role includes working with special initiatives of the center, is part of the leadership team for the Office of Community Engagement and Services, is coordinator of the Alumni and Friends International Travel Program. Barb also participates in the Spartan Athletic Mentor program.
As an alumna of Aurora University she completed a B.S.P.S. and an M.B.A.
To contact Barb, call her at 630-844-6865 or e-mail her at bcalvert@aurora.edu
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Dr. Jonathan Dean, Fellow of the Wackerlin Center for Faith and Action
Jonathan was born in industrial Dudley, in the U.K., and raised in rural Cambridgeshire, in the beautiful ancient city of Ely. He studied Classics at the University of Oxford and theology at the University of Cambridge, where he completed a Ph.D. in Reformation Studies, studying the character of Catholicism in sixteenth century England. He has taught seminarians from five major denominations in the Cambridge Theological Federation, and worked as an examiner in theology for Cambridge University. In 2008, he worked for Aurora University as an adjunct faculty member, teaching Church history, and he continues to teach and facilitate lay training academies in the Northern Illinois Conference of the United Methodist Church and beyond.
Ordained in the British Methodist Church, Jonathan has served churches both in the U.K. and in the Chicago area, and worked in Britain as a prison chaplain in a high-security jail. At other times, he's worked with adults with learning difficulties and in bookselling. Experiences in South Africa and Guatemala, as well as Britain and the US, strengthened his commitments to interfaith dialog, understanding and action, and have focused his desire to act for justice and peace in this diverse and extraordinary world.
Jonathan is the author of the book Servitude and Freedom, a guide to reading faith history, and of several chapters, addresses and articles in the areas of: Methodist Christianity; appropriating faith tradition relevantly for the contemporary world; and the use of the Bible. He retains other interests in mysticism, current affairs, the arts, and the criminal justice system, and has delivered lectures on varied occasions, including the British Methodist Conference and Founders' Day at the University of Evansville, IN. His next book, on Archbishop Thomas Cranmer, one of the godparents of the Anglican Christian tradition, is due out in 2012.
Jonathan is very excited and feels privileged to be a part of Aurora University's wonderful community, and is proud to serve the Wackerlin Center. He hopes that students and staff alike will visit the center and enjoy a proper cup of British tea with him.
To contact Jonathan, call him at 630-844-6866 or e-mail him at jdean@aurora.edu.
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 Dr. David C. Fink, University Chaplain and Fellow of the Wackerlin Center for Faith and Action
David came to Aurora University and the Wackerlin Center in 2010 after completing his doctoral studies at Duke University. He and his wife Sarah have four young children: Graham, Beatrice, Ingrid, and William. Sarah is an elementary school teacher and a reading specialist, though since the arrival of the twins, she has been attending to more urgent concerns.
Scholarship and ministry have been the two major strands of David's vocation for many years now. Early in his college career, his intellectual and spiritual fires were ignited by an unexpected encounter with the profundity of the Christian theological tradition. This experience was the catalyst for his vocation as a scholar, and he continues to find deep satisfaction in introducing students to the depth and breadth of Christian reflection on God and the world. In addition to his work as a teacher, he has served as a Chaplain in the Air Force Reserve since 2002, providing ethical advice to military leaders and counseling airmen in need of spiritual care.
David's work as University Chaplaincy flows directly from the mission of the Wackerlin Center: to cultivate the religious and spiritual flourishing of individuals and communities at Aurora University through campus ministries, service, intellectual reflection, and engagement with the wider world. Campus ministry is his special concern as Chaplain, where he aims both to make available pastoral care and counsel to all students, and to work with new and existing student-led ministries to create a thriving community of religious communities at AU.
To contact David, call him at 630-844-6867 or e-mail him at dfink@aurora.edu.
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 Kris Johnson, Fellow of the Wackerlin Center for Faith and Action
Kris grew up in Minnesota, loving sports and the outdoors. This led her to a basketball scholarship at the University of Iowa where she received her bachelor’s degree in recreation education with an emphasis in therapeutic recreation in 1986. She then worked as a recreation therapist at Shriners Hospitals in Chicago for the next 16 years. During her tenure there, she completed a master’s degree in recreation administration from Aurora University and published numerous articles and presented at national conferences on her specialty and passion, pediatric spinal cord injuries and recreation. Kris has also been instrumental in the development of several not-for-profit organizations serving children with disabilities.
Kris came to Aurora University in 2002, where she served as an assistant professor in the Recreation Administration program and eventually transitioned to the Director of Student Leadership. She started the Leadership Education And Development (L.E.A.D.) program and has consistently taught the IDS2000: Wellness and Social Responsibility class. Both have service components, which are closely tied to her Lutheran upbringing.
Kris is excited to be connected to the Wackerlin Center and begin to enhance the existing service projects as well as develop more service opportunities for students, faculty, and staff members. Embedded in service, is the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of others as well as develop a sense of community. Both contribute to a sense of spiritual wellness.
During her free time, Kris enjoys scuba diving, camping, gardening, reading, and spending time with her family.
To contact Kris, call her at 630-844-5624 or e-mail her at kjohnson@aurora.edu.
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Mary Tarling, M.B.A., C.P.A, Fellow of the Wackerlin Center for Faith and Action
Prior to coming to Aurora University in 2004, Mary had been teaching since 1999 at Robert Morris College and Waubonsee Valley Community College. She was awarded an Honorable Mention for the 2008 Mark Chain/FSA Innovation in Graduate Teaching Award and was named the 2011 Outstanding Educator by the ICPAS. Prior to that, she was employed in the real estate development, health care and telecommunications industries, including a period of time with ServiceMaster Company, culminating in the CFO position that she now occupies for a local telecommunications consulting firm. Mary competed an undergraduate degree in accounting at Northern Illinois University and an M.B.A at Benedictine University.
Mary’s current role at Aurora University allows her to serve as Assistant Professor for Leadership, Accounting and Business, as well as Director of the Servant Leadership Initiative for the advancement of service focused leadership and attention to personal renewal. She regularly speaks at events hosted by organizations ranging from the Aurora Chamber of Commerce to the Greenleaf Center for Servant Leadership.
To contact Mary, call her at 630-844-7802 or e-mail her at mtarling@aurora.edu.
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