ITS Staff

Nicholas Piotrowski

President

Dr. Piotrowski earned his PhD from Wheaton College in 2013. He has been part of the leadership of ITS since its inception in 2015. He spearheads the fundraising, leads the staff, and teaches Greek, Hermeneutics, and New Testament courses.

You can invite Dr. Piotrowski to speak at your church or event here.

K.J. Drake

Academic Dean

Dr. Drake earned his Ph.D. in Historical Theology from Saint Louis University in 2018. After four years of serving at an undergraduate Christian university in Ontario, Canada, he joined ITS in 2022. He oversees the Academic Department and teaches Church History, Systematic Theology, and Philosophy.

Contact Dr. Drake at kjdrake@indysem.org

Bruce Winter

DIRECTOR
OF OPERATIONS

After serving 32 years in leadership roles at Dow Corning Corporation, Bruce joined ITS in July, 2018. He earned his MDiv from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, and has seven years of pastoral experience.

Contact Bruce at bwinter@indysem.org

Susan Albers

Director of Development

After many years of leading women’s ministries in her local church, Susan found herself serving and working in philanthropic roles around the city. In light of God’s generosity to her in Christ, she is passionate about inspiring others to live, love, and give generously.

Contact Susan at salbers@indysem.org.

Lynne Zavodney

office administrator

Lynne Zavodney graduated from Cedarville University in 2017 and currently has the joy of both pursuing an MDiv and serving on staff at ITS. She and her husband Jonathan share a passion for strengthening churches. She particularly has a heart for women’s ministry, Biblical counseling, youth ministry, and music ministry.

Contact Lynne at lzavodney@indysem.org

Jonathan Zavodney

ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT & Student Services Coord.

Jonathan Zavodney graduated from Cedarville University in 2018 and finished his MDiv at ITS in 2022. He has a passion for strengthening churches, especially through the encouragement of pastors.

Contact Jonathan at jzavodney@indysem.org

ITS Board Members

J. CURTIS COSTON

Using the life of his Mother whose own life had been wonderfully changed by embracing the gospel, God allowed Curtis Coston to witness the joy of living for Jesus up close. Curtis was gloriously saved from his sins by the God who changed his mother.

Curtis would eventually step away from a career in banking and allow God to use and prepare him for a ministry of teaching and discipleship as his love for leading people toward maturity in Jesus Christ grew.

Curtis served with Cru in New York City for nearly eight years, partnering with Urban churches to effectively reach the city. God has also allowed Curtis to pastor in New York City, Germany and here in Indianapolis where he currently serves as Senior Pastor of Solid Word Bible Church.

Curtis is excited about his opportunity to serve Indianapolis Theological Seminary because he is passionate about strengthening the local church in all of her ethnic diversity.

He enjoys experiencing life with his wife and family, good coffee, fitness activities and being introduced to a variety of international foods.

KEITH DOANE

Keith was raised in St. Louis, MO in the Roman Catholic Church.  During his high school years he was introduced to the ministry of Young Life and went to Frontier Ranch in Colorado for what was promised to be “the best week of your life”.  It was!  Through the ministry of the Young Life leaders, “I saw the power and beauty of believers entering into my life with the message that God was pursuing me, even though I wasn’t pursuing Him.”   After high school, Keith attended Truman State University in Kirksville, MO where he received a bachelor’s degree in Political Science and then a Masters of Divinity at Covenant Theological Seminary while working with Young Life.

Upon graduation from Covenant, Keith and his wife, Susan, moved to Fishers, IN in May 2002 to join the staff of Crossroads Community Church. When they came to Crossroads, it was a brand new church plant and they were called to start a youth ministry at the church even though there was only a few youth.  They saw the Lord bless our ministry and the church.

Keith and Susan were called to plant Living Branch Church in Noblesville in 2016 and long to see a community of believers in Noblesville and Central Hamilton County that is committed to proclaiming God’s Word and loving our neighbor.

They have been married for 20 years and have three children.  They are an active family whose typical day may consist of running, riding bikes, playing whiffle ball in the yard and hearing the frequent sound of doors opening and closing as neighborhood kids come and go with our children.  They bleed red for the St. Louis Cardinals and blue for the Indianapolis Colts, enjoy vacations to the beach and hiking in the mountains or simply being around the house together making fruit smoothies and milkshakes. They are sinners raising sinners and their household reflects that sometimes too!  They are ordinary people called by an extraordinary God.

DONALD J. ENGEL

Donald J. Engel serves as the President and CEO of Deltec Solutions and Vizi Courseware based in Muncie, Indiana.  After executive leadership roles in the healthcare industry, he taught as a full-time faculty member for more than ten years at Olivet Nazarene University and Anderson University.  He then served as Vice President and General Counsel at Ontario Systems in Muncie before joining Deltec in 2008.

Don received a Bachelor of Science from Olivet Nazarene University and his Certified Public Accountant certificate from the University of Illinois (inactive).  He holds a Masters of Business Administration from the J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University and a Juris Doctor from the Thomas M. Cooley Law School.  Don serves as an Elder at Westminster Presbyterian in Muncie, Indiana and serves on the lU Ball Memorial Hospital Foundation board and finance committee.  Don lives with his two college-age sons in Yorktown, Indiana.

MICHAEL ERLER

Michael is thankful for the work of Jesus in his life and family, without which he would be utterly lost. He is humbled by the opportunity to serve in many ways at New City Church on the eastside of Indianapolis. Living out faith and pursuing the Kingdom of God in the context of Christian community has been one of the most rewarding commitments for him and his family.

Michael is a partner with TEF Capital, where he is focused on business consulting and investment management. Prior to this role, he worked in finance leadership at The Oaks Academy, Maxwell Healthcare Associates, and Rolls-Royce.

Michael received an undergraduate degree in business from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University’s Indianapolis campus and an MBA from Butler University.

Michael enjoys playing chess with his wife Zoe, playing games with his kids (Gabriel, Caroline, Lucy and James), reading, backpacking, cycling and running.

JYM GREGORY

Jym serves as the lead pastor at LifePoint Church Indy, where he has been since 2009. Prior to serving with this local body of believers, Jym served other ministry efforts in Illinois, Costa Rica, and Spain. Jym is passionate about the ministry of Indianapolis Theological Seminary and especially about its goal of partnering with local congregations for training, equipping, and discispling its students for the benefit of the kingdom of God in the future.

Jym and his wife, Dedra, has been married for 29 years. They have two grown daughters, and two grandchildren. Jym obtained a B.A. and M.S. degree in Psychology from Eastern Illinois University, an M.Div in Theology and a D.Min in Apologetics from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.

RYAN GRIFFITH

Ryan Griffith (PhD, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary) is Vice President for Strategic Initiatives, Chief of Staff, and Interim division head for the Courts Redford Division of Christian Ministry at Southwest Baptist University. Prior to serving with SBU, Ryan was Pastor for Operations and Training at Cities Church (St. Paul, MN). He has also served as Executive Director of The Gospel Coalition and founding Director of Undergraduate Studies and Assistant Professor of Church History and Humanities at Bethlehem College & Seminary (Minneapolis, MN) where he taught for twelve years. He earned MA and BA degrees at Wheaton College (IL). Ryan is also a senior fellow at the Andrew Fuller Center for Baptist Studies, and is a contributor to Desiring God, Southern Equip, and The Gospel Coalition. You can follow him on Twitter @ryangriffith.

DREW HUNTER

Drew is the teaching pastor at Zionsville Fellowship in Zionsville, Indiana. He received MA's from Wheaton College Graduate School in Biblical Exegesis and Theology, and he is the author of Made for Friendship. Drew and his wife, Christina, live in Zionsville where they are raising four sons. He loves the vision of ITS because it brings together rigorous theological education with the centrality of the local church in raising up ministry leaders.

KATHLEEN MCALLEN

Kathy is thankful to her faithful Grandmother and a little Baptist church in northern Indiana for her commitment to Christ. As an 8-year old girl whose earthly father died unexpectedly, she embraced her Heavenly Father’s gracious gift of Jesus - her Lord and Savior for now more than 50 years. While her Christian pilgrimage has had many seasons, she and her husband both love and serve the Lord, especially through their church – NewCity Church, Indianapolis. The McAllen’s have 2 daughters, now married, and 1 son. They and their families, 2 granddaughters included, are all a part of the New City Church community as well. John and Kathy’s 23-year old son is significantly affected by his autism and seizure disorder. He is nonverbal and lives at home with 24/7 support and a lot of help from his family. While Kathy’s “Special Needs Mom” hat has been a big part of her life since 2001, for more than three decades she dedicated her career to improving healthcare experiences for patients and their families through a wide range of executive leadership roles in operations, strategy, and partnership development. She worked for two major health systems (Indiana University Health Bloomington and Community Health Network Indianapolis) during that time. In addition to her work in healthcare management, her lifelong commitment to helping develop leaders has included time spent as an adjunct faculty member at the Paul H. O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs and Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health at Indiana University. A specialist in Strategy Development, Planning, Lean Six Sigma, and Project Management, Kathy received her Master in Health Administration from the Fairbanks School of Public Health at Indiana University, which named her the school’s 2019 Distinguished Alumni.

BRIAN MCCRORIE

Brian McCrorie has served as Senior Pastor at Heather Hills since July of 2008. He received a Bachelor of Arts in Sacred Music from Northland Baptist Bible College (1993), a Master of Divinity Degree from Calvary Baptist Theological Seminary (2000), and a Doctor of Ministry Degree from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (2019). Having grown up in a missionary family, Brian has been active in ministry since his early teen years and has ministered in Wisconsin, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Colorado. He is married to Deborah and they have five children and 1 grandson. Brian enjoys music, traveling, the culinary arts, politics, and serving on the board of the Indianapolis Theological Seminary.

DAVID PETERS

David was set free from his idolatry to sports, success, and approval while in high school.  Enamored by the benefits and driven by his failures, he was blinded to the reality that no amount of human accomplishment or acceptance could ever satisfy the longing of his soul.  But God, in His great mercy, opened David’s eyes to the complete acceptance, to the unshakeable identity that was his through faith in Jesus.  Only then could David see that it was only in Christ’s accomplishment that his soul could truly find rest.  In college, through involvement with a campus ministry, David continued to grow and begin to sense a call to ministry.  David’s passion for ITS stems from his love of the Church, his hope for Indy, and his own theological training journey (a wonderful, long, and difficult one that he would be happy to discuss with anyone interested) which would have benefitted enormously from an option like ITS.  He has been on staff at Crossroads Community Church in Fishers, IN since 2007 and currently serves as the Assistant Pastor.  He has been married since 2001 to his beautiful wife, Jenni, and has four amazing boys.

NICHOLAS PIOTROWSKI, PRESIDENT

Dr. Piotrowski was drawn to Jesus between high school and college as he was reading Ecclesiastes and the Gospels.  Struck by the vanity of a life without the Creator and therefore without meaning, Nicholas knew he had to “render unto God the things that are God’s” (Luke 20:25), namely his very self.  Since then Nicholas has given his life to a tireless pursuit of truth in the Scriptures (earning degrees at Reformed Theological Seminary and Wheaton College), and teaching the gospel of Christ crucified and risen wherever he is able (juvenile prisons, high schools, colleges, seminaries and pulpits).  Nicholas is passionate about Indianapolis Theological Seminary in particular, where he also teaches several courses, because effective servants of Christ must know the Bible very well to teach faithfully, and understand our current cultural moment to serve relevantly.  It is his vision, therefore, that Indianapolis Theological Seminary will be a place where the Spirit is active to grow students in their abilities to read the Scriptures well, and deepen their understanding of the world in which they minister.  Nicholas is married to Cheryl, who together have two boys, Silas and Andreas. They attend Castleton Community Church.

GUS PRITCHARD

Since 2019, Gus has been part of the pastoral staff at Castleview Church in Indianapolis. Prior to this, Gus served as pastor of Emmanuel Baptist Church in Johannesburg, South Africa. Before that, Gus served as a pastoral assistant at Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, D.C. He desires to faithfully proclaim the Gospel such that sinners are converted and Christ's people are further equipped to labour well in the Lord. Together with his wife, Kate, he has three children.

Dan Weller

Dan serves as Lead Pastor of Chapelwood Baptist Church. 

Born and raised in Defiance, OH, Dan first encountered Jesus while a sophomore at Miami University (OH). While there, God opened Dan's eyes to see his own sinfulness and the hopelessness of trying to be do enough or be good enough to deserve God's love. Instead, he gave Dan a new and lasting hope through faith in what Jesus had done for him on the cross and the salvation he freely offered by grace.

After college, Dan served in college ministry in Europe (Macedonia and Italy), before returning to the US to marry his wife, Emily. Dan then worked in banking for a few years while serving in a church plant in Middletown, OH. In 2010, Dan and Emily moved to Minneapolis for Dan to attend Bethlehem Seminary. Upon graduating with an MDiv, Dan and Emily moved to Indianapolis for Dan to complete a pastoral residency at College Park Church.

In June of 2016, Dan was then called to serve as Lead Pastor of Chapelwood Baptist Church. He and Emily now live with their two daughters in the same neighborhood as the church, where they enjoy getting to know and serve the people of Chapelwood and the West side of Indy. 

MARC A. WEST

Marc is thankful for the work of God in his life. Through a medical emergency in his father's life, he was exposed to the Gospel, accepted His salvation, and has experienced the transforming spirit of God.

Marc received a Bachelor of Science in Engineering from LeTourneau University, Longview, Texas. He holds a Masters of Business Administration from the Kelly School of Business at Indiana University. He has had a long career in Information Technology, including starting and leading an IT services company. Currently he is a senior sales manager at NVIDIA Corporation.

Marc serves as an Elder at Faith Church in Indianapolis, Indiana and is the Chairman of the Elder Executive Board. He also has a passion for Student Ministry, which he has been volunteering with at Faith Church for over 20 years, Marc lives with his wife in Westfield, Indiana.

ROB WINGERTER

Rob was raised as a Roman Catholic. In high school he discovered the reformed faith. Discovering that one can have a personal relationship with a savior who loves him, even as a sinner, was an eye-opening experience that changed everything about his life. In Rob’s chosen career as a lawyer and CPA he found he could serve God and others. He also used these skills to serve numerous other not-for-profits in leadership positions and is gratified to bring these God given skills to ITS as board chairperson.

Rob and his wife Debbie are the founders of Mahseh Center (mahseh.org), a retreat and study center in northern Indiana. Rob’s love of God and the mind has made him a life long learner and this passion led him to serve the ITS community. Rob and Debbie have been members at Zionsville Fellowship Church since 1987.

Rob and Debbie spend their time enjoying their fifteen grandchildren and watching enumerable sporting events from pee wee flag football to professional basketball.  Rob is the author of three books and a graduate of Covenant Theological Seminary.