Pastor Lawrence E. Aker, III currently serves as Lead Pastor of the Cornerstone Baptist Church, Brooklyn, New York. In 2003, he was elected as the eighth pastor in the church’s history succeeding his spiritual mentor, Rev. Dr. Harry S. Wright, Sr. Pastor Aker, a native of Oakland, California, was raised in Dallas, Texas.
Dr. Thema Bryant
Dr. Thema Bryant is the past president of the American Psychological Association, the leading scientific and professional organization representing psychology with more than 120,000 members (apa.org).
Reverend Raquel S. Lettsome, Ph.D.
Affectionately known as “Rev. Raquel,” the Reverend Raquel S. Lettsome, Ph.D. is committed to excellence and loves to help people move forward in their lives and ministries. Building on her core values of scholarship, integrity, and authenticity, Dr. Lettsome informs and inspires congregants and classes through her preaching, teaching, writing, and online course and webinar experiences. To this end, she founded Raquel S. Lettsome, LLC. to use these gifts in the service of churches and educational institutions to help them advance their missions.
Rev. Dr. Starsky Wilson
Rev. Dr. Starsky Wilson is president & CEO of the Children’s Defense Fund (CDF) and CDF Action Council. CDF envisions a nation where marginalized children flourish, leaders prioritize their well-being, and communities wield the power to ensure they thrive. Wilson is board chair for the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy (NCRP) and the Forum for Theological Exploration (FTE).
Rev. Eboni Marshall Turman, Ph.D.
The Reverend Eboni Marshall Turman, Ph.D. is the associate professor of theology, African American religion, and African American studies at Yale University Divinity School in New Haven, CT. A first-career concert dancer and ordained National Baptist preacher, her research interests span the varieties of twentieth and twenty-first century US theological liberalisms, most especially Black and womanist theological, social ethical, and theo-aesthetic traditions.
Rev. Dr. Danielle L. Brown
Reverend Dr. Danielle L. Brown finds great joy and satisfaction in learning, living, and preaching the Gospel. Rev. Dr. Brown was Licensed to preach on July 17, 2003, by Cathedral International (The Historic Second Baptist Church) in Perth Amboy, New Jersey, and ordained by the American Baptist Churches on June 3, 2012.
An increasingly sought-after preacher and workshop leader with the ability to communicate across multiple generations, Dr. Brown has had the opportunity to share the Gospel throughout this country and in South Africa.
Rev. Teresa L. Fry Brown, Ph.D.
Rev. Teresa L. Fry Brown, PhD is the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs and Bandy Professor of Preaching at Candler School of Theology at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. Additionally, she is the fourteenth Historiographer, the editor of the A.ME. Review Executive Director of Research and Scholarship and President of the General Officers’ Council of the African Methodist Episcopal Church. Dr. Fry Brown served as Director of Black Church Studies at Candler 2007-2015. Dr.
Bishop Walter S. Thomas, Sr
Bishop Thomas has served as the pastor of the New Psalmist Baptist Church in Baltimore, Maryland since 1975. Under his leadership, the church body has grown to over 8,000 active members. On October 16, 2010, a vision was fulfilled, and a testimony of God's faithfulness when the New Psalmist family moved into their new edifice, a 4000-seat state of the art facility, designed to minister to the needs of individuals in the 21st century.
Rev. Dr. Willie D. Francois III
Called to empower people through transformative preaching, teaching, and organizing, Willie Dwayne Francois III serves as the Senior Pastor of Mount Zion Baptist Church of Pleasantville, NJ and President of the Black Church Center for Justice and Equality. He is a 2009 Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Morehouse College with a Bachelor of Arts in History and Religion, named the ranking scholar in both departments. While at Morehouse, he was named the 2009 Martin Luther King Jr. Scholar.
The Honorable Rev. Raphael G. Warnock, Ph.D.
The Honorable Reverend Dr. Raphael Gamaliel Warnock serves as the Senior Pastor of the Historic Ebenezer Baptist Church, spiritual home of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and the junior United States Senator from Georgia. The son of two Pentecostal pastors, Dr. Warnock responded to the call of ministry at a very early age, and at age 35, became the fifth and the youngest person ever called to the senior pastorate of Ebenezer Baptist Church, founded in 1886. Before coming to EBC, “America’s Freedom Church,” Dr.