In Trust member schools have just elected four members of the In Trust board of directors. Almost 70 percent of member schools voted, electing one new member of the board and re-electing three continuing members. 

The newly elected board member:

Rebekah Burch Basinger
Elected to the board class of 2015

• Chair of the Board of Directors, MOPS International (Mothers of Preschoolers)
• Member of the Board, U.S. Foundation of the Theological College of Zimbabwe

Rebekah Burch Basinger is an In Trust Governance Mentor and developed many of the In Trust assessment tools for boards. She previously served on the In Trust board from 1995 to 2003.

She has been an independent consultant for board development and fundraising for more than 15 years and has served on the boards of numerous organizations, including MAP International (Medical Assistance Programs) and the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability. She is currently helping develop a master's program in higher education administration at Messiah College in Grantham, Pennsylvania.

A former interim editor of In Trust magazine, Basinger remains a regular contributor. She is also author of a chapter in Revolution in Generosity: Transforming Stewards to Be Rich Toward God (Moody, 2008) and lead author of "The President's Role in Institutional Advancement," a chapter in the Handbook for Seminary Presidents published by the Association of Theological Schools. She and Thomas Jeavons are also coauthors of Growing Givers' Hearts: Treating Fundraising as Ministry (Jossey-Bass, 2001).

Basinger received a B.A. in English from Trinity College (Deerfield, Illinois), a master's in English from Wichita State University, and a doctorate in educational leadership and policy studies from Temple University. She is a member of The Grantham Church (Brethren in Christ) in Grantham, Pennsylvania.

The re-elected board members:

Howard J. Claussen
Elected to the board class of 2015

• Retired Director of Mergers and Acquisitions, Corporate Plans Department, DuPont Company, Wilmington, Delaware
• Member of the Board of Regents, Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, Indiana

Howard J. Claussen was employed by DuPont for 39 years in various technical, manufacturing, marketing, and management functions, including mergers and acquisitions, before retiring in 1994. A member of the board of directors of Valparaiso University for 18 years, Claussen served at times on the executive, administration and finance, facilities and campus planning, and public relations and marketing committees.

Claussen and his wife, Dorcas, have four children and 13 grandchildren. He is a member of Concordia Lutheran Church (Missouri Synod) in Wilmington, Delaware.

In 2010, Claussen was elected to fill an In Trust board vacancy. This year he was a candidate for a full term.

Carol E. Lytch
Elected to the board class of 2015

• President, Lancaster Theological Seminary
• Former Assistant Executive Director, Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada

In 2011, Carol E. Lytch was named president of Lancaster Theological Seminary, a United Church of Christ-affiliated school in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

From 2006 to 2011, she was assistant executive director of the Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada. An ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church (USA), Lytch is a graduate of Mount Holyoke College and Princeton Theological Seminary. She earned her Ph.D. at Emory University, where her research focused on the faith development of high-school youth.

Lytch was first elected to the board in 2005 to fill a vacancy. This year she was a candidate for a second full term.

Brian C. Stiller
Elected to the board class of 2015

• Global Ambassador, World Evangelical Alliance
• President Emeritus, Tyndale University College & Seminary, Toronto, Ontario

A former national president of Youth for Christ in Canada, Brian C. Stiller served as president of the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada from 1983 until 1997. He founded the national magazine Faith Today and also hosted a weekly television program, Crosscurrents.

In 1995, Stiller was named president of Tyndale University College & Seminary. After his retirement as president in 2009, he was appointed to lead the school's fundraising foundation, the Tyndale Foundation, where he led a campaign that raised $52 million for the purchase of a new campus.

This year, Stiller was named global ambassador for the World Evangelical Alliance, an organization of 128 national evangelical alliances and 104 associate member organizations and global networks.

Stiller and his wife, Lily, have two adult children and five grandchildren. An ordained minister in the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada, he attends Cedarview Community Church in Newmarket, Ontario.

In 2010, Stiller was elected to fill an In Trust board vacancy. This year was a candidate for a full term.