Psychology professor Dr. Mark Christians to serve as 2023 commencement speaker

Dr. Mark Christians, professor of psychology at Dordt University, will serve as speaker at this year’s commencement ceremony, which will be held on Friday, May 12, at 10 a.m. in the B.J. Haan Auditorium.

Christians began teaching in Dordt’s psychology department in 2000, and he currently serves as department chair as well as faculty chair. He holds a master’s degree in school counseling from Northern Arizona University and a doctoral degree in counseling psychology from the University of South Dakota. He previously served as director of personal counseling at Dordt from 1989 until 1999, with one year as interim dean of students in 1999-2000. He also previously coached basketball and golf at Dordt. He and his wife Lisa, who currently works in the registrar’s office, are both Dordt graduates; his three children and their spouses are also Dordt alumni.

Christian’s address is titled “The Joy of Knowing and Being Known,” where he hopes to celebrate the class of 2023 by noting the significant learning and knowledge they have accrued while at Dordt, using the Hebrew word “yada” as the key theme word for his talk.

“’Yada’ means ‘to know’ and has approximately 20 different definitions that all stem from this one word,” explains Christians. “I will focus on three of these meanings, including the most common one ‘to know,’ along with ‘to perceive and see,’ and finally ‘to be known.’ I want to connect these ‘yada’ meanings with how their knowledge has grown since coming to Dordt and reminding them of how as they leave Dordt they are called to use this knowledge to further God’s kingdom.”

Christians says his hope and prayer for the 2023 graduates is that they follow the words of Matthew 10:16: “I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore, be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.”

“The world is full of wolves, and we are not called to be stronger or better wolves than the world,” he says. “Christ was an is our true example of how we can live out the reality of being both shrewd and innocent. I also pray that our graduates can find their place in their new community—with new friends, coworkers, a new church—and find small and big ways to serve in their community.”

About Dordt University

As an institution of higher education committed to the Reformed Christian perspective, Dordt University equips students, faculty, alumni, and the broader community to work toward Christ-centered renewal in all aspects of contemporary life. Located in Sioux Center, Iowa, Dordt is a comprehensive university named to the best college lists by U.S. News and World Report, The Wall Street Journal, Times Higher Education, Forbes.com, Washington Monthly, and Princeton Review.