Martin Institute Board
Gayle Beebe has been president of Westmont College since 2007. He completed his doctorate (Ph.D.) and master’s in philosophy of religion and theology at Claremont Graduate University and also earned his MBA in strategic management from the Peter F. Drucker School of Management at Claremont. He received his master’s in divinity from Princeton Theological Seminary and earned his undergraduate degree from George Fox University in Oregon. He spent a wonderful semester as an exchange student at Westmont in fall 1980.
An active scholar, he has written or edited numerous books and articles, including The Shaping of an Effective Leader: Eight Formative Principles of Leadership and Longing for God: Seven Paths of Christian Devotion, which he co-authored with Richard Foster. He has been married to Pam for 30 years, and they have three adult children: Anna ’15; Elizabeth ’17; and Ricky ’21.
Eff Martin is a private investor and a founding partner of Anthos Capital. He is a former General Partner and Managing Director of Goldman, Sachs & Co. He spent 32 years in the investment banking industry, the last 22 at Goldman Sachs. He was one of the founders of the firm’s High Technology business and became a partner in 1988. He led Goldman Sachs’ coverage and notable transactions for many of the most prominent technology companies including Apple Computer, Cisco Systems, Hewlett-Packard, Juniper Networks and Microsoft.
He is deeply engaged in several areas of Christian spiritual formation ministries: discipling, teaching and leading retreats for men’s groups. He and his wife, Patty, are both involved with various aspects of spiritual formation including the Renovaré Institute, the Martin Institute, and Wellspring.
Eff is active in a broad array of community affairs. He currently serves on the governing or advisory boards of Pepperdine University; the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research; the San Francisco Symphony; Music@Menlo; the Greater Ravalli Foundation and the Martin Institute. He is a past Chairman of the Board of Menlo School and has also served on the boards of the Stanford Graduate School of Business, the Hoover Institution, Stanford Athletics, Palo Alto Medical Foundation and Phillips Brooks School.
His interests include biblical studies, music, golf, fly fishing, and the outdoors. Eff and his wife Patty reside in Atherton, California. They have three grown children.
Patty Martin received a master's degree in Counseling Psychology and training in spiritual direction from Azusa Pacific University as well as a certificate in spiritual formation through the Renovaré Institute. She is engaged in promoting spiritual growth through meeting with individuals and groups in the Menlo Park area. She has served on the Board and is a small group leader for the WellSpring organization, which offers various spiritual formation opportunities as well as SoulCare retreats for Bay Area pastors in 9-month cohorts. She has trained as a leader in the Ignatian Practices, and has facilitated several groups in the introduction or full 30-week retreats.
She has taught numerous courses in spiritual formation based on the works of Dallas Willard, Richard Foster, and other writers. Patty is dedicated to Christian higher education and serves as a trustee at Westmont College. Another area of education she is involved in is the under-funded and under-resourced children at the elementary level in Redwood City, California.
Her interests include reading, golf, chamber music, cooking, interior design and travel. She lives in Atherton, California with her husband, Eff. They have 3 grown children.
Gary W. Moon, M.Div. Ph.D. served as the founding Executive Director of the Martin Institute and Dallas Willard Center at Westmont College. He continues to serve as a Senior Fellow of the Martin Institute and Director of Conversatio Divina.
Gary also serves as Distinguished Professor of Psychology and Spiritual Formation at Richmont Graduate University in Atlanta. He served as the founding director of the Renovaré Institute for Christian Spiritual Formation and as a founding editor of the Conversations Journal.
He writes in areas such as theoretical and practical integration of psychology and theology and has published and presented over 300 professional and popular papers. His most recent books include: Becoming Dallas Willard: The Formation of a Philosopher, Teacher and Christ Follower (IVP, 2018); Eternal Living: Reflections on Dallas Willard's Teaching on Faith & Formation (IVP, 2015) and Apprenticeship with Jesus (Barker Books, 2009). Other books include: Falling for God (Shaw/RandomHouse, 2004) and Spiritual Direction and the Care of Souls (IVP, 2004), Homesick for Eden (Servant, 1997) and a four-volume family devotion series,The Bible Ride (servant and LifeSprings).
Gary has served as an instructor at the Fuller Graduate Schools of Theology and of Psychology, and on the faculties of Erskine Theological Seminary, Regent University, Richmont Graduate University, Azusa Pacific University, and Westmont College.
Gary serves on the editorial boards of The Journal of Psychology and Christianity and The Journal of Psychology and Theology, Marriage and Family: A Christian Journal. Along with David Benner and Larry Crabb, Gary founded Conversations Journal.
He is married to Regina and they have two daughters, Jessica Erin and Jenna Rebeccah.
During a career in commercial publishing in London, James Catford published a number of global leaders as well as the adult works of CS Lewis. During his fourteen years leading the British Bible Society he set up a think tank on public Christianity called Theos. A frequent visitor to China, he served for ten years as vice-chair of the Amity Printing Company, the largest provider of Bibles in the world. And, until recently, he chaired the third oldest publisher in the UK, founded in 1698.
Today, James supports Christians in leadership around the world as Global Ambassador for American Bible Society and he chairs the newly established Center for Christianity and Public Life in Washington D. C.
A former chair of the renewal ministry Renovare, James now serves on the board of the Martin Institute at Westmont and chairs the Cultura initiative for emerging leaders. He is also a member of the Dallas Willard Research Center advisory board and is a judge for the annual Dallas Willard Book Award.
James lives in London with his wife Sue, a former TV news journalist and anchor who worked for the BBC.
Mark Nelson, Ph.D. is the Monroe professor of philosophy and facilitates research on Christian spiritual formation of The Dallas Willard Research Center. Mark grew up near Chicago, graduated from Wheaton College with a degree in philosophy, and earned a master’s degree and doctorate in philosophy at the University of Notre Dame. Before coming to Westmont in 2006, he taught at the University of Leeds in England. He studies ethics, epistemology and the philosophy of religion.
His many publications include: “What the Utilitarian Cannot Think,” “Ethical Theory and Moral Practice,” “Non-contradiction: Oh Yeah and So What,” “Think,” and “Y and Z are not off the Hook: the Survival Lottery made Fairer.”
Steve L. Porter is Senior Research Fellow and Executive Director of the Martin Institute for Christianity & Culture at Westmont College. Steve remains an affiliate Professor of Theology and Spiritual Formation at the Institute for Spiritual Formation and Rosemead School of Psychology (Biola University). Steve received his Ph.D. in philosophy at the University of Southern California under Dallas Willard and M.Phil. in philosophical theology at the University of Oxford.
Steve teaches and writes in Christian spiritual formation, the doctrine of sanctification, the integration of psychology and theology, and philosophical theology. Steve has co-edited Psychology and Spiritual Formation in Dialogue (IVP), Neuroscience and the Soul (Eerdmans), and Until Christ is Formed in You: Dallas Willard and Spiritual Formation (ACU Press) as well as authoring other books and articles. Steve also serves as editor of the Journal of Spiritual Formation and Soul Care. Steve is married to his wife, Alicia, and they have two children, Luke and Siena.
Andrea Gurney is a licensed clinical psychologist, professor and author. She has been with the faculty of Westmont College since 2005, teaching upper division courses such as Clinical Psychology, Lifespan Development, Abnormal Psychology, Psychology of Marriage and Family, and Capstone Senior Internship in Psychology.
Andrea has a clinical practice in downtown Santa Barbara where she specializes in couples and family therapy. In addition to working with individuals, couples, and families, her speaking and writing focuses on relational health and wellness. Her first book, Reimagining Your Love Story: Biblical and Psychological Practices for Healthy Relationships was the basis for her online course, Marriage Bootcamp.
Andrea frequently speaks in the local community on topics ranging from Wired for Love: The Importance of Early Attachment, Marriage: What You Should Know Before You Buy or Accept The Ring, What’s Psychology Got to Do With Love?, Safety First: Talking with Children about Sex and Sexuality, Building Resiliency in Children and Adolescent, and Helping Children Cope with Trauma. Additionally, Andrea is an active member of Santa Barbara Psychological Association and Santa Barbara Response Network. She is trained in Psychological First Aid (PFA) and has led trauma processing groups in response to local tragedies over the past fifteen years.
Andrea earned a Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology at Northeastern University in Boston, MA, an M.S. in Psychological Services at the University of Pennsylvania, and a B.A. in Psychology at Wheaton College. She completed a Post-Doctoral Fellowship in Couples and Family Counseling and a Pre-Doctoral Internship in Individual Therapy at Harvard Medical School. She spent eight years working at Harvard affiliated Boston Children’s Hospital, where she trained under experts in the field of developmental and clinical psychology.
Andrea lives in Santa Barbara with her husband and their two daughters, and in her spare time loves to travel, play outdoors, and spend time with family and friends.
Jason Baehr is a Professor of Philosophy at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, where he has taught for 20 years. He works in the area of “virtue epistemology,” which is an approach to the philosophical study of knowledge that emphasizes the virtues required for competent and responsible inquiry, such as curiosity, open-mindedness, intellectual humility, and intellectual courage.
From 2012-2015, Jason was Director of the Intellectual Virtues and Education Project at LMU, which was sponsored by a major grant from the John Templeton Foundation and included the founding of the Intellectual Virtues Academy of Long Beach, a successful charter middle school in Southern California. Jason regularly works with K-12 and post-secondary teachers to support their efforts to educate for intellectual virtues. He also regularly collaborates with empirical researchers on projects related to intellectual character formation.
Jason’s books include The Inquiring Mind: On Intellectual Virtues and Virtue Epistemology (Oxford University Press, 2011), Intellectual Virtues and Education: Essays in Applied Virtue Epistemology (Routledge, 2016), Deep in Thought: A Practical Guide to Teaching for Intellectual Virtues (Harvard Education Press, 2021), and Inquiry & Agency: A Theory of Intellectual Virtues and Vices (Oxford University Press, forthcoming).
Apart from philosophy, Jason has deep and passionate interests in the stories of the Southern Gothic writer Flannery O’Connor and the spiritual writings of the English Carmelite Ruth Burrows. He also enjoys cooking, swimming, listening to music, and spending time with family and close friends. He lives in Long Beach with his family.