Ad Crucem NewsLCMS 2026

Ad Crucem NewsLCMS 2026 ConventionCollege/University Boards of Regents

Concordia University Texas

6 candidates placed on this slate by the Committee for Convention Nominations.

Candidates (6)

1.
Keith Wayne SchweitzerGreenfield, IA
Immanuel, Greenfield IA· Pastor· LCMS member 58 yrs

Personal statement

Being an alumnus of Concordia University Austin, my prayer and goal in serving in this office would be to help facilitate healing from this fractured and painful relationship between CTX and The Lutheran-Church Missouri Synod. Two institutions I love dearly. I would work to help CTX return to the family of Concordias within the Concordia University System with its unique position as a distinctly Lutheran university and the only Concordia university in the southern United States.

Congregation service

Years
  • Pastor37
2.
Neil Spencer VanderbushSan Antonio, TX
Messiah, Boerne TX· Sr. Pastor· LCMS member 26 yrs

Personal statement

The area of responsibility for the Board for National Mission is broad and important to the future not only of the LCMS but also of our nation. I bring experience as someone who has served as a successful church planter and mentor, a church revitalizer and interim minister, a military chaplain, and a partner in campus ministry. I love our Lord, His church, and the blessings He has given us through His Word, Sacraments, and our Lutheran Confessions. Our Lutheran identity and culture form a good vessel for these gifts for this generation andtho Oseto come.

Synod service

Years
  • U.S. Army Chapl3

Congregation service

Years
  • Pastor18
  • Church Planter
  • Campus Min4

Other service

Years
  • U.S. Marine Corps6
  • Electro-Mechanical Tech./Maintenance3

Also candidate for: Board of Regents, Austin

3.
Miguel A. RuizKeller, TX
Messi- ah, Keller TX· Dir. of Parish Music· LCMS member 15 yrs

Personal statement

I have served as a church musician for 20 years with an advanced degree in music education. My work and research have a particular focus on education and how it can successfully pass on our confession of faith to the generations that follow. Our Concor- dia universities signifcantly influence the perspective that future church workers bring to serve congregations and schools. They must be continually guided to fulfil their primary responsibilities with faithfulness and in view of the purposes for which they were founded.

Synod service

  • Plng. Com. for Inst. on Liturgy
  • Preaching
  • and Church Music

Congregation service

Years
  • Church Musician14

Other service

Years
  • Guest Lecturer
  • Spkr. at Various Confs
  • Music Tchr14
4.
Jon AllenPenfield, NY
Faith, Penfield NY· Ret· LCMS member 68 yrs

Personal statement

I have a strong passion for supporting students and helping organizations improve. From more than 25 years of providing volunteer admissions support to all five U.S. military academies to serving as a part-time adjunct professor, to more than 12 years of serving as chairman of my Coast Guard Academy class stewardship committee, to having served in the dual roles of registrar and chief technology officer at a non-resident school with over 40,000 students, I have a breadth of diverse education-related experiences. Following my retirement from the Coast Guard as a senior officer, organizational, process, and governance improvement became a career focus for me in both profit and nonproft organizations, including in the Eastern District and local churches.

Synod service

  • Conv. Deleg

District service

Years
  • Mem./Chm. 8

Congregation service

  • Choir
  • Musician
  • Elder
  • Lay Reader
  • Cantor
  • Usher
  • Youth Grp. Pres

Other service

Years
  • Chm. US Coast Guard Academy Stewp. Com14
  • College Guest Lecturer22
  • Sub. Tchr
  • College Admissions/Applicant Couns
  • Mgt. Adv. Bd. to US Coast Guard Academy Admissions
  • Registrar & Ed. Op.US Coast Guard Inst3
  • Adjunct Prof. Rochester Inst. Sr. Officer US Coast Guard. of Tech.3
  • Keynote Spkr

Also candidate for: Board of Regents, Mequon

5.
William BrandtSouthlake, TX
Holy Shepherd, Haslet TX· Justice of the Peace· LCMS member 30 yrs

Personal statement

I am interested in serving on the Board of Regents for Concordia University Texas because in the midst of the challenges of modern culture we must preserve our Lutheran identity as we train the church workers of the future I have the requisite education, experience, and temperament to work within the structures of the LCMS to conribute my portion of "the diversities of gifts for the common profit," to humbly submit things to the Word of God, and to bear witness.

Congregation service

Years
  • Cong. Pres
  • Chm. Bd. of Stewp
  • Church Coun. Secy4

Other service

Years
  • USAF Air Staff/Officer in the War & Mobiliza- tion Plans Directorate & Combat Forces
  • Commander 438th Air Expeditionary Grp. USAF Central Air Forces
  • Owner Brandt Legal Serv2
  • Justice of the Peace8
  • Chm. Luth. School Bd
  • Chm. Luth. School Accreditation Com
  • Bd. Mem. Endowment Fund
  • Atty
  • Specialization in Governance of Non-Profits
6.
Bob L. SsekyanziHouston, TX
Memorial, Houston TX· Owner/Founder/Pres. & Exec. Partner· LCMS member 35 yrs

Personal statement

My life is based on walking with Jesus. I cannot imagine life without the grace of God, and I want to follow Him more closely and serve Him more faithfully. I believe that God has gifted me with a passion for love, laughte, and leadership, and I want to use those gifts to glorify Him and serve His church. I believe that being a Christ-centered follower means that I concern myself with the relationship with God while also serving others by using the God-given gifts. Ifelected to serve, my passion is to utilize the skills and experience I have in business operations to support the board in fulfilling the Synod's mission objectives. "Pray therefore, that the Lord of harvest will sendout laborers into His harvest" (Matt. 9:38).

Synod service

Congregation service

Years
  • Elder23

Other service

Years
  • Private Business40
  • Small Busi- ness Owner 15

About this position

Concordia University Texas — Board of Regents. 4 seats up for election. Authorized by 2023 Handbook, pp. 171–78..

Conditions for election →

Other slates for College/University Boards of Regents

Source: Biographical Synopses and Statements of Nominees, 69th Regular Synod Convention (Phoenix, Ariz., July 18–23, 2026), published by the Office of the Secretary. Bios key →