John is a part-time PhD student in the Department of Theology and Religion at Durham University. His research compares how ideas about life’s meaning and purpose operate in leadership development programmes run by religious and secular organisations.
Alongside his doctoral studies, John serves as the head of research advocacy at the University of Nottingham, where he designs and delivers strategies to achieve the university’s key research funding and reputational policies.
Before moving to the UK, John worked in the US in policy advocacy and development strategy for the Rural Economic Development Center, philanthropy and community relations for PNC Bank, and civic engagement and programme development for the Institute for Emerging Issues at NC State University.
John received Bachelor of Arts degrees in Communication and Interdisciplinary Studies from North Carolina State University and a Master of Theological Studies in Religion, Ethics, and Politics from Harvard Divinity School. He currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Harvard Alumni Association.