Knott Named Interim Assistant to the President

For Mission & Culture

Esther R. Knott has been named interim assistant to the president for Mission & Culture at Andrews University.

Andrews University is pleased to introduce Esther R. Knott as interim assistant to the president for Mission & Culture and diversity officer. Later this year, there will be a search process to fill the position on a regular basis.

Knott is an alumna of Andrews University and brings to this role a remarkable breadth of experience in ministry, leadership and community engagement that will serve the University community well.

Knott’s career in Adventist ministry spans more than four decades. She began her pastoral ministry as chaplain at Broadview Academy and later as assistant chaplain at Andrews. Her pastoral leadership at Sligo Church in Maryland and her 16 years at Pioneer Memorial Church have demonstrated her effectiveness in nurturing faith communities.

Most recently, Knott served for 13 years as associate director of the North American Division (NAD) Ministerial Association, where she trained and inspired pastors in the NAD and around the world. She has also directed the Master of Arts in Pastoral Ministry Program (English) at the Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary.

Beyond her denominational service, Knott has demonstrated a sustained commitment to her local community. She has been a member of the Berrien Springs Rotary Club since 1997, serving as club president and organizing service initiatives including Christmas Behind Bars, Christmas Care (serving over 300 local families) and Neighbor to Neighbor. Her volunteer work extends to Big Brothers Big Sisters, the Berrien County Youth Fair and the annual CROP Hunger Walk.

Her service has also taken her abroad on mission trips to Bolivia, Belize, Ecuador, India, Mexico and Peru, as well as health volunteer work with Pathway to Health and AMEN clinics.

Knott brings a global perspective, having lived in Trinidad, the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States. She has a rich history of working effectively in broadly multicultural settings, experiences that will serve her and Andrews well as she steps into this role.

Knott shares, “It is a great honor to assist the president in enhancing the ways in which our culturally rich community will experience the specific God-given mission of Andrews University.” She adds, “It is my prayer that all who spend time on our campus will experience God’s love as contagious and compelling, and that, because of our shared global cultural connections, will find creative ways to communicate God’s love to a world that so desperately needs it.”