Dr. Martin Alan McMahan is an associate professor of

Intercultural Studies Interculturalism is a political movement that supports Cross-cultural communication, cross-cultural dialogue and challenging Auto-segregation, self-segregation tendencies within cultures.John Nagle, Multiculturalism's Double-Bind: Creating Inclusiv ...

, and Chair of the Undergraduate Department of

Anthropology Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including past human species. Social anthropology studies patterns of behavi ...

and Intercultural Studies at

Biola University Biola University () is a private, nondenominational, evangelical Christian university in La Mirada, California. It was founded in 1908 as the Bible Institute of Los Angeles. It has over 150 programs of study in nine schools offering bachelor's, ...

, and past president of the

American Society for Church Growth The American Society for Church Growth (ASCG) is an international organization which provides a professional network for those individuals or organizations associated with the Church Growth Movement. The society was founded in 1986 by Donald McGav ...

Biography

Dr. Alan McMahan graduated with a

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is a ...

from

Fuller Theological Seminary Fuller Theological Seminary is an interdenominational Evangelical Christian seminary in Pasadena, California, with regional campuses in the western United States. It is egalitarian in nature. Fuller consistently has a student body that compri ...

, where his dissertation was entitled "Training Turnaround Leaders, Systemic Approaches to Reinstate Growth in Plateaued Churches." McMahan has also earned a

Th.M. Master of Theology ( la, Theologiae Magister, abbreviated MTh, ThM, or MTheol) is a post-graduate degree offered by universities, divinity schools, and seminaries. It can serve as a transition degree for entrance into a PhD program or as a stand ...

from

Asbury Theological Seminary Asbury Theological Seminary is a Christian Wesleyan seminary in the historical Methodist tradition located in Wilmore, Kentucky. It is the largest seminary of the Wesleyan-Holiness movement. It is known for its advocacy of egalitarianism, giving ...

, a

M. Div. For graduate-level theological institutions, the Master of Divinity (MDiv, ''magister divinitatis'' in Latin) is the first professional degree of the pastoral profession in North America. It is the most common academic degree in seminaries and divi ...

Alliance Theological Seminary Alliance Theological Seminary is an evangelical Christian seminary affiliated with Alliance University (New York City) and the Christian and Missionary Alliance, located in Manhattan. History The seminary finds its roots from the Missionary Tra ...

, and a

B.S. A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

Nyack College Alliance University (formerly Nyack College ()) is a private Christian college affiliated with the Christian and Missionary Alliance and located in New York, New York. Enrolling just over 1,000 students, the school is organized in three academic ...

. McMahan has served in churches in North America and on the

Pacific Rim The Pacific Rim comprises the lands around the rim of the Pacific Ocean. The ''Pacific Basin'' includes the Pacific Rim and the islands in the Pacific Ocean. The Pacific Rim roughly overlaps with the geologic Pacific Ring of Fire. List of co ...

, and has taught in the disciplines of

missiology Missiology is the academic study of the Christian mission history and methodology, which began to be developed as an academic discipline in the 19th century. History Missiology as an academic discipline appeared only in the 19th century. It was ...

church growth The Church Growth Movement is a movement within evangelical Christianity which aims to grow churches based on research, sociology, analysis, etc. The Church Growth Movement started with a passion for the Great Commission, and seeing people come to ...

leadership Leadership, both as a research area and as a practical skill, encompasses the ability of an individual, group or organization to "lead", influence or guide other individuals, teams, or entire organizations. The word "leadership" often gets view ...

organizational development Organization development (OD) is the study and implementation of practices, systems, and techniques that affect organizational change, the goal of which is to modify an organization's performance and/or culture. The organizational changes are ...

, and

evangelism In Christianity, evangelism (or witnessing) is the act of preaching the gospel with the intention of sharing the message and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians who specialize in evangelism are often known as evangelists, whether they are i ...

. His students have included both undergraduate and graduate, mid-career professionals, Bible school teachers, pastors, and denominational leaders through the United States, Canada, and much of

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...

. He maintains an active consulting service in churches and is the former president of the American Society of Church Growth. He has served as a Vice President for the Alliance Theological Seminary, and as the Academic Dean at The King's College in mid-town

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

. He currently serves as the chair of the undergraduate program at Biola University. He has a wife, Terri, and two sons, Billy and Jonathan, and lives in

La Mirada La Mirada (Spanish for "The Look") is a city in southeast Los Angeles County, California United States, and is one of the Gateway Cities. The population was 48,527 at the 2010 census, up from 46,783 at the 2000 census. The La Mirada Theatre for ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

Affiliations and awards

As well as the American Society for Church Growth, McMahan is affiliated to the American Society of Missiology and the

International Association for Mission Studies The International Association for Mission Studies (IAMS) is an international, inter-confessional, and interdisciplinary professional society for the scholarly study of the Christian mission and its impact in the world and the related field of inte ...

, and is a member of the

Overseas Missions Study Center Overseas may refer to: * ''Overseas'' (album), a 1957 album by pianist Tommy Flanagan and his trio *Overseas (band), an American indie rock band * "Overseas" (song), a 2018 song by American rappers Desiigner and Lil Pump * "Overseas" (Tee Grizzley ...

(OMSC) Study Group on Missions Issues. McMahan was selected as a distinguished educator by

Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers Marquis Who's Who ( or ) is an American publisher of a number of directories containing short biographies. The books usually are entitled ''Who's Who in...'' followed by some subject, such as ''Who's Who in America'', ''Who's Who of American Wome ...

in 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, and 2006. He received the Leadership Award from Fuller Theological Seminary in 1998, and the Donald McGavran Church Growth Award from Fuller Theological Seminary in the same year. As a student he was a member of the

Theta Phi Honor Society Theta (, ; uppercase: Θ or ; lowercase: θ or ; grc, ''thē̂ta'' ; Modern: ''thī́ta'' ) is the eighth letter of the Greek alphabet, derived from the Phoenician letter Teth . In the system of Greek numerals, it has a value of 9. G ...

at Asbury Theological Seminary in 1989, and was honoured in the Who’s Who Among Students in American Colleges and Universities while at Nyack College in 1979 and 1980.

Publications

*“Training Turnaround Leaders: Systematic Approaches to Reinstating Growth in Plateaued Churches.” 1998. University Microfilms, Inc. *“Book Review: Human Capital: What it Is and Why People Invest It.” Strategies for Today's Leaders Third Quarter 2001 (Web edition). *“Church Growth Consulting: Evolution of an Intervention.” Journal of the American Society for Church Growth Fall 2004. *“Guest Editor” Journal for the American Society for Church Growth Fall 2004.

References

* Biola University website
Alan McMahan
{{DEFAULTSORT:McMahan, Alan American Christian theologians Living people Alliance Theological Seminary alumni Nyack College alumni Asbury Theological Seminary alumni Fuller Theological Seminary alumni The King's College (New York City) faculty Biola University faculty Year of birth missing (living people)