LSTC Welcomes Derek Brinkley to the Community
Derek Brinkley Named Vice President for Enrollment Management & Student Experience
Derek Brinkley will join LSTC as Vice President for Enrollment Management & Student Experience beginning June 1, 2026, after serving as an Enrollment Management Consultant for the seminary since January 2026.
Brinkley brings more than 15 years of experience in enrollment management, recruitment strategy, and student success within mission-driven institutions. Most recently, he served as Associate Vice President of Enrollment Management at Columbia College Chicago, where he led recruitment, admissions, and enrollment strategy initiatives.
Prior to Columbia, Brinkley helped launch Arrupe College at Loyola University Chicago, a two-year program designed to support low-income and first-generation students. He also held admissions and recruitment leadership roles at Xavier University and Mount St. Joseph University.
Originally from Columbus, Ohio, Brinkley lives in the Bronzeville neighborhood of Chicago with his husband, Alexander, and their dogs, Parker and Gilbert.
The Lutheran School of Theology (LSTC) is dedicated to bearing witness to the good news of Jesus Christ. Based in Chicago’s Hyde Park neighborhood, it is the leading urban Lutheran seminary training students for purposeful vocations in the global community. Aligned with its Lutheran heritage and built on a foundation of intellectual rigor, LSTC’s innovative, nationally recognized curriculum gives students skills for visionary Christian leadership in the public sphere.