Business

Meet the Faculty

Academics

Trinity Homepage
 

Dr. Mark Ward would be among the first to tell you that it is best never to say never.

"On a trip through Chicago in 1981, I said that I could never live in a big city. Three months after that trip, I accepted a job on Michigan Avenue, so I've learned not to limit my future by saying, 'I'll never.'"

Ward's exposure to city life gradually increased as the cities where he lived became larger. He lived in Grand Rapids, Michigan, while attending Calvin College, where he earned his bachelor's in business and economics. He went to the University of Denver to complete his master's in business administration. He began teaching at Trinity in 1984 and finished his doctorate at the University of Illinois-Chicago in 1996.

"I appreciate Trinity's location because we are positioned to benefit from the numerous resources that Chicago offers. Sometimes it's easy to look only at the problems of an urban area like Chicago, but the College's mission gives us the focus and direction to have a Christ-centered impact in the city."

Ward sees business is an activity that God designed to bring honor to Him, beginning in the Garden of Eden. That divine purpose has not changed, but in his opinion, business no longer has its intended purity.

"Work is a part of God's original plan for creation. His command for Adam to take care of the earth shows His desire for us to partner with Him as the earth's stewards.

"Our business principles can be tools for ministry when we strive to build His kingdom. Because of sin, greed and materialism are common in the business world, but people of faith can point the world toward redemption in Christ. That happens on an individual level as Christians conduct business with integrity. It also happens on a structural level as Christians organize and produce goods and services that honor God."

Ward became associate provost in 2004, and he is the director of First Year Forum, the orientation program all new students must take for credit. Those two roles enable him to enhance the College community by supporting his faculty colleagues' professional development activities and showing students the value of the Christian worldview.

If he were not teaching, Ward may have pursued a career in architecture. He helped devise Trinity's master plan as the College formulated its goals for campus expansion. He enjoys crossword puzzles and music in his spare time. 

His wife, Annalee, is chair of the communication arts department. The couple has two children, lives in Palos Heights, and attends Palos Heights Christian Reformed Church, where he sings and plays the organ.