What does your job involve?
I oversee the four divisions of The First Academy: the lower school, the middle school, the upper school and the classical school (which is parent-directed education).
Where were you born and raised?
West Palm Beach, Florida.
How large is the family you grew up in?
I’m the persecuted middle child of three boys.
How and when did you come to know Christ?
I became a Christian in 8th grade at a camp service. It was February of 1979. My older brother had become a Christian two years earlier. He had been a rebellious teenager and had recently seen that my choices were very similar to his choices. He sat me down and said, “You need to get it together because you’re going in the same direction I was going in.” It was shortly after that that the Holy Spirit convicted me and I knew it was one of those moments in my life where I had to make a decision. I could either continue going one way or change.
What was the first job you ever had?
I was a paperboy delivering the Stuart News every day after school and on Saturdays. I had about 40 or 50 customers. I would sometimes recruit my friends to help me so we could get into our baseball or football game quicker. My mother said she didn’t know if these were coercive tactics or leadership skills, but they worked.
Where did you go to college?
I started off at Hobe Sound Bible College in Florida, where I got a B.A. in Religious Education. I then received a Masters of Education degree from Mid-American Nazarene University in Olathe, Kansas. I then earned a Masters of Arts degree from the University of Louisville. I also have a Ph.D. from Louisville.
When and to whom did you marry?
I married Tricia Dawn Hughes in Dayton, Ohio, in 1982.
How many children do you have?
Three, a daughter and two sons.
How did you get into ministry?
I graduated from college and intended to be a youth pastor. I was preparing to leave for an internship at a church in Kansas City when the pastor who I was going to work with called and said, “Listen, there’s a Christian school that just lost their history teacher and basketball coach? Do you think you can do both?” I was single and was not going to be very busy, so I said, “Why not?” So, I ended up working in the church as that pastor’s intern and also taught a few history classes and coached the basketball team at the school, Overland Christian. I really fell in love with it. About a year later, Jupiter (Fla.) Christian School offered me the position of dean of students and junior varsity basketball coach, so I took it. I did that for a couple of years, until the same school needed a high school principal, so I did that until 1997. I then got an offer to be a headmaster at a Christian school in Louisville — Whitefield Academy — so I accepted and stayed there for seven years. I then got a call from the Headmaster Search Committee at First Orlando and was asked to come down for a visit, which we did. We came back to Louisville after that visit and I told the kids that we would not be moving to Orlando. They cheered, because they didn’t want to leave grandma and grandpa, who lived across the street from us at the time. But then I got a call from Brother Jim (then First Orlando), and he said, “Brother Steve, why don’t you just come down and visit us one more time — and bring your family.” We did, and on that visit, our hearts really changed. We left feeling called to join the First Orlando/TFA team.
Have you ever done any long- or short-term mission work?
Yes, on numerous occasions. The most memorable missions experience was a trip to China in 1990, the summer after Tiananmen Square. Our group (of college students) was scheduled to go in and distribute 16,000 copies of the Gospel of John on college campuses in 1989. We were all ready to go and then Tiananmen Square happened. The State Department canceled our trip and we were disheartened. But, by God’s grace, we were able to get permission to go the next year.
What do you remember about that trip?
Amazingly, not one search of our bags was conducted. Before and after us, people were being searched right and left, but we zoomed right through. As soon as we hit the college campuses, we started handing out the Gospels. Two of our guys were arrested on the second leg of our trip. Both of them were interrogated and both were bleeding from cuts on their heads where the Chinese police had hit them. We were expelled from the country after two or three weeks. Despite that, it was the most life-changing experience I’ve ever had in terms of mission adventures. I’ve done other things, but nothing compares to that in terms of really being on the front lines of something that was so powerfully impacting. I remember I was scheduled to go into the interrogation room. I was on my knees at the side of my bed saying to God, “Lord, if this is the way You want me to go, so be it.” I remember that room and setting like it was yesterday.
Where else have you served?
During the time I was at Jupiter Christian, I was also the associate pastor of a Bible church, which was called Community Bible Chapel. My primary role was to assist in worship planning and to preach once a week in one of the services. It was a wonderful experience.
What was the turning point of your life?
Really, that trip to China. I can’t think of another time in my life that cemented my decision for Christ any more than that did. In fact, I don’t think I’ll ever have another time like that in my life again.
What do you like most about your job?
That I have the opportunity to work with some of the greatest people in the world. From our pastors to our school staff, we have wonderful folks. When you get to work with people whose passion and vision is going in the same direction as yours, that is a very special experience.
What is your most memorable ministry moment?
Around 1995, at Jupiter Christian, we had an evangelist come and spend time with us in a series of meetings that led to a real unusual outpouring of God’s blessing upon the school. In a span of about five or six days, there were several hundred decisions made for Christ, and not just on our campus, but I believe a revival spirit was created that began to spill over from our campus to others. Our students were the leaders of this spiritual awakening. Other schools were calling them to go speak on their campuses. It was wonderful watching our kids step up to these opportunities.
What is your favorite Bible verse or portion of the Bible?
Matthew 6:33: “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”
What do you like to do with your free time?
I spend a lot of time with my kids. I also love to coach basketball. I like going to musicals with my daughter Amanda. I also love to run and play golf.
If your weren’t in education, what would you be doing?
It would have something to do with helping, leading and encouraging people. I really can’t think of what else I would do, but whatever it was, I think I’d be investing in people.
Is there something about you people would be surprised to learn?
You would think a person who was doing what I’m doing would have been a very serious student all the way through school. I was the opposite. I was not at all serious about school. For me, it was a social experience and I squeezed studying in whenever I had the time. After my undergraduate studies were complete and I began work on my Ph.D., I began to understand that my work demanded excellence and so I committed myself to doing outstanding work in the classroom.
Steve Whitaker: Headmaster of the First Academy/Assistant Pastor