Leadership

Matthew Niermann, Ph.D., AIA

Associate Dean, CAVAD
Associate Professor, Architecture

Rev. Dr. Matthew Niermann serves as the director of the Center for Creativity and Christian Witness at California Baptist University. Matthew works as a designer, ethicist, and missiologist, applying key principles from each field to examine contemporary creative culture. His work focuses on examining moral and ethical issues in contemporary design practice – including developing a virtue based regulative epistemology as a means to justified design belief. Additionally, Matthew utilizes empirical aesthetics to examine the contextual compatibility and missiological effect of Protestant church building aesthetics in the United States of America. In addition to his academic work, Matthew is deeply engaged with global mission strategy through publications, board of director positions, and his role as a Director of Operations for The Lausanne Movement.

Matthew Niermann is the author of The Humble Creative: Moral Vice and the Pursuit of Flourishing Creativity

Education

Ph.D., Architectural Design, University of Michigan
M.S., Architectural Design and Research, University of Michigan
M.Arch, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
B.S., Architecture, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Th.M., Missiology, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary
M.A., Theology, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary
M.A., Apologetics, BIOLA University