ABSTRACTS
New Lab Director for the Van Andel Creation Research Center
The CRS Board is pleased to announce that the Lab Director position at the Van Andel Creation Research Center has been filled at last. Dr. Joel Brown will be taking the position that has been vacant since the untimely death of Dr. Kevin Anderson in 2022. Joel, his wife Erin, and their 7 children currently live in St. Louis, Missouri, but will be moving to Arizona as he starts this new position.
Dr. Brown gave his life to Christ at a young age and was raised to understand the Biblical model of origins. He fell in love with creation science while working at Kent Hovind’s Dinosaur Adventure Land as a young man and later entered the world of academia where he developed his credentials and spent more than decade in research and teaching. He is quite accomplished in speaking on creation science and evolution as well, having given over 60 presentations on the topic.
Dr. Brown holds a Ph.D. in Genetics, Genomics, and Development from Cornell University. He also holds a B.S. in Biology Education from Pensacola Christian College and a M.S. in Biology from the University of West Florida. His academic record is outstanding, with a 4.0 GPA in his doctoral studies.
During his graduate studies, he researched mouse developmental genetics and used fruit flies as a model system for studying a protease involved in the onset of Alzheimer’s Disease in humans. After his doctoral studies, he also went on to complete his post-doctoral studies at Washington University School of Medicine where he investigated mechanisms of neural regeneration in the spinal cord of zebrafish, with potential application for healing nerve damage in mammals. In addition to his research experience, Dr. Brown has significant teaching experience at the secondary and post-secondary levels, including undergraduate General Biology and Genetics labs.
In his most recent position, Dr. Brown was the Coordinator for the Little Creek Nature Area in St. Louis, Missouri where he taught biology classes to public high school students and managed a 7-person staff and 97-acre nature area that serves as an outdoor classroom for K-12 students and provides educational programs to the community
As the new director of the Van Andel Creation Research Center, Dr. Brown will be directing and overseeing the research projects of the Creation Research Society, such as the eKINDS and iDINO Projects, and managing the facilities at the VACRC. The lab director provides instruction for two biology classes per semester at Arizona Christian University as part of an agreement for the use of their facilities. Dr. Brown will be teaching these classes for ACU. Additionally, he will be speaking at churches and other venues to represent the CRS, organizing the annual CRS Conference, and fostering creation research among the members of the CRS, especially as they relate to the VACRC. Dr. Brown has also expressed an interest in collaboration with creation researchers from other creation organizations and making creation science research more accessible to the public
We thank the Lord that our prayers have been answered with this exceptional scientist being chosen to fill the director position. We look forward to seeing where he will lead creation research in the future