Ken Kessler is a Ministry Partner with The Columbia Partnership

Ken has a great love for the local church. His thirty years of ministry have been built around ministries of the local church. He loves to see the church live to its full Kingdom potential and has devoted his life to find ways to help churches and their leaders.

Ken is a native of Louisana, but moved to North Carolina as a teenager. He graduated from Myers Park High School in Charlotte, NC, in 1975. Then, he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Gardner-Webb University with Summa Cum Laude honors in 1978 and his Master of Divinity degree from Southeastern Seminary in Wake Forest, NC, in 1981.

Ken has served churches and local associations in North Carolina, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Alabama. His experience focuses on helping churches deal with strategic, organizational, and leadership direction. One of the biggest assignments Ken has overseen is the relocation project of a large church in Tennessee, but he has also led congregations and local districts and associations in SSJ processes, leadership training, and staff team building.

In 1995, Ken earned a Doctor of Ministry from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. His doctoral ministry project was in the adult education ministry area of church life. His learning emphasis has been on coaching church members and church leaders to grow in their learning capacities in personal, spiritual, and leadership areas

Ken is also a Certified Ministry Leadership coach through Valwood Coaching and a member of the International Coaching Federation. He serves as a personal ministry and life coach for many leaders and many congregations.

Serving as the team leader of the Associational Partnerships Team for the Baptist State Convention of NC, Ken presently coordinates and coaches a systemic effort to provide basic and premium program and service assistance to Baptist associations and their leaders to reach their full kingdom potential and to provide innovative program and service assistance for the emerging 21st century associations. He also serves as coordinator for demographic data services and Senior Coach for Lake Hickory Learning Communities.

Ken is known best as the husband of Teresa Vaughn of Greenville, SC, and the father of three sons, Kevin, Bryan, and Jacob.

In his spare time, Ken loves to read, play golf, follow college sports teams in basketball and football, and coach his youngest son in whatever sport is popular at the moment.

Contact Ken at KKessler@TheColumbiaPartnership.org or 919.215.5827.