L-R: Rev. Jeffrey S. Allen, Dr. Annie Dandavati, Dr. Barbara DePree, Rev. Dr. Kenneth Eriks

Four new members have been elected to the Hope College Board of Trustees.

Newly elected to serve four-year terms on the board are the Rev. Jeffrey S. Allen of Littleton, Colo.; Dr. Annie Dandavati of Holland; Dr. Barbara DePree of Douglas; and the Rev. Dr. Kenneth Eriks of Holland.

The board has also re-elected Anthony Castillo of Holland; the Rev. Taylor Holbrook of Hopewell Junction, N.Y.; Dr. David Lowry of Holland; David Van Andel of Grand Rapids; Emilie Wierda of Key Largo, Fla.; and Dr. Leslie Wong of Grand Rapids to four-year terms.

Trustees concluding service on the board are Michelle Bombe of Holland, the Rev. Dr. Timothy L. Brown of Holland; Dr. Ronald L. Hartgerink of South Haven; Dr. Paul R. Musherure of Cottage Grove, Minn.; the Rev. Peter C. Semeyn of Traverse City; and Dr. George D. Zuidema of Holland.

Mary V. Bauman of Grand Rapids is continuing to serve as chairperson, the Rev. Dr. William R. Boersma of Holland is continuing to serve as vice-chairperson and Dr. David W. Lowry of Holland is continuing to serve as secretary.

Allen, who is a 1985 Hope graduate, is the pastor of Faith Community Church in Littleton, where he has served since 2005.  He was previously on the staff of Trinity Reformed Church in Holland while also pursuing his Master of Divinity degree at Western Theological Seminary.  Prior to entering ministry, he had spent nearly two decades in sales and marketing and training, with companies including Nancy Skinner & Associates Inc., Bilmar Foods/Sara Lee and Tyson Foods.  He and his wife, Elyse, who graduated from Hope in 1986, have three children, Sandy, James and Kristin.

Dandavati is a professor of political science and director of international studies at Hope, where she has taught since 1992 and previously served as director of women’s studies and faculty moderator.  Her areas of interest in research and teaching include comparative politics, Latin American politics, gender and development, and human rights, and her scholarship includes two books and numerous published articles and presentations at professional conferences in the U.S. and abroad.  She has led or co-led study-abroad programs to nations including Mexico, Chile and Rwanda, and in the fall of 2009 served as the college's exchange professor to Meiji Gakuin University in Japan.  Among other honors at the college, she received the Hope Outstanding Professor Educator (H.O.P.E.) Award from the graduating class of 1997, which also chose her to deliver that year’s commencement address.  She received a “Ruth and John Reed Faculty Achievement Award” from the college in January 2011, and in April 2011 spoke through the Last Lecture Series coordinated by the college’s chapter of the Mortar Board honorary society.  She is recently returned from a spring-semester sabbatical leave in Cairo, Egypt.  She holds her bachelor’s degree from Jesus and Mary College and her master’s from Jawahar Lal Nehru University, both in New Delhi, India, and her doctorate from the University of Denver.  She and her husband, Mantesh, have two sons, Armaan and Rohan.

DePree, who is a 1981 Hope graduate, is a physician whose career has included 23 years of experience in providing, developing and advancing women’s healthcare in the community.  She is currently director of Women’s Midlife Services at Holland Hospital and founder/medical advisor of MiddlesexMD, a website designed to assist women in maintaining sexual health.  From 1989 to 2006 she was a physician partner with Ob/Gyn Associates of Holland, serving as president from 2001 to 2005.  Among other community involvement, she is on the Board of Directors of organizations including Holland Hospital, Evergreen Commons and Ottagan Addictions Recovery.  She completed her M.D. degree at Wayne State School of Medicine and a Master’s of Medical Management at Carnegie Mellon University.  She and her husband, Kris, who is also a 1981 Hope graduate, have three children:  Claire, who graduated from the college in 2010 (Claire’s husband Nick Duthler is a 2009 Hope graduate), Elizabeth and Lauren.

Eriks, who is a 1969 Hope graduate, has been director of Congregational Mission with the Reformed Church in America since 2004.  He was previously minister of preaching and congregational leadership at Fellowship Reformed Church in Holland from 1989 to 2004, and had earlier been pastor at Westwood Reformed Church in Muskegon and associate pastor for parish life, education, youth and Christian action at Second Reformed Church in Zeeland.  He also held a variety of positions at the classis and synod level while serving as a pastor, and currently serves as a member of the Ministerial Formation Certification Agency Board and as an ex-officio member of the New Brunswick Theological Seminary Board of Trustees.  He holds his Master of Divinity degree from Western Theological Seminary and Doctor of Ministry from Princeton Theological Seminary.  He and his wife, Barbara, have two children, Adam, who graduated from Hope in 2001, and Anna, who graduated from Hope in 2004.