Lynn Hoekstra

Lynn Hoekstra, Ed.D., is the director of undergraduate teacher education at Columbia International University. One of the things she enjoys most about teaching at CIU is the opportunity to mentor and encourage future teachers. She sees teaching as an incredible opportunity to discover God’s character, love, and grace by studying His world and Word. Whether God leads a teacher into public, private, Christian, international, or other settings, teaching is ministry.

At CIU, Dr. Hoekstra teaches courses such as biblical foundations for curriculum, outdoor education, instructional design, science and social studies methods, teaching reading and writing, and critical thinking. She has enjoyed accompanying students on cross-cultural study trips to Mexico, Dominican Republic, and Israel. These cross-cultural experiences provide students with opportunities to experience CIU’s motto – to Know Him and make Him known.

Her great joy is to support future and practicing teachers in biblical worldview teaching, not only considering what they teach, but also how and why. That desire for biblical worldview teaching drives her to lead professional development sessions for practicing teachers in many Christian schools, including schools in Dominican Republic, Haiti, China, and Malaysia, as well as online courses which reach teachers in East Asian and African countries.

Before coming to CIU, Dr. Hoekstra taught middle school in Michigan and California for 16 years and directed an academic support program for college students. She grew up on a farm in Illinois, married her childhood sweetheart, Jack, and both are very active in church ministry, including teaching children through a pre-school puppet ministry. God has been so good to them, and the Hoekstras continue to appreciate God’s faithful blessings. One of the greatest blessings has been the privilege of teaching here at CIU.