Keynote Speakers

Marcus “Goodie” Goodloe, Ph.D.

A Compton, California native, Marcus “Goodie” Goodloe, Ph.D. mentors students and educators, business professionals, athletes and entertainers, and faith communities across the country, on a range of issues including cultural and interpersonal relationships, leadership, character formation, and faith. At present, Goodie is on the pastoral care team of Flourishing Church, Los Angeles, and serves as one of the church’s elders. 

Goodie is the author of three books: KingMaker: Applying Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s Leadership Lessons in Working with Athletes and Entertainers (2015), co-author of Habits: Six Steps to the Art of Influence (2017), and The Next Level: Growing with God…in His Word, Your Walk, and Your Worship (2022). He is a Martin Luther King Jr. Scholar, and has served as an adjunct professor at Dallas Baptist University in Dallas, Texas since 2012. Additionally, he is a member of the inaugural cohort for Ph.D. studies at DBU (2005); and is the first African American to graduate with a Ph.D. from that program (2011). In 2016, Dallas Baptist University established the Marcus Goodie Goodloe Scholarship in his honor. In 2020, Goodie was selected to serve as Senior Fellow for Ethics and Justice at the Dallas Baptist University Institute for Global Engagement (IGE). Additionally, in 2023 he was nominated and voted to serve on the Board of Trustees for Westmont College, in Santa Barbara, California.

Goodie and his wife of twenty-six years, Lucy, live in the Los Angeles area and have two children, Hannah Marie (age 21) and Joshua C.H. (age 19).

Dean Wilson

Dean Wilson currently serves as the President & CEO of The Turner Foundation. Dean loves bringing the Good News of Jesus and practical love to hurting people. A graduate of Westmont College, Dean served as student body president and played varsity baseball. 

Dean began his career at Wall Street firm Morgan Stanley before founding several start-up ventures in real estate, security, and technology. Dean founded Behind Every Door, a real estate and ministry vision which brought about transformation in troubled neighborhoods in Dallas, Texas. Dean started programs such as “Real Men” and “Sons of a Loving Father” to bring life and hope to young men in South Dallas. 

Upon returning to Santa Barbara, Dean assumed leadership at The Turner Foundation, introducing impactful initiatives providing Hopeful Housing to homeless youth and at low-income multi-family communities. Dean and his wife, Susan, share a passion for families with a special needs child—and the Foundation has started a program to serve these families. 

Dean founded and currently hosts Good Life Television, a local television talk show and platform showcasing inspiring stories globally, aligning with his mission to inspire, encourage, honor, educate, and empower. Dean has become a sought-after speaker in recent years—telling his own personal story of redemption and grace as well as talking about loving leadership. Beyond his professional endeavors, Dean, married for 26 years to Susan with five children, remains a dedicated family man and announces, photographs, and coaches youth sports.

President Gayle D. Beebe

Gayle D. Beebe has emerged as a true luminary in academia spanning three decades of leadership. Currently the eighth president of Westmont College since 2007, Beebe’s journey to president is marked by a rich tapestry of experiences and achievements in which he has been deemed among the Most Visionary Education Leaders in the Higher Education Digest, fall 2023 issue, and in The Pacific Coast Business Times multiple years. Before his presidency at Westmont, Beebe was president at Spring Arbor University in Michigan from 2000 to 2007 and dean of the school of theology at Azusa Pacific University.

Beebe’s journey has come full circle, as he fondly recalls his time as a consortium student at Westmont in the 1980s while earning his bachelor’s degree at George Fox University. He earned master’s degrees in divinity from Princeton Theological Seminary, in philosophy of religion and theology from Claremont Graduate University, and business administration in strategic management from the Peter F. Drucker School at Claremont, and a doctorate in philosophy of religion and theology at Claremont.

Beebe has presided over an era of unprecedented growth and innovation at Westmont. His leadership fosters a strong financial foundation for the college, implementing an ambitious campus master plan, launching innovative academic programs, and raising over one-half of a billion dollars to propel Westmont’s future! He has written or edited 11 books and more than 40 articles, including The Shaping of An Effective Leader: Eight Formative Principles of Leadership and Longing for God: Seven Paths of Christian Devotion. He served as one of the general editors for The Renovaré Spiritual Formation Bible. His newest book, The Crucibles That Shape Us, was released on May 7.

Beebe lives in Santa Barbara with his wife, Pam. Their three adult children all graduated from Westmont.