Alliance for Black Pentecostal Scholarship

Prof. Clifton R. Clarke, PhD, is a scholar, pastor, bishop, and international theological educator whose work focuses on Global Pentecostalism, African Descent Studies, Black Church Studies, Africana religion, mission, and the global African diaspora. He currently serves as Research Professor of Global Pentecostalism and African Descent Studies at North Central University and as President of the Alliance for Black Pentecostal Scholarship.

Dr. Clarke has held significant academic leadership positions in both the United States and Africa, including Assistant Provost and Dean of Black Church Studies at Fuller Theological Seminary, Associate Professor and Director of the Center for Global Missions at Regent University, Executive Director of African Descent Studies at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, and Dean at Pan African Christian University College in Ghana. His scholarship is marked by a strong transnational and interdisciplinary approach to religion, culture, race, migration, and the historical and contemporary experiences of African-descended peoples.

An internationally engaged scholar, Dr. Clarke has taught, lectured, and convened scholarly conversations across Africa, Europe, the Caribbean, and North America. He is also the founder of the Logos Pneuma Institute and has been instrumental in creating academic partnerships and platforms that bring African, African American, and global Pentecostal scholars into sustained conversation.

Alongside his academic work, Dr. Clarke serves as Senior Pastor of New Beginnings Church in Simi Valley, California, and as a Regional Bishop in the Church of God. He and his wife, Dr. Marcia Clarke, previously served for a decade in Ghana, and their ministry and scholarship continue to reflect a deep commitment to the church, the academy, and the renewal of Christianity across the global African world.

Reverend Tamirat Tariku Ashebir is a distinguished spiritual leader, executive administrator, and theologian who serves as the President of the Ethiopian Guenet Church, the nation's foundational Pentecostal denomination. Recognized across East Africa for his strategic vision in ecclesiastical governance and youth mobilization, Reverend Tariku oversees an expansive spiritual ecosystem comprising over 1,840 local parishes and 3.1 million members.
In addition to his national presidency, he coordinates cross-border evangelical initiatives as the Chairperson of the African Mission Board, a regional appointment he was unanimously elected to during the Seventh International Missionary Conference in Nairobi, Kenya