The Eastern Nazarene College Board of Trustees elects Dr. Melody Eckardt as its new chair

The Eastern Nazarene College Board of Trustees has elected Dr. Melody Eckardt as its new chair.   Dr. Eckardt is a graduate of Messiah College, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, and the Harvard School of Public Health.  She currently serves as Senior Maternal Health Advisor in the Global Health Innovation Lab at Massachusetts General Hospital and practices obstetrics and gynecology at Monadnock Community Hospital in southern New Hampshire.    

A member of the Board of Trustees since 2017, Dr. Eckardt has served as Chair of the Enrollment Committee, co-chair of the President’s Task Force on Racial Justice, and a member of the Executive Committee.   She and her husband Ralph live in Milton, Mass, with their three children and attend Wollaston Church of the Nazarene.  Their oldest daughter, Sophia, is a first-year student at ENC.        

“I am deeply grateful to Dr. Eckardt for her willingness to step into this critical role at this time in our history,” said President Jack Connell.  “She is a person of influence, skill, wisdom, dedication, and Christ-like character.  She and her husband Ralph are generous supporters and strong advocates for Eastern Nazarene College, and I am confident that she will lead our Board with distinction.”   Dr. Eckardt added,  “I believe in the mission of ENC and her role in the mission of God, and I am honored to work diligently with the Board to support ENC to continue to fulfill that mission.” 

Dr. Eckardt will succeed Dr. Russ Long, who has served as a Trustee since 1998 and Chair since 2016.   “Dr. Long has guided our Board with a faithful and steady hand during turbulent and uncertain times,” said President Connell.  “His tenure as board chair included merger discussions, a presidential transition, and a pandemic.  We will always be grateful for his wise, gracious, and sacrificial leadership, and hope that perhaps he and his wife Debbie can now more fully enjoy their retirement.”   

Dr. Russ Long

“As I step aside from the role of Chair of the Board, I am grateful for the opportunity that I have had to serve ENC over the past two decades,” commented Dr. Long. “The great motivating factor for me to serve has simply been the desire to see others have the opportunity that was given to me and my family through ENC.”   

Dr. Eckardt begins her duties as chair on January 1, 2021, and we invite your prayers for her and our Board throughout this leadership transition.