Ben Akers, S.T.L.

Ben Akers is the Director of the Denver Catholic Biblical School and the Denver Catholic Catechetical School.  He was born and raised in Virginia and attended a small Catholic liberal arts college named Christendom College in Front Royal, Virginia.  It was here that he attained his undergraduate degree in Theology and Philosophy.   After two years of major seminary at Mount St. Mary's in Emmitsburg, MD he attained a Master of Arts in Theological Studies with a concentration in Sacred Scripture writing his thesis on the Hab-Berekah: The Theme of the Blessing in Genesis 1-11 and Its Implications for Biblical Theology.  He worked as a campus missionary for FOCUS (the Fellowship of Catholic University Students) for three years, working at the University of Denver and founding the first full-time team at the University of Colorado in Boulder.  For the past 5 years, he and his wife, Heather, have been living in Rome, Italy.  They directed the Christendom College Study Abroad Program in Rome.  Each semester up to 40 students would come to live and to study in the heart of the Eternal City.  Ben taught a class entitled "Roman Perspectives" which was an integrated humanities course covering elements of Roman History, Roman mythology, Scripture, and early Christian writings.  He also taught a class on the Art and Architecture of Italy which involved regular tours of museums, historical sites, and churches of Rome, Florence, Assisi, Siena, and other important historical and religious sites in Italy.
During his time in Rome he attained the degree of a Licence in Sacred Theology (STL) summa cum laude in Dogmatic Theology from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas (known as the Angelicum).  He wrote his thesis on An Investigation of St. Augustine's De Catechizandis Rudibus: the Candidate, the Catechesis, and the Catechist.  This degree means he is "licensed" to teach in any Catholic seminary and Catholic university in the world.  He is currently working on his dissertation for the doctorate in Sacred Theology.  Before going to Rome he was an adjunct instructor at the Catholic Biblical School. He taught a first-year class at I.H.M. during the 2003-2004 academic year.  He also taught one semester of a course on the Gospel of John and the Book of Revelation.

 
Deb Holiday

Deb Holiday was born and raised Catholic, she has a deep love for her Church.  Shortly after arriving in Denver, she became a catechist fulfilling a desire to share her love of the faith with others.  Deb is a graduate of CBS, which gives her a valuable perspective as an instructor.  CBS awakened her true passion - studying and teaching Scripture.  In addition, Deb holds a Bachelors Degree in Psychology from Rutgers University (which comes in handy given the other instructors she has to work with) and is currently completing her M.A. in Theology (Sacred Scripture) at the Augustine Institute.  She has also been active in ENDOW (Educating on the Nature and Dignity of Women) as both a facilitator and editor.  Deb and her husband Steve live in Centennial with their two children, Steven (16) and Kristin (15).

 
Kyle Mills

Kyle Mills has a tale of two conversions.  His first came in college at Colorado State University when, for the first time, his Christian faith in Christ became the center of his life.  His second conversion came in 2003 when, after an arduous theological and spiritual journey, Kyle was received by Archbishop Charles Chaput into the Catholic Church on Divine Mercy Sunday.  Kyle has been involved in a variety of ministries including short term missionary work in Pakistan and China, college ministry at Stanford University, and homeless ministry in Downtown Denver.  A native of Colorado, Kyle has also has served as a mountaineering, rock climbing, and whitewater rafting guide at a Christian company in Buena Vista, Colorado.  Kyle holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Marketing from Colorado State University in Fort Collins, CO and recently graduated magna cum laude with a Master's in Theological Studies degree from the International Theological Institute in Gaming, Austria.  Kyle is joyfully married to Amberly.  They have one son, Kolbe Joseph and one daughter Quincy Marie.

 
Scott Powell 

Scott Powell found his way to the Catholic Church during college after spending a number of years coming to know Jesus Christ through various evangelical fellowships-an endeavor which eventually led him back to his home in the Church. Prior to his time teaching with the Denver Catholic Biblical School, Scott shared the Gospel with college students working with the Fellowship of Catholic University Students. He has served as editor for the internationally-read CatholicNewsAgency.com, has been a frequent contributor to the National Catholic Register and co-authored the Ascension Press study guide for "Adventures in Exodus, Called to Freedom" with Tim Gray. Scott, his wife, Annie and his daughter, Lily Avila live near Boulder, Colorado. They are the founders of Camp Wojtyla, a Catholic outdoor adventure camp. He holds a Bachelors Degree in Theology and Philosophy from Franciscan University of Steubenville, a Masters Degree in Sacred Scripture from the Augustine Institute in Denver, and is pursuing a Ph.D. from the University of South Africa in Pretoria.

 
Traci Dempsey 

Traci is a convert to the Catholic faith.  After many years of searching for her spiritual foundation, she converted to the Catholic faith in 1986 before marrying her husband, Mike.  Traci graduated from Northern Illinois University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance.  After several years in the business world, she decided to focus her efforts on her family and raising her children.  As her children grew older, Traci's desire to know the Scriptures grew with them.  She is an ardent student of God's Word.  Traci is a graduate of CBS and also completed the two-year Walk Through the Catechism program of the Catechetical School.  She has been an instructor associated with CBS for three years.  She is currently completing an M.A. in Theology with a concentration in Sacred Scripture at the Augustine Institute. When not reading, she enjoys boating, running and playing tennis. Traci and her husband Mike have been married for twenty-two years and live in Aurora with their daughters, Erin (17) and Meg (17) and three golden retrievers.

 Derek Barr

After 19 years as a police sergeant, Derek Barr left public service to teach Sacred Scripture for the Denver Catholic Biblical School!  Derek is a recent graduate of the Augustine Institute where he received an MA in Biblical Theology.  While serving in the United States Marine Corps Reserve, in 1992 Derek married Paige, a Catholic.  Derek went through a conversion that took 14 years of Paige’s rigorous prayer as he researched the Catholic Church.  He was received into the Church at Easter Vigil 2006.   Since Derek’s conversion, he has been active in his parish with RCIA hoping to bring others to the Lord and sharing the love of Jesus with them. Derek is the proud father of three girls and a boy!  And he loves to spend his free time with them, fishing or working on his hobby: construction projects.  Derek’s hope is to bring enthusiasm and love for the Bible to the students of the Denver Catholic Biblical School!