Harold Dean Trulear

The Rev. Dr. Trulear is the Senior Pastor of the Mount Pleasant Baptist Church of Twin Oaks, PA, Visiting Associate Professor of Practical Theology at Howard University and Visiting Professor of Religion and Public Policy at the Templeton Honors College at Eastern University. He has taught religion, public policy and community studies in several institutions, including Yale University, Drew University, Hartford Seminary, Gordon-Conwell Seminary, Fuller Seminary and the Center for Urban Theological Studies. His research interests include religion and youth, juvenile justice, African-American religion and urban ministry. Dr. Trulear recently completed a three-year stint as vice president of faith-based initiatives at Public/Private Ventures, in Philadelphia, having come to P/PV from New York Theological Seminary, where he served six years as dean for first professional studies. He also coordinated several programs for high-risk youth with Youth For Christ/Campus Life in Paterson, NJ.

A graduate of Morehouse College (BA) and Drew University (Ph.D.), Dr. Trulear has written numerous monographs, articles, essays, sermons and reviews, including African-American Churches and Welfare Reform (Center for Public Justice) and Faith-Based Initiatives with High Risk Youth (P/PV). He also edited George Kelsey: Unsung Hero in honor of Martin Luther King's mentor and academic advisor at Morehouse.

Dr. Trulear has served as a consultant to a number of organizations and institutions concerning faith-based community development and outreach, as well as for the transitional task force for faith-based initiatives for Mayor John Street of Philadelphia. He serves on several boards, including The Christian Academy of Brookhaven PA, the editorial boards of Prism and The Living Pulpit and the advisory boards of the Civitas Program in Faith and Public Affairs, The Templeton Honors College of Eastern University, and People for People.

He lives with his wife Vickie in Yeadon, PA. The Trulears are the parents of three children, two at The Christian Academy in Brookhaven, PA, the third at Wingate (NC) University.