Vanguard University welcomes new director

Danette Goulet

COSTA MESA -- School officials and community members on Wednesday

welcomed a top leader of the country’s Christian Latino community to

Vanguard University.

Jesse Miranda has come to Vanguard as the director and principal

creator of the school’s new Center for Urban Studies and Ethnic

Leadership, through which he hopes to bring the school, community and

church together.

“The center will be that arm that will reach out to connect the campus

to the community, to the church,” Miranda said. “Those are the three

institutions that we need to partner with. The church is probably the

missing link today in the community.”

Miranda will also teach urban studies and ethnic leadership at the

private university, which is affiliated with the Assemblies of God

denomination.

Community leaders greeted Miranda and embraced the concept of the new

center at a reception held Wednesday night at The Center Club in Costa

Mesa.

Miranda, 63, is an executive presbyter of the national board of the

Assemblies of God and national president of Alianza de Ministerios

Evangelicos Nacionales, a broad and powerful alliance of national

ministries in the United States, Puerto Rico, Canada and Northern Mexico.

“I think that Jesse brings with him the status of a prominent leader

within the Hispanic community, that will act as a networking catalyst

with churches and government organizations to establish leadership that

is needed to address urban and ethnic issues,” said Vanguard president

Murray Dempster.

Using his expertise and extensive connections, Miranda plans to make

the center a research hub for addressing the concerns that come with

growing urbanization and ethnic diversity.

Instead of focusing on urban problems, however, the center will

concentrate of finding ways to bring the church and community together so

society will be better served, he said.

“The center will study the assets and needs of people in communities

and create models to provide resources and construct tools to help

leaders,” Miranda said. “We will accomplish that through research --

doing surveys, student literature and putting it together.”