Jason & Sarah Koppen

Jason and Sarah Koppen

Serving at Indian Bible College
Flagstaff, Arizona

Jason and Sarah Koppen were both born and raised in Oregon.  Jason trusted Christ at five years old and began speaking in worship services at age 11.  He studied pre-medicine in college, planning to go to South America as a medical missionary. After college, God led Jason to Multnomah Seminary, where he received his Master of Divinity.  Jason has served as a youth pastor, associate pastor, and senior pastor.   Sarah put her faith in Christ at a young age and grew up wanting to be a missionary.  After high school, she received her Associates Degree in Civil Engineering and worked for an engineering firm for seven years.  
 
Sarah and Jason met at a singles’ Bible Study that Jason started.  After one year of marriage God led them to Phoenix for two years, where He prepared them to be open to His call in 2008 to the Indian Bible College (IBC) in Flagstaff.  Jason initially came to be Academic Dean, but soon was asked to become the 10th president of the school after the former president resigned.  They have three little girls with a fourth child on the way. 

Jason is completing his Doctor of Ministry in the Fall of 2010; his doctoral dissertation is developing a spiritual formation strategy and process for IBC students.   The Indian Bible College is in its 52nd year of ministry; it offers one- and two-year degrees in addition to the four-year Bachelor of Biblical Studies. IBC  is the only one of the United States’ four Bible colleges for Native Americans that is non-denominational.  The school functions as a mission, with all staff raising their own support so that tuition and housing costs can be kept accessible to its students.  

Jason and Sarah are prepared to spend the rest of their lives at IBC, so great is their burden for the Native church and its need for leaders.  They are also very compelled by the incredible need for Native American missionaries around the world, who have greater doors open to them for the gospel than most ethnicities.  Their vision is that IBC would grow into a mighty training institution that would help Native America cease to be the mission field and begin to send multitudes of equipped missionaries around the world.