Dr. John M. Wallace

John M. Wallace, Jr., Ph.D. is a co-vocational urban minister whose career integrates faith and work. For the past 20 years, Dr. Wallace has served as the senior pastor of Bible Center Church, in Pittsburgh, PA. He also serves as Vice Provost for Faculty Diversity and Development at the University of Pittsburgh, where he is a full professor and holds the David E. Epperson Endowed Chair.

Dr. Wallace integrates his faith and work through the ministries of Bible Center and through his research, teaching and service at Pitt. He is passionate about what he calls, “holistic faith-based development,” with a particular focus on education, employment, entrepreneurship, and “withintrification”—the physical transformation of communities from the inside out, that builds upon their existing human, social, and physical assets, and seeks to preserve their cultural heritage and history for the people who currently live there.

Dr. Wallace is the founder of The Oasis Project—the community and economic development division of Bible Center. The Oasis Project includes a variety of social enterprises—The Maker’s Clubhouse Early Learning Center and Out of School-Time Program, Oasis Farm and Fishery, Oasis Community Kitchen, Everyday Café, Oasis Transportation Services, Own Our Own Entrepreneurship Center, and the CHAPEL (Community Health Assistance, Programming and Engagement Leadership) Project, a congregation-based informal mental health support training program.

In addition to being a pastor and professor, Dr. Wallace is a husband and a father. He has been married to his wife Cynthia for more than 37 years and together they have four children.

Dr. Wallace earned his BA from the University of Chicago and MA and PhD degrees from the University of Michigan, all in sociology.