Our Team

Rev’d Dr. Nathan White, Executive Director

Nathan White has expertise in a variety of academic and pastoral fields related to the intersection of faith and resilience. As an ordained Anglican minister, Dr. White has extensive pastoral experience, having served both in local parishes and in the U.S. Army as a Chaplain. His service as a Chaplain includes time on Active Duty where he served with the 1st Infantry Division and 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as in the Army Reserve where he served in Germany and in his current assignment at the Office of the Chief of Chaplains, Washington, DC. Dr. White’s experiences as a Chaplain led to his academic interest in the study of resilience, the subject of his doctoral studies at Durham University, from whose Department of Theology and Religion he received a Ph.D. in 2017. He also has degrees from Beeson Divinity School at Samford University and Wheaton College (IL). Dr. White is now Associate Dean of the Graduate School for Army Chaplain Corps Professional Development and has continued his research interests by publishing with Oxford University Press, Routledge, SCM Press, and Springer.

Mrs. Kennedy Miguez, Director of the Diaper Collective of Acadiana, Office Administrator

Kennedy Miguez, a Lafayette native, is the Director of the Diaper Collective of Acadiana. She also serves as the Director of Operations at Trinity Anglican Church in Lafayette. Kennedy received her Bachelor's degree in Finance from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in December 2018. She is passionate about her community, and has a big heart for families in need. She and her husband Tim had their first child in Spring 2020.

Dr. Adam Powell, Director of Research

Adam Powell is an academic researcher with a passion for understanding how religious identities, beliefs, and experiences intersect in times of social and psychological crisis. With degrees in psychology, theology, and religious studies, he has taught and researched at universities in the US and the UK. Dr. Powell is the author or editor of three books, and his work has been published in numerous theology, social science, and mental health journals - including in the world-leading medical journal The Lancet. He has consulted for BBC radio and been interviewed on several popular podcasts. Since 2016, Dr. Powell has worked as a research fellow at Durham University and a core member of the multimillion-dollar project Hearing the Voice, an interdisciplinary research study into the complexities of auditory hallucinations and other forms of "voice-hearing". He currently lives in the UK with his wife and two kids.

Board of Directors

Rev’d Dr. Nathan White

Bio above.

Rev’d Peter N. Johnston

Peter Johnston is the Rector of Trinity Anglican Church in Lafayette. A graduate of Yale University and Yale Divinity School, Peter is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in English at the University of Louisiana-Lafayette, focusing on John Milton. 

Kathryn D. Penna

Kathryn (Kat) Penna is a Health Policy Analyst at the Cecil J. Picard Center for Child Development and Lifelong Learning, University of Louisiana at Lafayette. A graduate of Centenary College in Shreveport where she studied Communication and Professional Writing, she has a Masters degree in Public Health from the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) and has worked as a researcher for Northwestern University School of Medicine in Chicago and Louisiana State University. 

Dr. Eleanore Heaton

Dr. Eleanore “Ellie” Heaton attended elementary, middle, and high school at the Academy of the Sacred Heart in Grand Coteau, Louisiana. She earned her B.S. in Psychology at Loyola University-New Orleans, and went on to earn her M.S. in Applied Educational Psychology and Ph.D. in School Psychology at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville. Her research in graduate school mainly centered around enhancing student success, and she has been published in several journals including the Journal of Assessment and Institutional Effectiveness and the Journal of Innovative Higher Education. Dr. Heaton is a licensed psychologist and a nationally certified school psychologist. She currently works as a school psychologist in a local parish. The most rewarding part of her job is being able to help children reach their full potential. Dr. Heaton’s Catholic faith was founded by her parents and her education at the Academy of the Sacred Heart, and this faith is the cornerstone around which she and her husband build their lives.

Advisory Board

Dr. Christopher C.H. Cook

Christopher Cook is Professor of Spirituality, Theology & Health, and Director of the Centre for Spirituality, Theology & Health, at Durham University. He is a fellow of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, with research doctorates in medicine and theology. Ordained priest in 2001, he is an honorary minor canon of Durham Cathedral, and Honorary Chaplain for Tees, Esk & Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust. His books include Hearing Voices, Demonic and Divine (2018), Spirituality, Theology and Mental Health (2013), and Spirituality and Narrative in Psychiatric Practice: Stories of Mind and Soul (edited with Powell & Sims, 2016).

Dr. W. Michael Dunaway

Michael Dunaway is the former Director of NIMSAT (National Incident Management Systems and Advanced Technologies) at the University of Louisiana-Lafayette. He is a graduate of the US Naval Academy and had a successful career in the US Navy, attaining the rank of Captain. He holds a Masters degree in international relations from Tufts University and a Ph.D. in Systems Engineering from George Washington University. He has worked as Chief of Risk Management and Program Manager for Community Resilience in the Science & Technology Directorate of the Department of Homeland Security, and as the Senior Director for Preparedness and Resilience Programs at the American Red Cross. He has taught at National Defense University and Texas A&M University.