NGU dean recognized at annual conference
Emma Ogren, Staff Writer
Photo Courtesy of John Duncan
John Duncan, dean of the College of Business and Entrepreneurship at North Greenville University, was recently bestowed an award by the Christian Business Faculty Association (CBFA).
The association had their annual conference from Oct. 9-11, 2025, held this year at Lee University, located in Cleveland, Tennessee. The conference gives members a chance to gather, build relationships, worship and hear presentations and publications.
Currently the association has around 400 members, most of whom attend the conference every year.
Duncan said the CBFA was created out of the question, “how do we bring our faith into our discipline?” The goal of the CBFA is to empower Christian business faculty to transform the world for the Lord. They have been working towards this for 47 years, since they were founded.
“We engage in scholarship, we encourage one another. We ultimately want to be committed to God and bring our faith and God’s word into what we do, our teaching, research and service,” said Duncan.
Each year, the CBFA hands out the Richard Chewning Award to a member who “loves the Word of God and manifests Christ-likeness in their scholarship and in the practice of teaching or serving in business,” according to their website.
The award was named after Richard Chewning, who taught at Baylor University for 15 years. The inaugural award, which went to Chewning, was handed out in 1998, and has been given to a member every year since.
About the award, Duncan said, “It’s humbling… It’s one of the greatest honors I’ll ever have in my career.”
During the 2024 conference, Duncan won the Barnabas award. This award is handed out to a member “who has served CBFA by being a Barnabas, exhibiting similar qualities, serving and participating joyfully and enthusiastically and contributing to CBFA’s effectiveness,” as the CBFA website states.
Joining the association in 1996, Duncan has attended the annual conference almost every year since. He has also held multiple leadership positions within the organization.
“I’ve served on their board of directors twice: two four-year terms. I’ve been board chair two different times. I’ve been very involved,” he said.
Duncan has given seven conference presentations in his time as a member of the CBFA. One of those presentations was also included in the Christian Business Review, which is an academic journal published by the Center for Christianity in Business.
In addition to those publications, Duncan also has two published articles in the Christian Business Academy Review (CBAR).
Duncan also discussed how being a part of this association is a great way to form relationships and mentor others.
“I have mentored people through CBFA. I’ve encouraged a lot of people,” he said. “We build relationships.”
In 2026, the CBFA conference will take place at Palm Beach Atlantic University in West Palm Beach, Florida.
