Published Friday, March 10th, 2017
After earning graduate degrees in theology, Schneider taught at Calvin College in Michigan and has published three books.
Dr. John Schneider came to Wayne State College from his hometown, York, Neb., in 1969 and graduated from WSC in 1973 with a degree in Social Sciences. The faculty gave him the J.G.W. Lewis Award for the “best student in the social sciences.” The same year, he married Winona Peterson, a 1974 WSC graduate.
In 1974-76, Schneider earned an MA degree in theology at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, Calif. He was then accepted to the doctoral program at the University of Cambridge in England, where he earned a Ph.D. in theology. Cambridge awarded Schneider a scholarship to fund two years of further study at the University of Tübingen in Germany from 1978 to 1980.
Upon returning to the United States, Schneider took a position at Westmont College in Santa Barbara, Calif., where he taught theology from 1981 to 1985. While at Westmont, he was named Teacher of the Year in 1984, and two sons, Solomon (1981) and Thomas (1985), were born.
In 1986 Schneider accepted a position at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Mich., and taught theology there until 2011. He was named professor emeritus of theology and also teaches in the philosophy department at Grand Valley State University.
The Center for Philosophy of Religion at the University of Notre Dame named Schneider a research fellow for 2012-13. Notre Dame funded a projected book on God, evolution, and animal pain, and he is currently preparing the book for publication.
Schneider has published three books and written more than 60 articles on religion and economics, and on religion and science. The impact of his writings was recognized in the Cambridge Encyclopedia of Darwin and Darwinism in 2014.
John and Winona live near Grand Rapids, where Winona teaches fifth grade and John works most days writing at home. He is also an avid bicyclist and enters two gravel road races every year.