Ricks Institute

Dr. Enoch comes to Ricks Institute with a wealth of experience in organizational leadership and education. He often combines his servant leadership and situational leadership styles to solve complex organization problems.

For twenty-five years, he served as Church Planting Catalyst of the 24 million-members of the North American Mission Board/Southern Baptist Convention, planting churches in Maryland, Kentucky, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey.

He planted fourteen churches in South Jersey and Pennsylvania, specifically, Philadelphia, the home of over 100,000 Sub-Saharan Africans. He quickly raised over $250,000.00 to make a down-payment on a church building worth over 1.8 million dollars. The building is the home of Second Chance Community Church, one of his church plants which he pastors.

He is the only African to receive the prestigious “Church Planter of the Year Award” of the North American Mission Board, 1995, along with Dr. Rick Warren, Pastor of one of the largest mega churches in America. He is the founding Pastor of one of the fastest growing churches in Liberia, Grace Baptist Church, Barnesville, Liberia.

Dr. Nyakoon has been working in the educational sector for over 27 years, teaching at the elementary, secondary, college and university levels. In Kentucky, he taught general education in elementary, junior, and high school in Christian County School Systems when he was pastoring Means Avenue Baptist Church, his first church plant in Kentucky. He served as Faculty President and taught Systematic Theology, Philosophy, Greek and Hebrew at Hopkinsville College of the Bible. He also served as Adjunct Faculty teaching Philosophy and Comparative Religions at Hopkinsville Community College, an extension of the University of Kentucky. In Pennsylvania, he taught middle school English Literature at Chester County School District. He also taught English Literature at Morrisville High School and Neshaminy High School.

At Ricks Institute, the unstoppable God is pouring out His immeasurable love and grace upon the students, faculty, administration, Board of Trustees and the LBMEC, restoring the years the locusts have eaten.

Organizational sustainability, transparency and stability have come back to Ricks Institute under Dr. Enoch’s leadership. In addition to beautifying the campus with landscaping, low grass in most areas, the school is no longer behind in payment of salaries. Ricks Institute was behind several months before Dr. Enoch’s administration. He has cut wasteful spending in the school budget and employees at Ricks Institute will now be paid bi-weekly. He created a streamline-structured of participatory decision making and a flow of communication, making it possible for parents, students, and friends of Ricks Institute to reach any department on campus with just a phone call. All departments now have a Ricks phone.

Dr. Enoch received many academic and leadership awards including an archaeological study in Greece, Jordan, Egypt, Syria, and Israel, in 1989. In 1996, he received the Hopkinsville Mayor’s Leadership and Appreciation Award. He was also a recipient of the North American Mission Board National Church Planter of the Year Award in 1995.

Dr. Enoch was born in Budoin Town, Rivercess County, Liberia. He is married to Sandra Love Nyakoon and they are blessed with seven children.He is a 1981 graduate of Ricks Institute. He received his BTh from the Liberia Baptist Theological Seminary, Magna Cum Laude, an MDiv and ThM from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, an MA from Murray State University in Philosophy/English Literature and African American Anthropology. He received an honorary Doctor of Divinity Degree from Hopkinsville College of the Bible. He is presently writing his PhD Dissertation in Educational Psychology and Organizational Leadership from Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia.