Dave Rahn is a youth ministry researcher, author, futurist and missional leadership strategist. After beginning his ministry with Fort Wayne Area YFC in 1972, he joined the faculty of Huntington University in 1985 and served there full-time for 22 years before rejoining the mission of Youth for Christ/USA in 2007. In his current capacity he leverages his influence as founder of the Symmetry Series™ – a mixed method tribe-building strategy – to advocate for the surprising contributions to be made by young, urban, indigenous leaders who have overcome considerable adversity through their faith in Christ. His passion is to invigorate Jesus’ Church with kids who have a story to tell.
Rahn holds a B.A. from Huntington College, an M.A. from Wheaton College and a Ph.D. from Purdue University. He has published more than 100 articles, essays and books. Most recently he has served as general editor for two Tyndale projects: Three Story Bible (available in October 2015) and The Life, a Gospel of John bible-zine released in August 2014. He also recently published an e-book, Symmetry: Fixing Broken Patterns for Kids in Crisis (2014), available as a free download. Rahn has led numerous research projects related to how students influence their peers in matters of faith; in 2011 he studied the factors that most significantly influenced urban indigenous ministry leaders during their formative teenage years. He is currently an advisor of national research initiatives for Fuller Youth Institute and the Yale Center for Faith and Culture.
A past president of the North American Professors of Christian Education, Rahn is also a founding member of the Association of Youth Ministry Educators. He and his wife of 39 years, Susie, live in Middlebury, Indiana and enjoy their three grandchildren very much.
