Leadership

Carl Greene is the Executive Director of the Seventh Day Baptist General Conference of the United States and Canada, serves on the Board of Directors of the National Association of Evangelicals, and is part of a house church planting movement with his wife, Cindy.

Carl and his wife Cindy have been married over 25 years and have four adult children. Carl is a follower of Jesus Christ who is passionate about helping leaders identify and steward their God-given talents, skills, and abilities.

Carl received his BA from Houghton College, his MDiv with a concentration in Transformational Leadership from Bethel Seminary of St. Paul, MN, and received his PhD in Intercultural Studies from Trinity International University. When it comes to previous experience, Carl has enjoyed 15 years of family business life alongside his brother, father, and grandfather; served as a pastor of the Hebron SDB Church; worked as a Hospice Chaplain for a Health System in Pennsylvania; and engaged in public service as an elected municipality official. Carl currently thrives through opportunities to serve as an adjunct instructor at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School.

Pastor Andrew Samuels has been serving as the Pastor of the Miami Seventh Day Baptist Church in Florida in the United States since June, 1988. Born on the island of Jamaica in the Caribbean, he grew up as a third-generation Seventh Day Baptist and migrated to the United States when he was 20 years old. He made his first public profession of faith at age 11 and was baptized a few months later at his home church, Mountain View SDB.
His very first personal experience with the Seventh Day Baptist World Federation was in 1986 when the Sessions were held in Rhode Island in the United States. He was living then in New York City and working as part of the diplomatic delegation of the Permanent Mission of Jamaica to the United Nations. He remembers being asked by then World Federation Executive Secretary, Pastor Dale Thorngate, to obtain flags for each of the countries represented by the World Federation membership. He was able to borrow a flag from each country’s Mission located in New York City and that enhanced a beautiful parade of flags at both World Federation and the USA and Canada General Conference in Massachusetts that year.

Matthew Olson is the Interim Dean of the SDB School of Ministry for the Seventh Day Baptist General Conference of the United States and Canada. He began serving in this role on September 1, 2026. He also collaborates with the SDB Christian Education Council and serves on the Coordinating Leadership Team.

Matthew hails from New Auburn, Wisconsin, and has contributed to Seventh Day Baptists in numerous roles since 1981. His service includes two years with the Summer Christian Service Corps, time as national youth director, membership on multiple SDB boards and agencies, short-term missionary work in both the Philippines and Zambia, service as an instructor for SDBU, and writing a sermon preparation manual for Seventh Day Baptists.

In 1992, Matthew earned his Master of Divinity from Calvin Theological Seminary and was called that same year to pastor the Seventh Day Baptist Church of Berlin, New York, where he still ministers today alongside his wife, Ellen. Together, they have four daughters: Juliet, Emily, Rebecca, and Elizabeth. Outside of church activities, Matthew enjoys traveling to National Parks with Ellen and restoring malaise-era Ford Mustangs while listening to Elvis.

The Dean of the SDB School of Ministry plays a key role in strengthening the student experience and investing in the next generation of Seventh Day Baptist leaders. Through mentorship, pastoral support, recruitment, and connection to ministry opportunities, the Dean helps students grow in their faith, discover their calling, and prepare for meaningful service. Working alongside Seventh Day Baptist University (SDBU) and Conference leaders, the Dean also helps bring fresh energy and vision to the continued growth of Seventh Day Baptist University.

Nick Kersten is the Librarian-Historian for the Seventh Day Baptist General Conference of the United States and Canada. He also serves as the lead pastor of the Milton, WI, Seventh Day Baptist Church. Prior to his current role, he served as Director of Education and History for the General Conference from 2015-2026, and in a previous stint as the Librarian-Historian of the Seventh Day Baptist Historical Society from 2005-2014. Nick and his wife Brittany have four children. Nick is passionate about equipping SDBs to make fully formed disciples who will preach the Gospel and multiply the rest we have in Jesus Christ.

Nick received a Bachelor of Science in Education, with specialization in Secondary Education in the areas of English and Political Science, from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater in 2003, and a Master of Divinity degree from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in 2014. He was ordained by his home church in Milton, WI in 2014, and first accredited by the SDB General Conference of the USA and Canada in 2015.

Lydia Solomon is the HR Business Partner for the Seventh Day Baptist General Conference. She brings years of vocational experience as a human resources leader, along with a heart for service and care for the people who make ministry possible. In this role, she helps support the Conference’s human resources needs and strengthen the systems that serve staff and ministry teams.

Lydia is well known across the denomination through her leadership as President of the Women’s Society. Her experience, wisdom, and commitment to the Seventh Day Baptist community are a meaningful asset in this role.