Mitchel Nickols, PhD, has dedicated his life to leadership, mentorship, and community service. With decades of professional experience as an educator, organizational consultant, conference speaker, and leadership coach, his influence extends across faith-based institutions, academia, and corporate leadership programs. But if you ask him what his work is, he’ll tell you, “I’m a pastor.”
Nickols has served as a full-time pastor at Bibleway Christian Fellowship in New Kensington, PA, for 40 years. The church began as a family Bible study, held in his wife’s parents’ home, and has now been in existence for nearly 46 years. During the initial years of church development, Nickols was in graduate school two nights a week at the University of Pittsburgh for his master’s in language communication, pursuing additional studies at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, and working as a public school teacher. He joined the staff of the church in the 1980s and is now what he calls an “old-fashioned pastor.” In his role as a shepherd, he ensures the well-being of his congregation by personally checking in on members, visiting the sick, and supporting families in times of crisis.
This same commitment to personal connection carries over into his work with young people outside of his formal pastoral work. After earning his doctorate in curriculum and supervision, Nickols’ expertise in leadership development led him to teach at Geneva College, where he mentored over 400 students through their master’s degrees. He then joined the faculty of the Adult Degree Completion Program at Geneva (now the
Online Degree Programs), teaching courses in Organizational Leadership, Human Services, Organizational Development, Human Resources, and Community Ministry. Nickols was on faculty at Geneva for twenty years.
Having first recognized his passion for working with youth during his days as a public educator, Nickols continues to empower young people across western PA. As a faculty member at Point Park University in Pittsburgh, he teaches leadership at the undergraduate, MBA, and doctoral levels. He has also developed the on-campus Rising Brothers and Sisters program, which seeks to assist high school students, primarily students of color, to become more college- and career-ready.
“I try to get them to focus on their futures,” says Nickols. “We talk about vision. We talk about barriers that they have to overcome. We talk about how to develop the right kinds of goals to be successful in life.”
Through Rising Brothers and Sisters, as well as other independent contracts with high schools in multiple counties, Nickols has made an impact on over 200 high-school students in this past year alone. He is also the founding chair of the Aliquippa Boys and Girls Club, which opened in August of 2024.
Nickols’ reach extends beyond students to working professionals. He helped to launch the Emerging Leaders Cohort, which is now in its fifth year. It is a program of the Advanced Leadership Institute at Carnegie Mellon University, an executive leadership academy for Black professionals who want to develop their skills for C-suite positions in top companies. The Emerging Leaders Cohort appeals to professionals from major corporations around Pittsburgh who want to pursue middle-management and director-level positions. Nickols continues to create curriculum and welcome each cohort every fall with sessions on organizational culture.
Whether working with teenagers, college-aged students, working professionals, or congregants of his church, Nickols cannot begin to talk about his own work without sharing the countless stories of those he’s had the privilege of mentoring. Many of his advisees remain in contact with him, crediting his guidance for their professional achievements. One former student, now the director of human services for Washington County, PA, sought Nickols’ mentorship throughout his doctoral journey. Another mentee, who built a multi-million-dollar company, attributes her success to his support and encouragement. As a lifelong mentor to numerous individuals, Nickols shares, “This is all my pastoral work.”
His passion for education and leadership development came early in life, but not without a challenge. Nickols shares about his early years growing up in Beaver County, living three doors down from his school in Aliquippa. His mother was an educator and Geneva alumna, and his father worked in the steel mill. It was in third grade that Nickols “emotionally dropped out of school” and quit caring about his grades or performance. At the age of 16, in June 1969, he gave his life to the Lord. “I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that there was something new about my life,” Nickols says. His newfound faith reinvigorated his life and education. With years of educational disrepair to mend, he joined the honor roll in his senior year of high school and was accepted to Slippery Rock University alongside his twin brother. It was at Slippery Rock that he found a Christian community and built up his faith.
Since giving his life to the Lord, he has had an unswerving confidence in his ability to do what the Lord has called him to do. His mission in life is “to take the complex things in people’s lives and simplify them so that they can find a path forward.” In 2017, Nickols published a book called
PAVED: Passion, Attitude, Values, Energy, and Determination that speaks to those who have lost their passion in life. Throughout his work, he continues to remind people of every ethnicity, gender, and age that they have more abilities, more skills, and more purpose than they may initially attribute to themselves. “I believe I have a gift,” says Nickols, “and that gift is to speak into people’s lives. We [as Christians] ought to be the ones giving the wisdom to the world.”
Through his independent consulting work, Nickols continues to partner with Geneva College to co-lead faculty and staff trainings alongside President Calvin Troup, PhD, on racial and multi-ethnic reconciliation, engagement, and cultural intelligence.
In leadership, education, and faith, Nickols exemplifies the life of a shepherding pastor. His purposeful work serves as an inspiration to those seeking to lead with confidence and passion, proving that success is found through glorifying God with the gifts we have been given and in uplifting one another to pursue those unique callings on our lives.
By Erika Kauffman ‘20
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