Chaplain Doctor Eva Bleeker, chair of Chaplaincy and Pastoral Counseling Programs and assistant professor of Chaplaincy and Pastoral Care, is a Board Certified Chaplain with the Association of Professional Chaplains who believes in the transformational power of education. She moved to Colorado in 2019 with two goals: to teach at Denver Seminary and to enroll in the CEC process at the Denver Seminary CPE Programs. Dr. Bleeker joined Denver Seminary as a teaching Fellow in the Counseling Division, teaching pastoral care and counseling courses.
Dr. Bleeker graduated with a Doctor of Education from Baylor University and holds two Master of Arts degrees through Dallas Theological Seminary, one in education and one in media and communications. During seminary, she worked as assistant to the Chaplain, supporting the spiritual needs of the students, staff, and faculty. After graduating from seminary, Dr. Bleeker completed a four-unit residency in Clinical Pastoral Education through Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas, Texas (BUMC). She then remained on the chaplaincy staff at BUMC for five years while also serving as the first female member of the pastoral staff at her church. This independent faith community, Skillman Bible Church, commissioned her to chaplaincy and became and APC endorsing body on her behalf.
Dr. Bleeker moved to Northern Virginia in 2014 where she had three professional focuses: she provided spiritual care at a community hospital, she worked on the ministry staff of a United Methodist church, and she traveled weekly to New York City where she completed Columbia University’s Master of Science in narrative medicine.
Having been transformed by her own CPE journey and with a desire to facilitate meaningful growth for others, Dr. Bleeker began the application process for ACPE Certified Educator Candidate training in January 2020 through the Denver Seminary CPE Programs.
- Baylor University Emerging Research Conference, Paper: Narrative Identity in Chaplaincy Training, January 29, 2022.