Rev. Dr. John Genter receives 2025 Concordia Nebraska Outstanding Teaching Award

Concordia University, Nebraska’s Outstanding Teaching Award is an honor given to a full-time faculty member. Annually, students nominate faculty who represent the ideals and values that define the essence of the university. From the list of nominees, one member of the faculty is selected to receive the Outstanding Teaching Award. The award is presented during the university's annual commencement honors dinner.   

This year’s winner is Concordia Nebraska Assistant Professor of Theology, Philosophy and Biblical Languages Rev. Dr. John Genter. Genter teaches Greek I, II, III and IV as well as various Bible and theology courses including Old Testament, New Testament and Faith and Life. He is also the director of the university’s new Classical Lutheran Educator program and interim co-director of the pre-seminary program with Dr. Paul Holtorf and Dr. Chuck Blanco. Genter also serves as permanent board member, organizing chaplain and board secretary for Trinity Academy, the Lutheran high school that is an institute of the university and is housed on the university campus.  

Many of our students could have gone to college anywhere but chose Concordia Nebraska because it is a Christ-centered community dedicated to equipping men and women for lives of learning, service and leadership in the church and world.

Genter has a bachelor of arts in theology from Concordia University Chicago, a master of divinity from Concordia Seminary in St. Louis and a doctorate in New Testament from Baylor University. He has served at Concordia Nebraska for four years. 

“I am grateful to serve at a Lutheran university where our identity and mission really are what we say they are. Everyone here—faculty, staff and administration—is fully on board with providing an excellent education built from the ground up on the conviction that ‘in Christ all things hold together’ (Col. 1:17),” he said. 

For the last two years, Genter has been building a special collection of historically-significant Bibles and Bible manuscripts for display in Concordia Nebraska’s Link Library. The collection now includes a full-size facsimile of the 1534 Luther Bible and a facsimile of the oldest Bible in existence (around 350 AD). Genter uses items from this collection in various classes, including Greek courses. He also takes items from this collection on the road to schools and churches to do show-and-tell talks.  

“Many of our students could have gone to college anywhere but chose Concordia Nebraska because it is a Christ-centered community dedicated to equipping men and women for lives of learning, service and leadership in the church and world,” he added. “Everything I love about serving at Concordia Nebraska—and there is a lot to love—flows out of that shared identity and mission.” 

An experienced conference speaker, he was the featured presenter at the 2023 Nebraska District Pastors Conference, where he spoke about Christology and eschatology in Matthew’s Gospel. In January 2025, he was invited to give a paper for the Symposia at Concordia Theological Seminary in Fort Wayne. The conference commemorated the 1700th anniversary of the Nicene Creed. His paper was titled “The Redemption of Creation in the Creeds and in Matthew’s Gospel.” In August, he will be leading a “Prof Insights” workshop for Concordia Seminary on “The Apocrypha: Origins, Import and Use Among Lutherans” in Hays, Kansas. 

So what does Genter love about his job? He said he feels incredibly blessed to be teaching the subjects he loves most in the world. He said he has the opportunity to discuss some of the most interesting and consequential topics imaginable with students from around the country and beyond, and that never gets boring. He added that it makes his day when students want to discuss course material outside of class time, whether during office hours or while waiting in line together at the omelet bar.  

One student said that Genter creates a welcoming community in his classes and makes class fun with good energy and never fails to make sure people have opportunities to express what they were thinking or feeling over certain subjects or questions.  

Another student commended Genter for doing a great job communicating with students in and out of class and commented that Genter is very eager to get to know students, support them and motivate students to do their best.  

For Genter, it’s not just a job. And for his students, it’s about more than just the grade at the end of the semester. 

Another student added that Genter prepared the class for exams while intellectually challenging the students and making sure they understood the material. The student pointed out that Genter’s office is always open for students to visit and said that Genter went above and beyond both in and out of the classroom in every way. 

“Teaching through the Bible, creeds and catechism every semester keeps the fundamentals of the faith constantly on my mind and in my heart,” he said. “My students’ questions and observations help me return to those familiar texts with fresh eyes.” 

His wife, Dr. Teddie Genter, is the director of the university’s Micah Pre-Health Scholars program. They have been married for 17 years and have four children: Zoe, Eliana, Emmet and Ben. When he’s not serving the university, he leads Bible Study groups and volunteers at his church. For the last two years, he has participated in a local book club, which is currently reading through the works of Plato. In his spare time, he enjoys roasting coffee, gardening, playing tennis and running with friends. 

“I have plenty of growing to do as an educator, but receiving this sort of affirmation along the way means a lot,” he said. “What an honor!” 

The theology program at Concordia University, Nebraska can help students understand the Christian faith in a profound manner so that, in partnership with the Holy Spirit, they might translate it into a way of life that richly expresses God’s gracious love in Christ Jesus for all his creation.