MEET THE STAFF
Scott has served as the Senior Pastor at Church on the Hill since 2005. Before becoming Senior Pastor, he served two years as the Pastor of Student Ministries here on the Hill. Scott is passionate about LIFE - the life Jesus offers in John 10:10. His role is to lead and teach in such a way that people can find an authentic relationship with Jesus and mature in their faith. He is married with two children, 8 and 10. In his personal time, he enjoys fishing, backpacking, coaching his son's baseball team, and watching his daughter play soccer. He grew up in Southern California where he graduated with a B.A. in Religious Studies from Azuza Pacific University and received a M.Div. from Fuller Seminary in Christian Formation and Discipleship. You can check out more on his Facebook page.
Elliot joined the staff in Janaury 2004 as the Pastor of Business Administration for the Church and our school, Achiever Christian School. His role since morphed and added other responsibilities including heading up the Mission Action Council (MAC), leading our Global Outreach (GO) Teams, heading up construction projects and anything else that Pastor Scott throws his way. Elliot and his wife Penny do pre-marital counseling at the church and love leading classes on Sunday mornings.
Elliot grew up in Livermore, but went to High School in Nigeria when his parents moved there before his sophomore year. He received his Bachelor's degree in Religious Studies from Westmont College, before going to San Jose State to get his MBA, and finally attended Western Seminary where he earned his M.Div.
In his free time, he likes to work in the yard with his daughter Anika, ride his long-board skateboard, snowboard and hang-out with his family. Also, the entrance to Church on the Hill is named after his grandfather who pastored here for 35 years. You can check out more on his Facebook page.
Jay has been on staff since June 2004. He's passionate about teaching, leadership development, and discipleship. He finds his greatest professional satisfaction in helping students and volunteers develop a deep passion for pursuing Christ. He has his bachelor's degree in Biblical Theology & Christian Leadership from William Jessup University and is currently pursuing his MA in Theology at Fuller Seminary.
In his spare time he enjoys hanging out with his wife, Jenny, spending time with friends and family, fiddling around on his guitars, watching good movies, reading great books, being near the ocean, eating sushi & steak, and writing. Jay hopes to write a book someday. No one may read or buy it, but he still hopes to write it.
Jane joined the staff of Church on the Hill in November 2010 as our new Worship and Arts Pastor. She is excited to be part of a great team and church, and she loves the role to which God has called her at Church on the Hill.
Jane is a musician and vocalist, yet she sees her role more as a worship leader who guides people with music, coupled with insight, humor, and reflection. Corporate worship leadership is her passion, and planning worship services where people connect with their Creator is a privilege. "There is nothing better on earth," says Jane.
Jane loves her family and is married to her husband George and loves being a mom to three great kids--Caroline (15), William (12), and Alexander (11). She says, "There isn't much time left each day, so I'm now limiting my new hobbies and interests to catching soccer and volleyball games, running taxi service to dentist appointments, and doing laundry--all completely underrated in their fun and wow factors."
Jane has bachelor's and master's degrees in Business Administration, but she hopes that God will continue to call her far, far away from spreadsheets and marketing plans. She loves the call to ministry and cannot imagine doing anything else.
Clayton joined the Church on the Hill in July 2009. He is excited to be used by God to impact the lives of Junior High students and their families. He and his wife Kim have returned to San Jose from Portland, Oregon where he completed his MA in Pastoral Studies & Spiritual Formation from Multnomah Biblical Seminary. He is passionate about students and desires to see them realize their potential as disciples of Jesus Christ in their communities and spheres of influence.
While not working, Clayton enjoys being around people; it doesn't matter where, as long as people are there. He enjoys reading, watching movies, surfing YouTube for cool videos, listening to all kinds of music, snowboarding, and playing games of all kinds. And if there is a chance for him to laugh in the midst of these activities, he will gladly partake.
Tami was born in San Jose and has lived here for her entire life! She joined Church on the Hill's staff in January 2006 as the fulltime Children's Ministry Director. Her area of responsibility includes all children, from birth through fifth grade. Tami has a huge passion and love for children ... and volunteers! Her goals are:
- That the children will have fun while learning about Jesus
- Parents to feel secure and confident when they drop off their precious children
- Kidz on the Hill volunteers be valued.
Family: husband Chuck and four children: Natasha, Charles, Cassandra, and Christopher.
Favorite Thing to Do: spending time with her husband and children
Enjoys: Going to the beach and vacationing in Tahoe
Matt joined the team at Church on the Hill in September of 2010. He is a south bay native, born and raised in Campbell. He graduated from San Jose State in 1993 with a degree in Radio and Television. He just recently moved back to San Jose following eight very long, hot years in Chandler, AZ.
When not working, Matt loves being with his wife, Natalie, and their two boys, Evan and Bennett. The beach is a popular destination for his family. Despite his years away, Matt is a die-hard homer who can often be seen rooting for the Giants and 49ers, as well as the Warriors and Sharks (sorry Raiders and A’s fans – no offense). He loves listening to music and discovering new bands. If allowed, Matt is pretty convinced that he would program the coolest radio station in the world.
Matt has loved meeting so many great people at Church on the Hill and his thrilled about his role as Community Groups Director. Matt said “I love the Church’s concept of connecting, growing, and serving. Community groups are a bridge that joins all of these elements together.”
Cindy has been working fulltime at Church on the Hill since October 1985 and is responsible for graphics, publications, and production. She is a graduate of the University of California, Santa Barbara, and has her degree in Art. Cindy also has a background in restaurant work and has fun managing Church on the Hill's food service, kitchen facilities, and Cafe on the Hill. Even though she is so NOT a morning person, Cindy still enjoys getting up early on Sunday mornings to arrive at church by 7:30 am and open Café on the Hill. "Watching people come through the door and head for the Café on Sunday mornings is a kick," says Cindy. "It's cool that Café on the Hill is the Sunday morning hangout." Asked what she's excited about these days (on an earthly level, of course!) she responded, "The big new Home Depot at the brand new Plant Shopping Mall which is right across the street from my house!"
When she's not working, Cindy enjoys doing her own home repairs, puttering around in the garden, taking road trips with her bff, watching 49'er football, and spending time at the beach.
As the Accounting and HR Director, Kathy divides her work duties between Church on the Hill and Achiever Christian School, keeping track of over 90 employees. She is a transplant from the Midwest and a graduate of Western Michigan University with a degree in Music and Business. Her husband Jim is a scenic designer and technical director at San Jose State University, and is currently teaching himself to speak and write Chinese. Their son David is a college student and a martial artist who loves going on missions trips to far-off places. In her free time Kathy enjoys playing string bass with several classical orchestras and musical theatre groups, as well as playing bass guitar in “chick bands” at women’s retreats. She also loves to shop – anything from Goodwill to Macy’s. She’s always on the hunt for that special bargain and loves comparing notes with her other bargain-hunting friends!
With two newly conferred (on the same day) “degrees” in hand—a B.S. in Business with minors in English and Education and an MRS to Terry Weber—Barbara began volunteering for the church, editing Dr. Clarence Sands’ (Elliot Sands' grandfather’s) sermons to be published. It wasn’t long before she began also volunteering in the children’s ministry as first one, then two, and eventually four children were born into her family. Over the years since, Barbara has volunteered in many different positions with children from birth through junior high, currently as PreK/K coordinator. In 1977 she began working at Achiever part-time as a preschool teacher, which she did until 1980 when the pastor asked her to use her secretarial training in the church office. So, she went “up the hill” to assist him, in the days before computers and cell phones, when everything was pretty much done via shorthand, typewriter, and snail mail. The rest is history. She has enjoyed not only serving as executive assistant to four different senior pastors and in other positions on staff over the years but also working hand-in-hand with them as a volunteer—including her current ministry with children and as Missions Secretary. Now working as an assistant in HR, Barbara has seen a lot of changes in staff, office equipment, methods, etc., but the message and mission here have remained the same. On a personal note, away from the office, she is still seeing and enjoying the changes in her family and time spent with her nine (soon to be ten) grandchildren.
Lisa Akan has been attending Church on the Hill since 2004 and she joined the staff in May 200. Her main role is to manage the church office and support the Senior Pastor but she enjoys wearing many different hats around the church. She is married with one daughter and loves spending time with her family. A little known fact about her is that she loves to play video games -– especially Mario Kart and Dance Central. She can also be found on the weekends cheering for her daughter as an avid soccer mom. She's lived in California her whole life and loves the beach, sun, and outdoors. She graduated from San Jose State in 2000 with a BS in Business/Marketing and earned an MS Learning Sciences from Carnegie Mellon University in 2006.