Dr. Steve Damron
Director, Independent Baptist Seminary
sdamron@independentbaptistseminary.org
Dr. Steve Damron serves as the Director of Independent Baptist Seminary, a ministry of Capitol Baptist Church in Dover, Delaware. His desire is to train men and women to know the Scriptures, strengthen local churches, and equip faithful servants for lifelong ministry.
Born in Cleveland, Ohio, on April 17, 1971, Steve was raised in a Christian home by his parents, Bill and Belinda Damron. As faithful members of Cleveland Baptist Church, they instilled in him a love for the Lord, the local church, and the authority of God's Word. At the age of eight, Steve trusted Jesus Christ as his personal Savior. Through the sacrifice of his parents, he received a Christian education at Heritage Christian School, where the Lord used pastors, teachers, and mentors to prepare him for a lifetime of ministry.
Following graduation from high school, Steve enrolled at Fairhaven Baptist College in the fall of 1989. There he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Pastoral Theology, laying the biblical and pastoral foundation for more than three decades of ministry. Continuing his theological education while serving in ministry, he later earned a Master of Arts in Biblical Exposition at PCC and completed a Doctor of Philosophy in Religious Education at Louisiana Baptist University. His academic training has reinforced his commitment to expository preaching, doctrinal soundness, practical ministry, and the training of future servants of Christ.
After graduating from college, Dr. Damron joined the staff of Fairhaven Baptist Church, first serving as the junior high youth pastor and later as the senior high youth pastor. During twenty years of youth pastoral ministry, God allowed him to develop several ministries that challenged young people to grow spiritually and become active servants in their local churches. Among these were Empowered Youth, a week-long youth conference, TnT Saturday outreach, and discipleship ministries designed to strengthen teenagers reached through evangelistic outreach. Throughout those years, he developed a burden for training young people to know God's Word, defend their faith, and dedicate their lives to serving Christ.
In 1994, Steve married Becky Voegtlin. Having grown up in a pastor's home, Becky developed a heart for ministry from an early age. She attended Christian school, studied piano and French horn, and faithfully served in numerous areas of church ministry, including the church office, music ministry, youth work, and Christian education. Together, Steve and Becky have faithfully served the Lord side by side throughout their ministry and have been blessed with four children: Jennifer, Sabrina, Jake, and Clint.
In 2011, the leadership of Fairhaven Baptist Church asked Dr. Damron to prayerfully consider becoming the church's next pastor. Following a season of prayer, the congregation voted in February 2012 for him to become their future pastor. During his pastorate, the Lord continued to deepen his burden for preparing the next generation of pastors, missionaries, and Christian workers through sound biblical training rooted in the ministry of the local church.
That burden culminated in the founding of Independent Baptist Seminary. In the fall of 2020, Fairhaven Baptist Church voted to establish the seminary as one of its ministries. Then, in the spring of 2022, the Lord clearly directed Dr. Damron to devote himself fulltime to theological education. At the same time, Dr. T. H. Moore and Capitol Baptist Church in Dover, Delaware, had been praying that God would bring someone to establish such a ministry. In June of 2022, the members of Capitol Baptist Church unanimously voted to receive Independent Baptist Seminary as one of their ministries, where it continues to train students for faithful service around the world.
Today, Dr. Damron teaches courses in Bible exposition, Christian warfare, biblical leadership, philosophy of ministry and ethics, homiletics, discipleship, evangelism, and local church ministry. In addition to his classroom responsibilities, he travels extensively throughout the United States, preaching in churches, conducting seminars, and encouraging pastors and Christian workers. His passion is to provide practical, biblically grounded training that strengthens local churches and prepares faithful servants for a lifetime of ministry.
In addition to his teaching ministry, Dr. Damron has authored numerous books, developed podcast and video resources, and written curriculum designed to equip pastors, church leaders, and Christians in sound biblical doctrine and practical Christian living. Many of these resources are available through BaptistPulpit.com.
Dr. Damron believes that theological education should always serve the local church. His desire is not merely to impart knowledge, but to develop faithful servants who know the Scriptures, rightly divide the Word of Truth, and are prepared to teach others also. Through careful exposition of the Bible, doctrinal soundness, practical ministry training, and a strong emphasis on spiritual growth, he seeks to help students become lifelong learners and effective servants of Jesus Christ. Whether teaching in the classroom, preaching in churches, or mentoring pastors, his burden is to strengthen churches by equipping men and women who will faithfully proclaim the Word of God for generations to come.
Dr. Damron may be contacted at sdamron@independentbaptistseminary.org.