Staff Intro: Jensen Near

(Jensen joined the CEM Staff team in May of 2018 and is serving as the Director of Student Life/Intern Director​.)

A native Californian, Jensen moved to Virginia after completing high school to study government at Patrick Henry College. In his junior year, he landed an internship on Capitol Hill, but quickly realized that politics was not his ticket to change the world. “What people needed wasn’t the governmental solution I wanted to give them – it was the gospel. It was transformed lives.”

With the waning of one passion came the resurfacing of another – discipleship. This passion had developed in Jensen during his high school years when spiritual mentorship had played a key role in his life after his parents’ divorce. Jensen naturally transitioned into the role of Resident Director at PHC for three years and two more years at William Jessup University after he returned to the west coast. Upon leaving WJU, Jensen landed what he refers to as his “dream job” as a young adults’ pastor at his home church in Morgan Hill. At the same time, Jensen was completing his master’s degree in Biblical and Theological Studies at Western Seminary. Jensen felt that he had found his life’s calling and was preparing for the long haul when, after three years, he was encouraged to look for work elsewhere due to differing church staffing needs. Around that time, Jensen received the invitation to join the staff team at CEM.

​Though Jensen would have never thought to seek out this position, when he glanced at the job description, he realized that through all of his experiences, God had been preparing him for this role all along.