Reverend Dr. Bernard “Skip” Keels

Rev. Dr. Bernard “Skip” Keels serves as the Dean of the University Chapel at Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland. Prior to that he served as Executive Director of the Methodist Action Program in Wilmington, Delaware. From 2001-2005 he was the Senior Pastor of The Newark United Methodist Church in Newark, Delaware. Rev. Keels is a member of The Order of Elders in The Peninsula-Delaware Conference of the United Methodist Church. Prior to his appointment to Newark United Methodist Church, he served as Senior Pastor of St. Mark’s United Methodist Church in Baltimore, MD. Reverend Keels served for six years as District Superintendent of the Baltimore West District of the Baltimore Washington Conference. Before becoming a District Superintendent he served as pastor of the A.P. Shaw United Methodist Church in Washington, D.C. Other churches Reverend Keels has served are St. Mark's United Methodist Church and Christ United Methodist Church, both located in Baltimore, Maryland. Rev. Keels serves as a national trainer for the U.S. Department of Justice Victims of Crime.

Reverend Keels is a native of Birmingham, Alabama and is married to Christine Dean Keels.  He received his Bachelor of Arts Degree, with honors (in three years) from Haverford College. He was awarded the Master of Divinity Degree from Yale University.  He was the recipient of the Rockefeller Theological Fellowship. He received the Doctor of Ministry Degree from the McKendree School of Religion. He has served on the Conference Board of Ordained Ministry.

Reverend Keels has conducted a number of workshops and delivered major addresses, among them are the following:  Baltimore Conference Cooperative School of Christian Missions, the United Methodist Church National Seminar -"Faces of Poverty in Our Midst", Board of Global Ministries, Women's Division -"Racism and Stereotyping in Language and Media", Baltimore Conference -"Basic Lay Speaking and Advanced Lay Speaking", the Baltimore Urban League - "Black Church Symposium".  He also delivered the keynote address at the 1988 Harvard Business School on "Community and Economic Development - A Partnership between the Business and Church Community." Rev. Keels was the Conference preacher at the 1997 Annual Conference of The Methodist Church of the Bahamas in Nassau, Bahamas.

Reverend Keels served as the commentator of WBAL Radio's "Black Journey" and WIYY’s "Taking It to the Streets".  Additionally, he was an award winning reporter for WBAL television in Baltimore, MD, as well as having served as past president of The Baltimore Chapter of The National Black Media Alliance. Rev. Keels has been employed as a consultant for The National Endowment of Humanities. He always adopts the community in which he is serving as his hometown. In Baltimore, MD, Washington, DC and Newark, Del., he has been active in artistic, civic, cultural and religious arenas. Along with extensive travel in the U.S., Reverend Keels international travel includes: Singapore, Central America, The Caribbean, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Malaysia, India, Sierra Leone, Zimbabwe, Europe, and Israel.

Reverend Keels has served as a delegate to the 1992, 1996 and 2000 General Conferences of The United Methodist Church. At the 1995 Annual Conference, Reverend Keels was nominated to lead a delegation to the 1996 General and Jurisdictional Conference in Denver, Colorado.  He is presently serving on the General Commission on Communications, Chair of the Northeastern Jurisdiction Committee of Appeals, a member of the Northeast Jurisdiction Episcopacy Committee and serves on the Board of the United Methodist Publishing House, Yale Divinity School, Board of the Goodwill Industries, and the Addict Referral Organization.