Dr. Mike Rakes

Dr. Mike Rakes serves as the fifth president of Evangel University with his wife, Pastor Darla Rakes, by his side. Prior to his appointment as president in August of 2021, he and Darla served as co-pastors of Winston Salem First, a diverse church in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, for 15 years.

Dr. Rakes is a graduate of Central Bible College and the Assemblies of God Theological Seminary. He also holds a number of degrees, including a Doctor of Ministry degree from Biola University. Darla is currently pursuing her doctoral degree at the Assemblies of God Theological Seminary. In his most recent book, "Surrendered & Unafraid: The Flourishing of Faith During Seasons of Suffering," Mike shares about the loss of his daughter, Whitney, to a rare blood cancer at the age of 27 and the family's disappointment with God in not giving them the miracle of healing they so earnestly prayed for.

“Faith doesn’t always give you what you want. Faith is what you need when you don’t get what you want,” said Rakes.

Mike & Darla are committed to developing compassionate innovators at Evangel and have strengthened the university's relationship with Convoy of Hope to deploy graduates around the world. Rakes believes that every vocation needs ambassadors of compassion full of the love of Jesus.