We are pleased to announce that Jesse C. Bliss has accepted the role of principal at Auburn Adventist Academy.
For Jesse, this new role is both a Spirit-led calling and a personal homecoming. An Auburn Adventist Academy alumnus and former boarding student, he returns to a campus that helped shape his own faith, calling and life direction. His family connection to Auburn spans generations, and his return to the Pacific Northwest carries deep personal meaning.
“Auburn Adventist Academy was transformational for me as a young man,” he shared. “The teachers and staff invested in me, opened my eyes and helped set a trajectory that shaped who I am today. Coming back to Auburn is a homecoming, and I will dedicate my heart, mind and spirit to this place, and to the students, families, faculty and staff who call it home.”
Bliss brings more than two decades of progressive leadership across higher education administration, national organizational leadership, public health and international mission service. He served for a decade in academic and administrative leadership at Loma Linda University School of Public Health, and most recently for five years on the executive leadership team of the National Environmental Health Association in Washington, D.C., where he built and led successful internship, leadership and workforce-development programs.
Michelle Wachter, Washington Conference vice president for education and interim principal at Auburn Adventist Academy, shared her excitement for this new chapter.
“We are thrilled to welcome Jesse Bliss as the next principal of Auburn Adventist Academy!” Wachter said. “Jesse brings a wealth of leadership experience and a deep commitment to Adventist education. His dedication to serving students, staff and families through Christ-centered leadership will be a tremendous blessing to our Academy. We are excited to see how God will continue to lead AAA through his ministry and leadership.”
Bliss has served in children’s and youth ministry, student missions, public health leadership and cross-cultural community development, and across his career he has mentored students and emerging professionals toward vocations in the health sciences, ministry and service. He is a doctoral candidate in public health at the University of Utah School of Medicine and holds a Master of Public Health from Loma Linda University. He and his wife, Walleska, have two sons, David and Aaron, who will also be joining the Auburn Adventist Academy and Buena Vista Adventist Elementary School communities.
Jesse said his decision to accept the role came after a season of prayer and a desire to serve God more directly.
“My prayer has been, ‘God, how can I do work to build Your kingdom?’” he said. “The opportunity for student’s lives to be changed such that their experience at Auburn helps shape their passion, purpose, and trajectory toward the kingdom; that is everything, and that is why I have answered this call.”
Please join us in welcoming Jesse C. Bliss and his family to the Auburn Adventist Academy community. We look forward to seeing how God continues to lead AAA in this new chapter.
–Washington Conference of Seventh-day Adventists