Leadership Team

Kevin Parker, Ph.D. 
Chair, Whitworth Institute of Leadership
Visiting Assistant Instructor

Kevin Parker is an entrepreneur, former four-term politician and a retired advisor to a senior member of Congress. He has taught organizational theory and leadership for over a decade to graduate students at Whitworth University and is currently a visiting assistant instructor in the School of Business. He has also served as a facilitator in adaptive leadership at Harvard University, is a fellow of the Aspen Institute and earned his Ph.D. in leadership studies in 2024. Parker oversees 230 employees within his Dutch Bros Coffee franchise and has collectively received more than 30 awards for his work within the community and region, including being named to Spokane's Most Powerful list multiple times.

Sinéad Voorhees, M.Sc.
Assistant Dean, Graduate Studies in Business

Sinéad earned her M.Sc. in development practice from Trinity College Dublin in Ireland. She has been with Whitworth University since 2012. Under her leadership, the MBA program has doubled in size, the graduate department has added two additional master's level degrees and has created thriving executive education programs. In 2021, she was promoted to assistant dean, making her the first dedicated dean of graduate business studies at Whitworth. Sinéad has served on the boards of the United Way Emerging Leaders Society, Executive Women’s International, SNAP's Women’s Small Business Center and the former Krista Foundation. She also directed the Northwest Entrepreneur Competition and is a 2019 Leadership Spokane graduate. Her accolades include being named one of the Inland Northwest’s top 20 Under 40 rising professionals, being featured on the cover of Spokane/Coeur d'Alene magazine for winning one of the Top 20 Women in Business Leadership awards and receiving the Spokane Journal of Business Rising Star award. Her family of six lives on a 10.5-acre aspiring hobby farm they call home.

Rachel Briscoe, M.Ed.
Admissions Advisor, Graduate Studies in Business

Rachel earned a master's degree in educational psychology and student affairs from Northern Arizona University and a Graduate Certificate in Comprehensive Leadership from Whitworth University. She is a 2023 fellow from the Institute of Leadership and has worked in academia for over 15 years, spanning careers in student life, residence life and graduate admissions. Rachel and her husband are small business owners and have been operating their construction and home services company for over a decade. Rachel is also a professional coach and trainer who works with individuals and groups to identify what's holding them back, equipping them to make lasting changes in the areas that matter most to them. Rachel co-founded and facilitates the Spokane Ladies Business Community to better serve and equip female business owners and entrepreneurs.
rbriscoe@whitworth.edu  |  509.777.4688