Professor Gilbert M Valentine was born in Wanganui, NZ and graduated from Avondale in 1968. He is a historian whose research interest addresses theological and institutional development and the dynamics of change with a special focus on twentieth-century Adventism. His early pastoral career involved varied roles in congregational and conference youth leadership settings in New Zealand and Australia before he was called into administration and teaching. Since completing his PhD in 1982, international service has taken him to teaching and senior administrative positions in Adventist higher education in Pakistan, England, at Avondale, in Thailand and California.
He has published extensively in Adventist history and Ellen White studies and is the author of several groundbreaking studies. Notable titles include: The Shaping of Adventism: The Case of W. W. Prescott, (1992) The Struggle for the Prophetic Heritage (2006) a book on the history of the White Estate, and The Prophet and the Presidents (2011) a study of the political influence of Ellen White. His recent works include a biography, J. N. Andrews: Mission Pioneer, Evangelist, and Thought Leader (2019), “Adventism in America,” in the Oxford Research Encyclopedia of American History (2021), Ostriches and Canaries: Coping with Change in Adventism, 1966-1979 (2022) and Edward Heppenstall: Reforming Theologian of Twentieth-Century Adventism (2026).
