JUNE 2026, LISLE, IL—After five years as the president and publisher of InterVarsity Press (IVP), Terumi Echols has announced she will be retiring from her role on October 1, 2026.
Reflecting on her tenure at IVP, Echols points not to any single initiative or achievement, but to the privilege of stewarding a ministry with a rich legacy and enduring mission. “I am most proud of the people of IVP, our staff, authors, and ministry partners who faithfully serve the church,” Echols said. “During a season of significant change in publishing and ministry, they remained committed to creating resources that help people follow Jesus more faithfully.”
Echols added, “I am especially grateful for the trust our authors have placed in IVP. Their willingness to entrust us with their ideas, scholarship, stories, and ministry has been a privilege and a responsibility. Together, they have helped shape conversations, deepen faith, and equip generations of readers.”
Nicole Massie Martin, an IVP author (Nailing It, 2025) and the president and CEO at Christianity Today, said this of Echols: “Christian publishing has faced steady headwinds for the past few years. The obstacles seem to have increased as well for Christian authors seeking to simply be faithful in sharing their gifts with the world. Not only has Terumi sustained and strengthened IVP during these challenging times, but she has also done so with incredible service toward authors. I am proud to have published with IVP under Terumi’s leadership and am grateful for her mentorship. Her wisdom, discernment, and faithfulness to God have been evident in the way she leads, both internally and externally. The publishing world is better because Terumi has played such a significant role in it.”
Tom Lin, president and CEO at InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA (IVCF), said, “Under Terumi’s leadership, IVP has expanded its distinctive biblically grounded, pastorally thoughtful, culturally engaged books to new markets and digital spaces. She’s also invested in infrastructure so that IVP can enrich the way it serves authors and audiences for years to come.”
Echols notes that she too is encouraged by how IVP expanded its ministry reach over the past five years. “Much of this work happened behind the scenes, strengthening operations, modernizing systems, and preparing IVP to navigate a rapidly changing publishing landscape,” she said. “These efforts were undertaken with a single purpose: helping ensure that IVP remains a faithful and effective ministry for years to come.”
Through initiatives such as Every Voice Now, IVP Español, the Lilly Endowment–funded Wholehearted Household project, and the growth of IVP’s audio, podcast, and digital media efforts, Echols says the press has been able to serve new audiences, strengthen families, elevate diverse voices, and support spiritual formation across generations.
“I’ve had the honor and privilege of working closely with Terumi since she came to IVP nine years ago,” said Helen Lee, IVP’s director of strategic initiatives. “She has been a stalwart supporter of the strategic initiatives that my team oversees and is always open to experimentation and innovation. We have also served together since its inception on our Every Voice Now initiative which seeks to offset the racial and ethnic imbalances in our industry, elevate voices of color, and increase the cultural competency of the organization, and I have been so glad for IVP’s continued leadership in this area through Terumi’s example. I have deeply appreciated her pastoral heart for the IVP staff, her desire to create a financially stable foundation for IVP’s future, and her love for the authors and books representing IVP through our publishing program. She has given so much of herself to the organization, and I am excited for her to experience a new season in which she enjoys the fruits of decades of excellent, faithful work in the Christian publishing space. She will be deeply missed.”
Before her time at IVP, Echols worked for nearly two decades at Christianity Today International, and from 2014 to 2016 as the executive vice president and chief publishing officer. She joined IVP as the director of finance and fulfillment operations in 2017 under the leadership of Jeff Crosby, who served as IVP’s publisher from 2016 to 2021.
“It has been a joy to serve alongside Terumi Echols both as a colleague at InterVarsity Press and in the broader Christian publishing industry through her presence on the board of the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA),” Crosby, current president of ECPA, said. “Her simultaneous commitment to innovation and mission, to people and possibilities has been a gift to both organizations. I have learned a great deal by watching her, being challenged by her, and being supported by her. I extend my thanks and my congratulations in this time of change and look forward to whatever lay ahead for her.”
As Echols finishes up her time at IVP in the coming months, she says she is grateful and hopeful. “It has been an honor to serve alongside such dedicated colleagues and to steward a ministry that has helped countless readers grow in faith through its authors and partners. My continued prayer is that IVP will continue to serve the church faithfully for generations to come.”
In the coming months InterVarsity and IVCF executive vice president Nathan Krupke will lead the search process for IVP’s new president and publisher. The job description for the role is available at ivpress.com.
Contact: Krista Clayton, kclayton@ivpress.com
