Kristin Franke Jeopardy Profile: Age, Job, Family, Stats

Find out all the Jeopardy! results for Kristin Franke, including games played, scores and competitors.

Kristin Franke Jeopardy Contestant Profile

Kristin Franke is an American Presbyterian pastor and longtime youth-ministry leader based in Washington, D.C., appearing on Jeopardy! Season 43 as a pastor from Washington, D.C. She currently serves at National Presbyterian Church (NPC) as Associate Pastor for Next Generation Formation, a role centered on the spiritual formation of children, teenagers, college students, young adults and families.

Franke’s involvement in youth ministry began unusually early. As a high school senior, she needed service hours for the National Honor Society and began volunteering with a sixth-grade kids’ club. What started as a service requirement ultimately developed into a ministry career that has now extended for more than 20 years.

Franke attended Valparaiso University in Indiana, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in French and Spanish. Her involvement in youth ministry continued during college, and Valparaiso was also where another major part of her life began: ultimate frisbee. She started playing ultimate after discovering a pickup game at the university in 2004 and helped lead Valparaiso’s first team, Something of Fury.

After college, Franke continued working in youth ministry in Indiana before embarking on a major international chapter of her life. In 2007, she and her husband, Grant Franke, moved to Hong Kong, where Kristin became Youth Director at Union Church, an international and interdenominational Christian congregation.

Franke spent five years at Union Church in Hong Kong, from 2007 to 2012. Her work there involved youth ministry and Christian education, giving her significant experience working within an international church community. She was involved with the congregation’s broader educational ministries as well as its programs for young people.

Hong Kong also became an important part of Franke’s competitive ultimate career. She played for Hong Kong Junk from 2007 through 2012 and served as one of the team’s captains. Her playing career reached the international level: in 2012, both Kristin and Grant were members of the Hong Kong national mixed ultimate team that competed at the World Ultimate and Guts Championships in Sakai, Japan.

After returning to the United States, Franke pursued formal theological education at Princeton Theological Seminary, attending from 2012 to 2015. She earned her Master of Divinity (M.Div.) in May 2015, providing the theological and pastoral training that complemented her extensive practical experience in youth ministry.

Franke moved into her long-term ministry home in Washington, D.C. in 2016, joining National Presbyterian Church as Director of Youth Ministries. Over the following decade, her responsibilities expanded considerably. She subsequently served as Director of Youth and Family Ministries, overseeing and contributing to programming for younger members of the congregation and their families.

Her work has included middle-school and high-school ministries, retreats, mission experiences, Christian education, volunteer recruitment and development, college-student ministry, young-adult programming, family ministries and internships for young people exploring church leadership. She has also contributed professionally to discussions about how churches can create sustainable, effective youth ministries.

In March 2026, Franke reached a major milestone in her ministry when she was ordained to the Ministry of Word and Sacrament within the Presbyterian tradition. Her ordination service was held at National Presbyterian Church on March 15, 2026, through the National Capital Presbytery. She became Associate Pastor for Next Generation Formation, marking a transition from her longstanding director-level youth and family ministry work into ordained pastoral leadership.

Alongside her work at National Presbyterian Church, Franke has served as a consultant with Ministry Architects, an organization that helps churches develop sustainable systems for youth, children’s and other ministries. Her consulting work has drawn directly on her extensive experience recruiting and managing volunteers, developing youth programs and building ministry structures. She has also written practical ministry resources, including guidance on recruiting volunteers.

Franke has participated in broader conversations about the practice and future of youth ministry. She has been featured discussing “Good Youth Ministry”, addressing subjects such as helping young people develop lasting faith and creating effective intergenerational ministry. Her professional interests emphasize relationships with young people, spiritual development, sustainable volunteer leadership and helping younger generations encounter Christianity in meaningful ways.

Ultimate frisbee has remained a major passion throughout Franke’s adult life. After playing and captaining Hong Kong Junk, she competed for DC Scandal from 2013 through 2018, one of the prominent women’s ultimate teams in Washington. She also served as a captain with Scandal. Beyond playing, both Kristin and Grant have been involved in coaching ultimate.

Franke has written about competitive ultimate as well, including advice about preparing for and succeeding at team tryouts. Her long involvement in the sport—from a college pickup game in 2004 through high-level club competition and international play—has made ultimate much more than a casual hobby.

Family is another important part of Franke’s life. She is married to Grant Franke, and the couple have two children. Her church biography specifically identifies spending time with her husband and children as one of the things she most enjoys outside ministry. Her family has also participated with her in church life, while ultimate has been a shared interest for Kristin and Grant.

Contestant Image Credit: Jeopardy Official Website

Kristin Franke Jeopardy Results