Leading God’s People Now: To What End?

Rectors and deans are adaptive leaders who lead their parishes and cathedrals to meet this moment of change in the Church and in society with optimism and realism. How do we begin to imagine transformative change in our communities? What are the practical ideas we can implement? How do we measure success and pivot when we must? During this three-part conversation, rectors and deans will explore these questions and more.

The first conversation on Wednesday afternoon will center on the reality that this moment challenges us to reimagine our place in the community and in the Church. Building on this conversation, later Wednesday afternoon, we will explore how to form leaders, particularly laity, to take on the work in your church and community tapping into Christian imagination and using Gospel-crafted approaches. On Thursday morning, we will focus on the role rectors and deans share in providing the distinct witness of the Church and shape local and national conversations.

Leading voices from higher education, the corporate sector, nonprofits, and the Church will facilitate our conversations.

Mr. Richard Ammons – EPN Board Member and Education Sector Leader; Durham, North Carolina

The Rev. Doyt Conn – Rector, Epiphany Parish; Seattle, Washington

The Rev. Canon Jan Cope – Provost, Washington National Cathedral; Washington, D.C.

Dr. Liz DeGaynor – Virginia Theological Seminary; Alexandria, Virginia

Ms. Lauralyn Lee – Chief of Staff, Washington National Cathedral and Nonprofit Strategy Expert; Washington, D.C.

Mr. Jon Meacham – Canon Historian at Washington National Cathedral, Author, Historian; Nashville, Tennessee

Ms. Aleta Payne – Senior Associate Editor, Faith & Leadership, Duke Divinity School, Durham, North Carolina

Ms. Judy Smith – Strategic Advisor and Communications Expert, Smith & Company; Washington, D.C.

The Rev. Dr. Sam Wells – Vicar, St. Martin-in-the-Fields; London, United Kingdom

How Do Other Vestries Handle This? Learning from and with fellow vestry members.

Vestry or chapter members in Episcopal parishes and cathedrals have unique responsibilities for the fiscal and physical wellbeing of their churches.

As vestry/chapter members, we are responsible for the wellbeing of our clergy and congregations, act as fiduciaries for the church’s financial health, provide efficient governance for our congregational life, and ensure our churches are engaged with the broader church and surrounding communities.

While a fulfilling ministry, lay leadership as a vestry/chapter member also can be challenging and exhausting. The good news is you are not alone.

During our time together, we will engage in a facilitated conversation among leaders of five congregations of varying sizes but all facing similar opportunities and challenges. Following this conversation, we will split into small groups based on parish/cathedral sizes for intimate conversations about particular subjects. We will close our time together with challenging conversations like handling clergy issues, managing financial opportunities/challenges, and recruiting vestry and chapter members, among other topics.

Join us to strengthen your ministry as a vestry/chapter member and return home with inspiration and hope for your church’s future and your collective ministry.

Attendance at this pre-conference is limited to members of vestries or chapters. This Pre-Conference Session will involve follow-up virtual meetings throughout 2023 with the goal of developing a Community of Practice to support EPN lay leaders throughout the year. Facilitating our time together will be:

Mr. George Belshaw –  Christ Church Parish; Greenwich, Connecticut

Mr. Stephanie Curcuru – St. Alban’s Parish; Washington, D.C.

Mr. Britton Gregory – St. David’s Parish; Austin, Texas

Mr. Ray Hill – St. Philip’s Cathedral; Atlanta, Georgia

Ms. Nicole Spencer – St. James Cathedral; Chicago, Illinois

Leading from the Second Chair

As the Number Two clergy leader in your parish/cathedral, senior associates, chiefs of staffs, vicars, and sub-deans navigate complex systems. You play a vital, but not well-understood, role in the leadership of your congregation.

During our time together, you will join with colleagues from across the country and around the church for a time of facilitated learning, candid conversation, and support. You will return to your congregation and responsibilities refreshed and renewed with connections to other senior leaders from churches facing the same opportunities and challenges. Facilitating our time together will be:

The Rev. Nathan Kirkpatrick – Saison Consulting; Durham, North Carolina

The Rev. Abi Moon – Trinity Church; Boston, Massachusetts

The Rev. Ken Brannon – Saint Michael and All Angels; Dallas, Texas

Cultivating Voice and Vocation: The Associate as a Parish Leader

The variations within the role of associate or assistant clergy in an Episcopal congregation make it one of the most interesting and complex in the Church. In this Pre-Conference Session, you will have the opportunity to learn from experienced leaders in the Church about the challenges and possibilities of this unique role. You also will be able to share your own vocational questions with peers from around the country in a confidential and collegial setting.

Panelist Information Coming Soon

Annual Roundtable

Every year, our parish administrators, business managers, and others with administrative leadership responsibilities gather for this Pre-Conference Session for a “closed-door” discussion on pressing challenges and opportunities.

In this “no-collars-allowed” roundtable, participants engage in frank conversation on issues ranging from people management to building maintenance to working effectively with clergy colleagues. Join us in this collegial environment to share your insights and resources and to connect with similarly situated lay leaders from across the country and around the church. Many parish administrators describe this roundtable as the most valuable experience of the EPN Annual Conference!  Facilitating our time together will be:

Mr. Zach Beall – Parish Administrator, St. Andrew’s Parish; Kansas City, Missouri

Parish endowments are critical to fueling ministry, and their mission-driven management is challenging. Markets are volatile, budgets can be short of funds, church goals change, and new leaders are stepping up. If you are an endowment trustee or clergy/lay leader seeking endowment insights, this unique three-part, cohort-based learning experience is for you.

Part One (Early February): Online Endowment Primer

This learning experience will focus on the practicalities of serving in a governance role for church endowments. The online session is open to all those with financial responsibilities in the Church.

Part Two: March 8 Pre-Conference Session

You will experience presentations on key issues in endowment management from practitioners, engage in small group conversations to improve performance, and dig deep into critical topics such as committee issues and portfolio questions, among others. Dinner follows for further conversation.

Part Three: March 9 Pre-Conference Session

We will hear case studies with practical advice from practitioners and their advisors. Session leaders will share from their experiences and save plenty of time for questions. You will leave with practical ideas on how to better evaluate, manage, and enhance the performance of your endowment.

Facilitating our time together will be:

Ms. JoAnn Hanson – Church Investment Group; Atlanta, Georgia

Ms. Carsten Sierck – Episcopal Church Foundation; New York, New York

Join stewardship professionals and volunteers from around the Episcopal Church to learn, share, and explore. Building on the Stewardship Community of Practice webinars taking place throughout the year, the 2023 Stewardship Pre-Conference will focus on building skills and cover the theology of fundraising, reporting, and measuring performance as well as perspectives on planned giving. Finally, we will break into small groups to discuss opportunities and challenges in like-sized parishes.

And new this year—New to the Stewardship Role? Please join us at 1:00 p.m. (an hour earlier) to review The Building Blocks of Church Stewardship & Fundraising.

Ms. Monica Butta – Cathedral of St. John the Divine; New York, New York

Ms. Caroline Marak – St. Michael and All Angels; Dallas, Texas

Mr. David Rocchio – Cathedral of St. Philip; Atlanta, Georgia

More Panelist Information Coming Soon

Strategically Communicating with Our Congregations and Communities

The Communications Pre-Conference is in two parts split between Wednesday afternoon and Thursday morning. During our first session, we will discuss how to garner earned media for our parish or cathedral and how to handle crisis communications when necessary. For our second session, we will discuss how to create sustainable strategies and effectively execute a strategic plan in the midst of continuing distractions.

Part One: Media Relations and Crisis Communications SOS (March 8)

In this session on Wednesday afternoon, we will share ideas and explore questions like: How do we engage the media as part of our storytelling outreach including op-eds? What are three easy placements I can pursue in the next year? What are the ingredients of a successful story pitch? And what are the best practices to follow ¾ and pitfalls to avoid ¾ when the story we need to tell is dark?

In our last hour, we will be joined by Judy Smith of Smith & Company. Judy is a crisis communications expert from Washington D.C. The Shonda Rhimes television show Scandal was inspired by her crisis communications work, and she has come to be known popularly as The Reputation Fixer. Her clients include politians and entertainers of all backgrounds. Judy will share her insights into crisis communications and engage in a facilitated dialogue with attendees. 

Part Two: Strategic Communications Guided Meditation (March 9)

Productivity, with limited time and budgets, require us to tune out distractions and listen closely for what is essential and sustainable. During this Thursday morning Pre-Conference Session, we will discuss how to tell the two apart and how to create a strategy that ensures buy-in and support? The learning experience will be interactive including short bursts of “free writing.”

Facilitating our time together will be:

Ms. Amanda Skofstad – Public Affairs Officer, the Episcopal Church; New York City, New York

Ms. Judy Smith – Smith & Company; Washington, D.C.