The six workshop tracks are designed to educate and inspire on a variety of subjects including leadership, financial resiliency, innovation, strategy, inclusiveness, and real property management. You are welcome to pick and choose among the workshops to create an agenda that appeals to you.

For a long time, the largest and most vibrant Episcopal Churches seemed to be those with the most historic wealth and influence. Our scripture promises us that we are journeying with God toward a time in which all people will be united in love, and social and economic barriers will fade. As the world and the church continue to change, we’re invited to see our resources and our impact differently. Communities which once may have been thought of as marginal, are now becoming a central part of who we are, and who we’re called to be, as we seek to be faithful stewards of the Gospel of Jesus Christ for these times. In this workshop, we’ll talk about what it means to serve God by pursuing dignity for all people and embracing diversity.

Speakers:
The Rev. Yejide Peters Pietersen, Associate Dean and Director, Formation, Berkeley Divinity School at Yale; New Haven Connecticut
The Very Rev. Lydia Kelsey Bucklin, President and Dean, Episcopal Divinity School; New York, New York
The Rev. Jorge Ortiz, Associate Director, Community Engagement, Trinity Church NYC; New York, New York

In this timely and critical workshop, Bishop Allen Shin and members of the House of Bishops Theology Committee will address the growing crisis of Christian Nationalism in the United States. As this movement threatens to distort the Gospel and sow division, Episcopalians are called to respond with courage, love, and hope.

Drawing from the findings of the committee’s report, The Crisis of Christian Nationalism, the panel will explore the theological, social, and spiritual challenges posed by this ideology. Participants will learn how the Church can counter these divisive forces by embodying Christ’s message of love, unity, and justice. The session will offer practical insights into how we, as Episcopalians, can be a beacon of hope and light, fostering communities rooted in inclusivity and the transformative power of love.

Speakers:
The Rt. Rev. Larry R. Benfield (ret.), 13th Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Arkansas
The Rev. Canon Altagracia Pérez-Bullard, Ph.D., Associate Dean of Multicultural Ministries and Assistant Professor of Practical Theology, Virginia Theological Seminary; Alexandria, Virginia
The Rt. Rev. Allen K. Shin, Bishop Suffragan of New York, Diocese of New York; New York, New York
The Rev. Katherine Sonderegger, Ph.D., Distinguished Professor of Systematic Theology, Virginia Theological Seminary; Alexandria, Virginia

This workshop introduces a transformative new curriculum for young people, designed to equip youth with essential skills to “cross divides, navigate disagreements, practice forgiveness, and pursue a just and flourishing world” as followers of Jesus. Last summer, Trinity Church (NYC) piloted an American version of this five-session course, focusing on reconciliation and community-building.

The program culminated in a powerful youth pilgrimage to Canterbury, providing a hands-on experience of reconciliation in action. Join adult leaders and teen participants in the “Difference” program to explore how three key habits—modeled in the life of Jesus—are shaping the next generation of Christians. Discover practical tools and spiritual insights that are empowering youth to lead with compassion, bridge divides, and build a more just and peaceful future.

Speakers:
The Rev. Matthew A. Welsch, Priest and Director of Children, Youth and Family, Trinity Church; New York, New York
The Rev. Kate Malin, Rector, Church of the Heavenly Rest; New York, New York
Ms. SK Doyle, Youth Minister, Trinity Church; New York, New York

Does asking for money make you uncomfortable? Funding our mission often requires that we ask for money, whether in a stewardship or annual giving campaign, a capital campaign or conversations about planned giving. This session will address tips and techniques to be more comfortable and prepared for these conversations, as well as best practices for stewardship campaigns.

Speakers:
Ms. Catherine Beemer, Director of Parish Giving, St. George’s Episcopal Church; Nashville, Tennessee
The Rev. Jon Feuss, Associate Rector, St. James’ Episcopal Church; Los Angeles, California
The Rev. Mitch Smith, Rector, St. Martin’s-in-the-Fields Episcopal Church; Columbia, South Carolina

When Does It Make Sense to Run a Capital Campaign In-House?

Join us to hear from parishes and organizations that chose to run their capital campaigns without the help of outside consultants. Learn why they made this decision, how they structured their campaigns, what successes they experienced, and the potential challenges they encountered along the way. If you’re considering a capital campaign, this session offers valuable insights from peers on alternative campaign models that may be worth exploring.

Speakers:
The Rev. Stanford Adams, Acting Rector, The Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd; Austin, Texas
The Rev. Dr. Kate Cress, Rector, St. James’ Episcopal Church; Los Angeles, California
The Very Rev. Sanford “Sandy” Key, St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church; Durham, North Carolina
The Rev. Penny Nash, Interim Rector, St. James’s Episcopal Church; Richmond, Virginia

Many churches rely heavily on congregational giving to sustain their mission, ministry, and essential infrastructure. But what if there were additional funding sources aligned with your mission that could amplify your impact? In this session, a panel of experienced leaders will help you uncover overlooked opportunities for grants and external funding.

This session will inspire and equip you with practical strategies to explore grants and partnerships that align with your mission, opening the door to new resources for ministry.

The Rev. Suzanne Smith, Rector of Grace Episcopal Church, Alvin, and Ed Carrette, Community Missioner, will provide insights from their innovative approach to partnerships and grant-funded ministry. Through collaborations with larger nonprofits, Grace has established transformative programs, including their Mobile Food Pantry, known as “Church in the Streets,” which provides food and community care to those in need.

Julie Basic, PLA, a seasoned grant writer with extensive experience in the nonprofit sector, will share insights from her recent work with churches. Drawing from her expertise in crafting compelling narratives, Julie will guide participants in telling their church’s story in ways that resonate with funders who may not traditionally support religious institutions.

The Rev. Stacy Williams-Duncan, Rector of Little Fork Episcopal Church, will moderate the discussion and share her experiences securing federal grants. In the past year, Stacy successfully applied for the Recreational Trails Program (RTP) and Battlefield Interpretive Grant (BIG), enabling her church to develop a walking path and public park.

Speakers:
Ms. Julie L. Basic, PLA; Charlottesville, Virginia
Mr. Ed Carrette, Community Missioner, Grace Episcopal Church; Alvin, Texas
The Rev. Suzanne Smith, Rector, Grace Episcopal Church; Alvin, Texas
The Rev. Stacy Williams-Duncan, Rector, Little Fork Episcopal Church; Rixeyville, Virginia

One of the most under-utilized assets our churches hold is the land where the church sits. How might we reimagine how to steward this gift of space and place to amplify the mission and ministry of the church within the community?

This first of three sessions will explore a high-level perspective with those responsible for stewarding assets at the diocesan level. We will hear examples of varying scales of real estate development and approaches and how that has impacted the life of the church.

Speakers:

The Rev. James Clark, Managing Director, Mission Real Estate Development, Trinity Church NYC; New York, New York
Ms. Karen DiLossi, Director of Strategic Partnerships, Partners for Sacred Places; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Ms. Kelsey Humphrey, Senior Associate, Multistudio; Kansas City, Missouri
Ms. Meghan Taylor-Steshyn, Senior Program Officer, Mission Real Estate Development, Trinity Church NYC; New York, New York

Many of us have buildings that sit empty or idle for most of the week. Why not let your unused spaces generate income and exposure in the community? This topic will explore how a parish might leverage its current buildings and spaces to generate income for the church, deepen the church’s connection to the community, or both. The workshop is being presented by Kim Simmons of Smart Church Solutions, the company who developed the scheduling software eSpace, and Jim Lamm, the parish administrator at St. David’s in downtown Austin.

Speakers:

Mr. Zach Beall, Executive Director of Operations, St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church; Kansas City, Missouri
Ms. Kathleen Burgess, Director of Administrative Operations, St. Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral; San Diego, California
Mr. Jim Lamm, Parish Administrator, St. David’s Episcopal Church; Austin, Texas
Ms. Kim Simmons, Manager, Smart Church Solutions; Nashville, Tennessee

Many country, suburban, and urban churches are blessed with outdoor spaces such as lawns, gardens, burial grounds, or even large expanses of land. How can we be responsible stewards of these spaces while inviting the broader community to engage with creation in our churchyards?

This panel will share how congregations have intentionally developed public spaces, cultivated gardens, planted native species, and worked with corporate, non-profit, and government partners. The session will include Q&A and practical ideas tailored to each participant’s unique context.

Speakers:

The Very Rev. Amy Dafler Meaux, Bishop-elect, Diocese of West Missouri; Dean and Rector, Trinity Episcopal Cathedral; Little Rock, Arkansas
The Rev. Grace Flint, Rector, St. Francis Episcopal Church; North Bellmore, New York
Mr. Brian Sellers-Petersen, Principal, The Faithful Agrarian; Consultant, Episcopal Church Good News Gardens; Roslyn, Washington
The Rev. Bowie Snodgrass, Rector, Christ Church Short Hills; Short Hills, New Jersey
The Rev. Winnie Varghese, Rector, St. Luke’s Episcopal Church; Atlanta, Georgia

The church is facing a clergy shortage, and it is not just a decline in new vocations causing this crisis for the church. The responsibilities of parish ministry and the ‘always on call’ nature of pastoral work are often exhausting. The work of ministering and ‘running a business’ (which is what managing a parish is) often drain leaders’ capacity and leave them burned out. 

In turn, this can leave our leaders drifting from active and engaged ministry and parish management to ‘autopilot.’ Personal and professional growth might be replaced by stagnation and/or by a gradual slippage in skills and capacities. 

During this workshop, learn how we can encourage leaders to:

• Continue to stretch and grow in ways that are directly and specifically meaningful to the places where we lead and serve.
• Develop leadership skills as a lifelong process. 
• Identify support structures that allow confronting challenges that are ongoing.
• Identify and join learning communities that share similarities in settings and stages of ministry, joining in common dedication to sustained growth.

Attendees will learn how to strengthen leadership skills through acute discernment and deliberate practice with colleagues and savvy coaching. We will walk through approaches to self-assessment and how to seek feedback, stretching and experimenting with new action pathways, rehearsing best practices for specific actions, and determining what needs practice, refinement, or development. Participants will leave with a clear sense of how to engage in continuous growth and with a single self-identified goal for their refinement and expansion of skill.

Speakers:
The Rev. David Gortner, Ph.D., Thriving in Ministry Program Principal, Virginia Theological Seminary
Ms. Lindsey Dawn Lewis, Thriving in Ministry Program Manager, Virginia Theological Seminary
The Rev. Kimmy Meinecke, Thriving in Ministry Mentor-Coach, Virginia Theological Seminary

Are you equipped to respond to the adaptive changes the Church faces in a world with deep shifts in how people gather, worship, and live their spiritual lives?  

We will unpack the mechanics of adaptive leadership, especially in the areas of expanding imagination, discerning purpose, and using the “Five Muscles” to transform your community.  We’ll unpack the importance of agility and positioning your church for sustainable impact and growth with new perspectives, fresh ideas, and actionable takeaways.

Speakers:
The Rev. Matt Holcombe, Rector, St. Michael’s Episcopal Church; Colorado Springs, Colorado
The Rev. Dr. Blair Thompson, Chief Learning and Innovation Officer, Texas Methodist Foundation; Austin, Texas

How can we better manage staff and volunteers to achieve more effective results while minimizing top-down decision-making, which often slows progress? During the last General Convention, the Presiding Bishop-elect called on us to rethink how we cultivate leadership at every level of the Church. Yet managing volunteers can be time-consuming, stressful, and sometimes ineffective.

This workshop will focus on practical strategies for developing both lay and clergy leadership within parishes, particularly where clergy are solo or part-time. Whether you’re a clergy member or lay leader, this session will provide fresh ideas and support to help you cultivate leadership and build a thriving church community.

Speakers:
The Rev. Ryan Hawthorne, Rector, Grace Episcopal Church; Houston, Texas
Mr. Steve Knoll, Senior Warden, St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church; Lawrence, Kansas
Br. Luis Hernandez Rivas, Priest-in-Charge, Saint John’s Church Getty Square and Iglesia San Andrés; Yonkers, New York
The Rev. Chris Veillon, Priest-in-Charge, St. John’s Episcopal Church; Pleasantville, New York

In this moment of massive religious shift, the spiritual ideal of interdependence is more important than ever.  A vital future includes communities that are large and small, rural and urban, young and old, emergent and traditional – all working together, and with their communities, for the mission of the Gospel.  In this workshop, we will name some of the challenges and opportunities and cast a vision for what a thriving missional ecosystem can look like on the ground.

Speakers:
The Rev. Tim Baer, Vicar, Grace Church – Episcopal; Yukon, Oklahoma
The Rev. Mtipe Koggani, Priest-In-Charge, Grace African Christian Connections; St. Louis, Missouri
The Rev. Katherine Nakamura Rengers, Founder of The Abbey; Birmingham, Alabama; Former Staff Officer for Church Planting

Join us for an interactive workshop focused on actionable techniques for engaging new members and fostering a vibrant parish community. This session will provide creative ideas and best practices for making newcomers feel welcomed, deepening their connection to the parish, and nurturing a culture of inclusion and growth. Whether you are part of a small, medium, or large parish, you’ll leave with a toolkit of strategies designed to enhance new member experiences and support sustainable parish development.

Speakers:
Ms. Pam Ferraro, Volunteer, New Members Program, Christ Church Greenwich; Greenwich, Connecticut
The Rev. Nate Huddleston, Associate Rector, Christ Church Georgetown; Washington, D.C.
The Rev. Cameron Nations, Canon for Vocations and Community Engagement, Episcopal Diocese of Alabama; Birmingham, Alabama

Drawing on data from over 31,000 Episcopalians in 369 congregations, Scott Gunn will offer a picture of the spiritual state of the Episcopal Church. We will look at areas where our church tends to be strong, as well as opportunities for growth. The presentation will share Episcopalians’ beliefs and practices – and this can help you map out a strategy for spiritual growth in your congregation. The data will be drawn from Forward Movement’s RenewalWorks program and other sources.

Scott Gunn is executive director of Forward Movement, the leading discipleship ministry of the Episcopal Church since 1935. Author of four books, Scott travels widely as a preacher, speaker, retreat leader, and encourager. Before serving at Forward Movement, he was a parish priest. Prior to that, he worked in information technology. He and his spouse live in Cincinnati.

Speakers:
The Rev. Scott Gunn, Executive Director, Forward Movement

How can we inspire new people to step into our world to embrace what we have to offer? These times are challenging. We’ll explore the vital role that strong, compassionate leadership must play to foster vibrant communities within our parishes. 

Is your staff up to this challenge? You will gain valuable insights into how to engage staff and lay leaders and cast a wider net into your community to recruit new members. Whether you’re a seasoned leader or stepping into a new role, you’ll leave with 5 proven, actionable strategies that will bind your congregation together that can rejuvenate enthusiasm and confidence.

Speakers:
The Ven. Miguel Bustos, Manager for Racial Justice & Reconciliation, The Episcopal Church and Archdeacon of the Diocese of California; San Francisco, California
The Rev. Alison Joan Turner, Associate for Children & Family Ministry and School Chaplain, St. Thomas Church Fifth Avenue; New York, New York
The Rev. Marek Zabriskie, Rector, Christ Church Greenwich; Greenwich, Connecticut

This workshop will help participants learn how to use data about strengths and weaknesses in congregational vitality and data about neighborhood opportunities and challenges to identify the gifts and skills congregations need in new leaders.

From this experiential workshop, participants will take away:

• An 8-step practical vision-guided, data-grounded process for leadership transition planning.
• How data-grounded discernment can help them see past their blind spots and biases in order to focus on the full set of gifts and skills needed in their future leader.
• Resources and tools for creating a congregational vitality assessment that, when coupled with a neighborhood missional opportunity assessment, can help identify attributes of future leaders.

Speakers:
The Rev. Mary Frances, Executive Director, The FaithX Project; Naperville, Illinois
The Rev. Ken Howard, Founder, The FaithX Project; Gresham, Oregon
Mr. Steve Matthews, Partner Relations Director, The FaithX Project; Flat Rock, North Carolina

The ministry of the Church depends on the generosity of its people. Without financial support, worship cannot happen, sanctuaries fall into disrepair, Christian education becomes unsustainable, and outreach ministries are forced to close. For generations, the faithful have funded the sharing of the gospel—through operating budgets, special gifts, and endowments for our parishes and cathedrals. As we celebrate the Episcopal Parish Network’s (formerly CEEP) 40th anniversary, this workshop invites us to return to those roots.

As the Church and society continue to evolve, communities are becoming more selective in their giving—often to the detriment of ministry. In this workshop, a panel of philanthropic experts will explore how to inspire and cultivate generosity in individuals, institutions, and communities. Through personal stories, they will discuss the challenges and opportunities of giving today, offering reflections on the current landscape of philanthropy.

Speakers:
The Rev. Dr. James Lemler, President, Allen Whitehill Clowes Charitable Foundation (Founder and Former President of CEEP); Indianapolis, Indiana
Ms. Rebecca Lilly, Vice President, Morgan Stanley (Trustee of Lilly Endowment Inc.); Greenwich, Connecticut
The Rt. Rev. Julia Whitworth, Bishop, Diocese of Massachusetts, Boston, Massachusetts