Presiding Bishop and Primate of The Episcopal Church
The Most Rev. Sean W. Rowe was elected presiding bishop and primate of The Episcopal Church in June 2024 and took office on Nov. 1 for a nine-year term. In this role, he serves as the church’s chief pastor and CEO. Known for his expertise in organizational learning and adaptive change, Rowe is committed to strengthening support for local ministry and mission.
He was ordained bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Northwestern Pennsylvania in 2007 after serving as rector of St. John’s in Franklin, Pennsylvania, for seven years. From 2014 to 2018, he served as bishop provisional of the Episcopal Diocese of Bethlehem, and from 2019 to 2024, he led a partnership between the Episcopal Dioceses of Northwestern Pennsylvania and Western New York.
Born in Sharon, Pennsylvania, into a family of steel and mill workers, Rowe was raised in the United Methodist Church and graduated from Grove City College in 1997 with a bachelor’s degree in history. During Rowe’s college years, the Rev. Barbara Akin, chair of the history department at Grove City, gave him a Book of Common Prayer and invited him to the Episcopal Church of the Epiphany in Grove City, where he was confirmed and discerned a call to the priesthood.
He enrolled at Virginia Theological Seminary after graduating from college, and after earning his Master of Divinity there in 2000, returned to Northwestern Pennsylvania to serve as rector of St. John’s, Franklin. During his seven years as rector, the congregation more than doubled in size.
Rowe was 32 in May 2007 when he was elected bishop of Northwestern Pennsylvania on the first ballot. For almost 12 years, he was the youngest bishop in The Episcopal Church. In 2014, he earned a doctorate in organizational learning and leadership at Gannon University.
Before his election as presiding bishop, Rowe served as a leader of many civic and churchwide organizations and governance bodies, and as parliamentarian for the House of Bishops. In 2018, he became the first bishop to serve on the House of Deputies Committee on the State of the Church, a position he held until 2022. That year, he was awarded the House of Deputies medal for his service.
Rowe is married to Carly Rowe, a Christian educator, and they live with their daughter, Lauren, in Erie, Pennsylvania.
The Most Rev. Sean Rowe
Presiding Bishop and Primate
The Episcopal Church
King Hussein bin Talal Senior Lecturer in Public Leadership
Ronald Heifetz is among the world’s foremost authorities on the practice and teaching of leadership. He advises governments, businesses, and nonprofit organizations across the globe. In 2016, President Juan Manuel Santos of Colombia highlighted Heifetz’s advice in his Nobel Peace Prize Lecture.
Heifetz founded the Center for Public Leadership at Harvard Kennedy School with the essential support of Dean Joseph Nye, David Gergen, and Barbara Kellerman. Heifetz has taught at the Kennedy School for more than four decades, where he serves as the King Hussein bin Talal Senior Lecturer in Public Leadership. Heifetz played a pioneering role in establishing leadership as an area of study and education at Harvard, in the United States, and around the world. His research addresses two key challenges: developing a conceptual foundation for the analysis and practice of leadership; and developing transformative methods for leadership education, training, and consultation.
Heifetz co-developed the adaptive leadership framework with Riley Sinder and Marty Linsky to provide a basis for leadership practice and research. His first book, Leadership Without Easy Answers (1994), is a classic in the field and has been one of the ten most assigned books at Harvard and Duke Universities. Heifetz co-authored the best-selling Leadership on the Line: Staying Alive through the Dangers of Change with Marty Linsky, which continues to serve as one of the primary go-to books for practitioners across sectors (2002, revised 2017). He co-authored the field book, The Practice of Adaptive Leadership: Tools and Tactics for Changing your Organization and the World with Alexander Grashow and Marty Linsky (2009). His three books have been translated into many languages. Heifetz’s HarvardX online course, Exercising Leadership: Foundational Principles (2020), has reached more than 800,000 people and was one of five finalists among global online courses for the 2021 EdX Prize. His more extensive Harvard Online course, Adaptive Leadership: Practical Strategies for Change, was launched in January 2026.
Heifetz began his focus on transformative methods of leadership education and development in 1983. Drawing students from throughout Harvard’s graduate schools and neighboring universities, his courses on leadership are legendary. His core course is considered the most influential in their career by Kennedy School alumni. His teaching methods have been studied extensively in doctoral dissertations and in Leadership Can Be Taught, by Sharon Daloz Parks (Harvard Business Press, 2005).
A graduate of Columbia University, Harvard Medical School, and Harvard Kennedy School, Heifetz is both a physician and cellist. He trained initially in surgery before deciding to devote himself to the study of leadership in public affairs, business, and nonprofits. Heifetz completed his medical training in psychiatry, which provided a foundation to develop innovative teaching methods and a distinct perspective on the conceptual tools of organizational behavior and political psychology. As a cellist, he was privileged to study with the great Russian virtuoso, Gregor Piatigorsky.
Ron Heifetz
King Hussein bin Talal Senior Lecturer in Public Leadership
Harvard Kennedy School
Bishop, Diocese of Chelmsford, Church of England
The Rt Revd Dr Guli Francis-Dehqani has served as Bishop of Chelmsford since April 2021.
Chelmsford is the second largest diocese in the Church of England in terms of population and serves the communities of Essex and East London. In January 2021, Bishop Guli was also appointed as the lead Bishop for Housing for the Church of England and she has served as a member of the Lords Spiritual in the House of Lords since November 2021.
Between 2017 and 2021, Bishop Guli served as the first Bishop of Loughborough in the Diocese of Leicester. As well as assisting the Bishop of Leicester across the Diocese, her specific responsibilities included overseeing and supporting the vocations of those called to lay and ordained ministries. Before she became Bishop of Loughborough, Bishop Guli led Curate training in the Diocese of Peterborough.
Bishop Guli is currently Chair of the Board of the Church Army. She has written extensively, including three recent books, Cries for a Lost Homeland: Reflections on Jesus’ sayings from the cross, Stations of the Resurrection: Encounters with the risen Christ and Listening to the Music of the Soul.
Born in Iran, Guli’s family left the country in the wake of the Iranian Revolution in 1980, when she was 13 years old, and to date she has been unable to return. She is married to Lee, also a priest and they have three adult children.
The Rt. Rev. Guli Francis-Dehqani
Bishop, Diocese of Chelmsford
Church of England
Dean, Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine, New York, NY
The Rev. Winnie Varghese is an Episcopal priest and 12th Dean of the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine. She is an openly gay, married member of the clergy and LGBTQ+ inclusivity advocate.
Varghese is known for her preaching and commitment to social justice, advocating for equity, inclusion, LGBTQ+, and community engagement within the church and in broader society. Her leadership at Trinity Wall Street includes providing spiritual guidance and overseeing programs that address urban poverty, racial reconciliation, and global outreach.
Varghese is recognized as a public speaker, frequently addressing national and international audiences on topics such as faith, activism, and ethical leadership. Her published essays and opinion pieces appear in respected outlets, exploring the intersections of theology, social change, and public life. Varghese has contributed to forums including the Pulitzer Center and The Huffington Post, where she discusses issues of justice and moral responsibility.
Throughout her career, Varghese has addressed the challenges facing faith communities during periods of social change. She fosters dialogue across diverse groups and is committed to creating inclusive spaces for worship and action. Her work reaches both religious and secular audiences, establishing her as a voice in contemporary religious and civic discourse.
The Very Rev. Winnie Varghese
Dean, Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine
New York, NY
Author, Scholar, Veteran, The Washington Post
Theodore (Ted) R. Johnson is a senior fellow, Democratic Futures at New America, leading its Us@250 initiative marking the nation’s semiquincentennial in 2026. He is also a columnist for The Washington Post and a retired Commander in the United States Navy, which included service as a White House Fellow and as speechwriter to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Prior to joining New America, Johnson served as a senior director at the Brennan Center for Justice, where he conducted research on race, democracy, and American identity, and as a national security research manager at Deloitte.
Johnson is the author of If We Are Brave: Essays from Black Americana (Amistad, 2025) and When the Stars Begin to Fall: Overcoming Racism and Renewing the Promise of America (Atlantic Monthly Press, 2021). He holds degrees from Hampton University, Harvard University, and Northeastern University.
Ted Johnson
Author, Scholar, Veteran
The Washington Post
Candidate for Holy Orders, Episcopal Diocese of New York
Linda Etim served as the Global Development lead for the Biden-Harris presidential transition team and as President Biden’s first White House Senior Director for Development, Global Health, and Humanitarian Response from 2020-2022. In those roles, she was charged with strategy development and coordinating the U.S. Government’s initiatives and responses related to global development, U.S. government humanitarian and atrocity response efforts. As an advocate leader with close to 20 years of experience in global development, conflict mitigation and crisis stabilization work both inside and outside of government, she passionately integrates her expertise in foreign policy and human rights in the fight for equal dignity and rights of all persons.
Previously, Linda was the Deputy Director and Senior Adviser for Policy and Advocacy at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Assistant Administrator for Africa for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), and the National Security Council Director for African Affairs. Linda Etim is currently a Candidate for a Master of Divinity at Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York focused on social justice and chaplaincy. Linda graduated from the University of Wisconsin with a Bachelor of Arts and has a Diplome International from L’Institut D’Etudes-Politiques de Paris. She is committed to creating a world where individual freedoms and potential are realized.
Linda Etim
Candidate for Holy Orders
Episcopal Diocese of New York
