About the ELCA

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United States, with nearly 3.3 million members in more than 8,900 worshiping communities across the 50 states, Caribbean, and U.S. Virgin Islands. With a vision to live in a world experiencing the difference God’s grace and love in Christ makes for all people and creation, the ELCA strives to be a welcoming, thriving, and connected church that introduces people to Jesus so they can discover community, justice, and love.

The Lutheran Center (national office) is located in Chicago, Illinois. A staff of 400, under the leadership of the Presiding Bishop, serve as administrators, advisors, conveners, partners, and resource people for the ELCA and its ministries. Staff lead the work of national, domestic, and global ministries and programs including Lutheran Disaster Response, ELCA World Hunger, Service & Justice, Christian Community and Leadership, and Innovation. We are also home to five of our separately incorporated ministries: The Mission Investment Fund of the ELCA, Women of the ELCA, Lutheran Men in Mission, the ELCA Foundation and the ELCA Federal Credit Union.

Grounded in our purpose and priorities, the Christian Community and Leadership (CCL) home area helps the ELCA reach and engage new, younger, and more diverse people, welcoming them into the Christian faith. To this end, we will energize and engage our core membership and work with the whole of the ELCA to recruit, develop and deploy the leadership, both lay and rostered, that the church needs to fulfill its purpose of spreading the gospel and building the church.

This position manages the implementation of the five-year project: ELCA Compelling Preaching: Transformed Listeners Initiative. Funded in–part through a grant from the Lilly Endowment, Inc., the Compelling Preaching initiative seeks to equip lay leaders and rostered ministers to reflect their community, the Gospel, and God’s kin-dom through their preaching practices.

This position will oversee the development and implementation of a cohort-style preaching program. The person filling this role must bring a passion for innovative preaching practices, practiced in evaluation and data management, the ability to support a wide portfolio of communication patterns and be highly organized.

This is a full-time, exempt, term-specified contract position. Candidates for this remote position must reside within the fifty United States or the District of Columbia and be authorized to work lawfully in the United States. In compliance with federal law, all persons hired will be required to verify identity and eligibility to work in the United States and to complete the required employment eligibility verification document form upon hire.

1. In collaboration with others, leads the overall development of the program plans and strategy and ensures execution with the appropriate timeline and budget.

2. Develops and implements a comprehensive communication strategy for the project including external communication (ex. Related stories, social media, etc.) and communication with synods, congregations, partners, and participants.

3. In collaboration with the Program Director for Young Adult Ministry, recruits, supervises, and trains the contracted staff working on curriculum and the contracted facilitators of the preaching cohorts.

4. Manages the programmatic reporting of the initiative for the Lilly Endowment and assists with the financial reporting of the grant to the Lily Endowment and communicates with senior and executive leaders about progress towards program outcomes.

5. Conducts and oversees continued research of preachers’ audiences challenging traditional preaching forms who are at work at the margins of the ELCA’s community and synthesizes these findings with previous research findings.

6. Collaborate with appropriate staff such as the Churchwide Worship team to recruit, coordinate, and equip an Advisory Team for the program.

7. Lead ongoing evaluation and analysis of the program outcomes.

8. Assist in the planning and implementation of a National Gathering of ministry leaders.

9. Participate in the overall strategy and goals of the Christian and Community Leadership home area.

10. Other duties as assigned.

1.Bachelor’s Degree and 3+ years of experience in program management or coordination, research, evaluation, data analysis or equivalent combination of education and experience.

2. Excellent interpersonal skills: the ability to attract and work collegially and collaboratively with a diverse population both inside and outside of the workplace to present, motivate, communicate, and engage effectively both verbally and in written form.

3. Appreciation for the mission, vision, and values of the ELCA; demonstrated knowledge of the ELCA and of its current priority to engage a million new, young, and diverse people.

4.Substantial experience relating to multiple constituencies across the breadth of the ELCA ecology. Highly relational with a vision and passion for quality preaching.

5.Strong and innovative preaching background. (The broadest definition of preaching.) Equipped to understand and assist ministry leaders in their own preaching.

6.Self-directed, self-motivated intuitive thinker focused on closing the gap between ideas and implementation with comfortability utilizing and introducing virtual and technological tools.

7.Experience with program development and management. Understanding of models for service, learning, and vocational discernment that are grounded in Lutheran theology.

8.Outstanding analytical, and critical thinking skills. Skill in developing, motivating, and leading teams and supervising contracted staff.

9. Active commitment to anti-racism, justice for women, and justice for people who identify as part of the LGBTQIA+ community. Passionate about young adult ministry.

10. Experience using Microsoft Office suite; various communication and social media platforms.

Physical Effort

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to talk and hear, use hands and fingers to operate a computer and telephone. This position requires sitting for long periods of time. Reasonable accommodations can be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Travel

Minimal travel, up to 5%, by car and/or plane.

Salary

Commensurate with qualifications and experience. Minimum: $60,195.

Benefits

The ELCA offers a competitive benefits package for eligible employees, including employer paid health premiums for employees, health and dependent care FSA’s, a health savings account (HSA) with an employer contribution, life insurance, and a substantial employer contribution to 403b retirement plan (no match required). We also offer a generous paid time-off policy including 11 paid holidays. All benefits commence on your start date.