Communities of Practice

It takes a village to sustain the hard, holy work of ministry. One neighborhood of the village is a Community of Practice. This is a structured, facilitated small group of colleagues meeting regularly for mutual support, accountability, and learning. We have gathered and launched Communities of Practice for actively serving pastors in a variety of contexts throughout the Iowa, Nebraska, and South Dakota Conferences. Register for a Community of Practice today!

What will Communities of Practice look like?

Groups will have 4-5 members plus a compensated facilitator. After registering, an actively serving pastor will be assigned to a group for one year. What effort can be made will be made to form groups of pastors with common ministry contexts.

Groups will meet 10 months each year, choosing their own dates and times for monthly meetings. Each two-hour Community of practice meeting will include time for mutual covenantal support and accountability. Each meeting will also include discussion of case studies, articles, books, and other resources for professional growth.

Groups will meet via Zoom. Eliminating travel time makes it possible for geographically distant pastors, even serving in different Conferences, to meet effectively. Once large group gatherings can safely happen, opportunities for Communities of Practice to gather in retreat format will be offered as a part of wider Conference gatherings of our three Conferences.

What does it cost?

There will be a $300 annual registration fee for group members. For pastors serving local congregations, it is strongly recommended that the congregation provide this registration fee.

When can I start and how do I sign up?

The next Communities of Practice launch in late April 2023. Registration is now open and is due by March 31st, 2023.