Breakout Sessions
We will have four breakout sessions this year. Learn more about them below.
Changing the Lens: OPTICS
This workshop provides an introduction into the power and impact of implicit bias, ways to counteract those biases, and the benefit of engaging with people of diverse cultures and experiences. Through dialogue and discovery, the mysteries of how our biases are developed are explored; techniques are considered for mitigating biases to foster equity and justice. Participants will also gain a greater capacity to implement and maintain culturally enlightened practices in the Church, workplace, and public engagement.
Speakers:
Suzanne Haley and Jacquelin (Jacky) McCoy, Changing the Lens
Hope and Healing for Creation:
What Christians Can Do for the Earth
The Bible repeatedly reminds us that the Earth is the Lord’s, yet God entrusted us with dominion over creation. Unfortunately, we often mistake dominion for domination, and the Earth and its inhabitants suffer. God is constantly at work to redeem creation and also calls us to that work. Join us to learn what it means to be a caretaker of God’s creation, why it matters now more than ever, and what you can do in your community and congregation.
Presenters:
Jarrod Davis and other members of the NC Conference Creation Care Committee
The Impact of COVID on the Gender Pay Gap
We’ll look at how the pandemic has challenged women with an increase in the gender pay gap, parental roles in the workforce, and challenges society will face from this discrepancy for years to come. We’ll look at the challenges that have been faced, the problems at hand, and potential solutions to help all women move forward from the consequences of the pandemic and women working outside of the home.
Presenter:
Ashley Harzog, Director of the Office of Women and Gender and the Associate Director of Intercultural Affairs at East Carolina University
Innovations in Worship, Discipleship, and Missional Evangelism
Innovations through embodied, incarnational, and online worship and discipleship that increases our encounters with the mystery of God and expands our capacity for holistic mission into our neighborhoods.
Presenter:
Tim Catlett, Executive Director for New Faith Communities