Certified Lay Minister Application | Laity Ministries | North Carolina Conference of The United Methodist Church

**The application deadline for the 2025-2026 CLM cohort is August 29, 2025. The first in-person meeting is September 27, 2025. If you have any questions, please reach out to Josey Snyder (josey.snyder@nccumc.org).

Data on Applicant

Name(Required)

Prefix First Middle Last Suffix

Preferred First Name(Required)

By what name do you prefer to be addressed? (Example: Cathy instead of Catherine; Bob instead of Robert.) Default is legal first name.

Address

Street Address Address Line 2 City State / Province / Region ZIP / Postal Code Country

Phone(Required)

Email(Required)

Enter Email Confirm Email

Birth Date(Required)

Gender(Required)

Race/Ethnicity(Required)

Dietary Restrictions(Required)

During our in-person days, we like to arrange a group meal. Do you have any dietary restrictions the group will need to be aware of for meal planning?

Data on Applicant's Church

Please enter the following data about the church where you are a member. Part of your application includes “signatures” from your pastor, church council chair, and s/pprc chair. You will also need the support of your district superintendent. Certified lay ministry is a team ministry and these individuals are a part of your team! Please be sure you are in communication with all four. When you submit this application, we will send automated emails your pastor, church council chair, and SPRC chair. They will then be prompted to fill out a very brief form acknowledging their support of you entering this program. That form counts as their “electronic signature.” We will also reach out to your district superintendent to confirm their support of your application.

Church Name(Required)

District(Required)

This form is only for those interested in becoming certified lay ministers in the North Carolina Conference. In which North Carolina district is your church located?

Pastor's Name(Required)

First Last

Pastor's Email(Required)

Enter Email Confirm Email

Church Council Chair's Name(Required)

If you are the church council chair, please enter your own name and email here. When you receive the email requesting that you fill out the recommendation form for yourself, you can forward that form to an appropriate substitute. Consult with your pastor on the best person to fill out that recommendation in your place.

First Last

Church Council Chair's Email(Required)

Enter Email Confirm Email

Staff / Pastor-Parish Relations Committee Chair's Name(Required)

If you are the S/PPRC chair, please enter your own name and email here. When you receive the email requesting that you fill out the recommendation form for yourself, you can forward that form to an appropriate substitute. Consult with your pastor on the best person to fill out that recommendation in your place.

First Last

Staff / Pastor-Parish Relations Committiee Chair's Email(Required)

Enter Email Confirm Email

Education and Leadership

Education(Required)

Please very briefly describe your educational background, including the highest form of education you have received. If you have participated in any formal theological training (Course of Study, seminary, etc.), please describe.

Local Church Leadership(Required)

Briefly describe your involvement in your local church, such as leadership positions, groups you enjoy, church activities, etc.

District/Conference Leadership

If you have served in any leadership capacity at the district or conference level (committees, delegate, etc.), please describe.

Community Leadership

Describe your community involvement and volunteer work, such as participation in community organizations, social clubs, service agencies, or any community outreach programs.

Calling

Interest(Required)

What draws you to certified lay ministry? What do you hope to gain through participation in this program?

Call(Required)

Knowing that continued discernment during the candidate training program may shift your goals, what can you share now about your understanding of your call? For example, do you envision your work as a CLM to take place in your home church? If so, in what capacity? Alternatively, if you are already serving as a supply pastor and/or you are interested in an assignment as a lay pastor of another congregation, please share that.

Commitment

Timing(Required)

Knowing that the time commitment for the candidate training program and your work as a certified lay minister is significant, what convinces you that now is the right time to pursue certification as a lay minister?

Required Session Days

This program requires full participation in five in-person meetings (10 AM – 3 PM) at the NC Conference Building in Garner. To ensure your availability, we ask that you check your calendar now and commit to attending all sessions. While we understand that illness may occasionally prevent attendance, we ask that you coordinate with your pastor and congregation to avoid scheduling conflicts with church meetings or events.

Yes! I commit to being present for the meetings on 9/27/2025, 11/8/2025, 1/31/2026, 2/28/2026, and 4/11/2026.

I have an unavoidable conflict with one of the session dates and would like to discuss whether this is the right year for me.

Financial Commitment

We strive to keep costs affordable, but participation in the program does include a financial commitment of approximately $350 over the course of the year. This does not include expenses related to the required Lay Servant Ministries prerequisite courses or travel to and from in-person sessions.

I intend to cover these costs myself and am able to make this financial commitment to my training.

I will ask my church to contribute toward these costs as part of their support for my training.

In addition to seeking support from my church, I anticipate requesting a scholarship from the Conference to help cover a portion of these costs.

Next Steps

LSM Course Prerequisites Needed(Required)

The following Lay Servant Ministries (LSM) courses are prerequisites for the CLM candidate training program. We offer these courses during the summer to help candidates meet the requirement, but we can also work with those who need to complete them at another time. Which of the following courses do you still need to complete? (Select all that apply.)

Basic Course in Lay Servant Ministries

Living our United Methodist Beliefs (UM History)

Life Together in the UMC (UM Polity)

I have completed all of these requirements.

Safe Sanctuaries(Required)

We offer a 4-hour Zoom Safe Sanctuaries course designed specifically for CLMs, pastors, and church leaders. If you have not yet completed this training, please plan to attend on January 3, 2026, from 10am to 2pm (ET).

I have already completed this requirement.

I need this course and will mark my calendar for January 3, 2026, 10am-2pm.

I anticipate needing an alternative way to meet this requirement.

GCORR Implicit Bias Class(Required)

One of the prerequisite courses is the Implicit Bias self-paced, online course offered by the General Commission on Religion and Race (GCORR). If you have not already completed this course, we will provide you with registration details. Please indicate your status below.

I need to take this course. Please send me the registration information.

I have completed this course and will upload my certificate here.

I have completed this course and will provide my certificate at a later time.

GCORR Implicit Bias Completion Certificate(Required)

Accepted file types: pdf, Max. file size: 49 MB.

Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI)(Required)

We will introduce the IDI at your orientation session in September. All CLM candidates will be asked to complete the IDI and participate in a 60–90 minute individual debrief to understand their results. No action is needed now, but please indicate your prior experience with the IDI.

I have already completed the IDI and participated in a debrief to understand my results.

I have taken the IDI before, but it has been more than two years, and I would like to take it again.

I have not taken the IDI before.

Questions / Feedback

Do you have any questions or concerns that you would like to share with us at this juncture?

Data on Applicant

Data on Applicant's Church

Education and Leadership

Calling

Commitment

Next Steps

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