Giving Thanks for the Connection in Ministry
Bishop Ward gives thanks for the connectional church in ministry together and looks forward to the gathering of the connection at Annual Conference in this week’s Connections.
Day of Discussion on Public Education
The NC Council of Churches’ 2014 Critical Issues Seminar on Public Education will be at United Church of Chapel Hill on June 16. Opening worship at 9 a.m. will be led by Bishop Hope Morgan Ward. A keynote message will be brought by Dr. Mike Ward, former NC Superintendent of Public Instruction. A roundtable discussion by leaders of DPI, the community colleges and the UNC system will focus on the state of education in NC and on what people of faith can do to help.
The afternoon will include a series of workshops on education issues, from vouchers to violence in schools, from Common Core to teacher salaries.
The cost for the day is $25 including a light breakfast and a lunch. There is a special registration fee of $15 for educators and students. Please register by June 9 to guarantee lunch, which will be provided by the Inter-Faith Food Shuttle’s Catering with a Cause program. Seminar participants are encouraged to bring a donation of food for the IFFS Backpack Buddies program. Their needs can be found here.
Pfeiffer University Announces Degree in Music and Worship
The Pfeiffer University Music Department has announced a new Bachelor of Arts degree program in Music and Worship beginning in fall 2014. The program supports current trends in music and worship leadership and addresses the need for trained professionals in this field by providing comprehensive and cross-disciplinary training in required knowledge and skills. Aligned with Pfeiffer’s emphasis on Christian and servant leadership, the program will prepare students to succeed in a wide variety of music professions. Benefits to this program include matching scholarship opportunities through the UM Scholarship Program and other related foundations for students who are members of a United Methodist Church, certification in Music Ministry in the United Methodist Church, and small classes and faculty with academic credentials and experience in music and worship. For more information, go to Pfeiffer.
Looking for Change the World Stories
The Conference Communications office and NCC Christian Advocate staff are seeking stories about how local churches served and celebrated Change the World weekend, May 17-18. A health fair for the underserved? Packing backpacks for children with food for the weekend? Sorting books for the Give 5 Read 5 initiative? There are so many ways for the people of God to change the world. Send stories and photos to: advocate@nccumc.org.