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Young Adult News
A monthly newsletter of the UUA Office of Young Adult Ministries November, 2008 - Issue 63 | |
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| UUA Action of the Month: World AIDS Day |
The Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) has launched an exciting new initiative called Action of the Month. Each month, the UUA implements robust action campaigns that aim to engage congregations and individual Unitarian Universalists (UUs). The monthly actions focus on accomplishing concrete objectives that reflect our faith values. For more information on the Action of the Month, visit the UUA Social Justice Page.
For November's Action of the Month, we invite you to prepare for World AIDS Day, December 1st, by pursuing and/or strengthening partnerships with organizations working with those impacted by HIV/AIDS. Visit the Social Justice page on the UUA website for partnership and worship resources. . | |
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| Welcome to the November Issue of Young Adult News! |
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Whether you're a long-time reader or a new subscriber to Young Adult News, welcome to the monthy newslettwer sent out by the Office of Young Adult Ministries at the Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations.
This issue is chock-full of informtative goodies, including: an announcement about the new Program Associate for Ministry to Youth and Young Adults of Color; information about CONTINUUM, the Birmingham, MI Unitarian Young Adult Conference; descriptive reports from the LREDA Fall Conference and the YACM Professionals Meeting and Training Event (both of which were held in October); and details on a job opening in the Washington Office.
Best wishes to everyone,
Hallie Andrew
Young Adult Ministiries Office Administrator |
| Announcing Monica Cummings: Program Associate for Ministry to Youth and Young Adults of Color |
The Youth Ministries Office and the Office of Young Adult Ministries are excited to announce that Rev. Dr. Monica L. Cummings joins us as our new Program Associate for Ministry to Youth and Young Adults of Color! Monica will fill this position part-time effective October 20th through early February at which time she will begin full-time hours from off-site. Monica's position will be housed with the Lifespan Faith Development staff group, but her work spans the youth and young adult offices.
Rev. Dr. Cummings is currently senior minister of the First Unitarian Church of Los Angeles. She received her Doctor of Ministry degree in Pastoral Care and Counseling and her Master of Divinity degree from the Claremont School of Theology. Monica served 26 months as a Peace Corps Volunteer in South Africa; she served two years as Co-Chair of the Journey Toward Wholeness Transformation Committee and she is also an active member of Diverse & Revolutionary Unitarian Universalist Multicultural Ministries (DRUUMM).
Please join us in welcoming Monica in this newly created and profoundly important position on our staff. We are grateful for the immense experience and critical expertise she brings to this ministry to youth and young adults of color and all who love and nurture them in our denomination.
-Nancy DiGiovanni |
| LREDA Fall Conference Report |
This year's LREDA (Liberal Religious Educator's Association) Fall Conference was an amazing event! The Rev. Dr. Rebecca Parker, President and Professor of Theology of the Starr King School for the Ministry, was the keynote speaker for the conference, the theme of which was "Building a Multigenerational Faith: Creating Wholeness in our Congregations". The conference was planned by a committee of UUA staff, current and former: Sue Sinnamon, Director of Faith Development, TJD-UUA; Laura Spencer, Program Associate for Racial and Ethnic Concerns: Assessment of Youth and Young Adult Ministries; Nancy DiGiovanni, Acting Co-Director of the Office of Young Adult Ministries; Jesse Jaeger, former Director of the Office of Youth Ministries, along with Cathy Seggel, Vice-President of the LREDA Board.
By carefully crafting every piece of the program, from didactic presentation to selection of workshop presenters, the team strove to provide attendees with a model for how to approach their ministry through a multicultural and multigenerational lens. Over those few days in Albuquerque, New Mexico, LREDA members contributed their expertise to group activities, networked with new colleagues and acquaintances and collectively contributed to a cultural shift necessary to our denomination. That shift, dependent on the work and ministry of those providing and guiding ministry and education, will inform and inspire our congregants toward building the beloved community, welcoming and embracing of all who enter our doors.
-Nancy DiGiovanni
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| YACM October Training and Meeting Event Report |
On the weekend of October 10-12th, twenty-five dedicated individuals gathered in at the UU Church of Washington Crossing in Titusville, NJ. To support current staff and professionals doing ministry to young adults and keep our own work on track with the needs of our constituency, the Office of Young Adult Ministries sought to create a container for conversation, networking and spirituality. We did that and more!
Folks traveled from all over the country, from as far west as San Diego to as far South as Sarasota. Over the course of two days, everyone engaged in both small and large group conversations about the current state of their ministry as well as their visions, hopes and intentions to improve advocacy, programs and ministry for young adults in our congregations. Each day, to keep our work accountable and viewed through an anti-racist and anti-oppressive lens, the group participated willingly and fully in several activities which made us think critically about our identities and how we can use that information most effectively in our work to serve all young adults of all identities and life stages.
We asked and answered the question of who we serve, including naming the myths we work to debunk about our targeted demographic. The group divided off according to the three levels of staffing we represented (denominational/ headquarters staff and continental orgs, district and local) and then reported back in a large group the services we currently provided to get a clearer picture of where we were overlapping or competing with each others' efforts. After making those careful observations as one large group, we summarized our findings to answer three crucial questions. Attendees self-selected which question they felt most passionately and we came together to see the results to the following 3 topics to spend more time and energy on this year:
a. How can we engender or bring about a culture change to a culture in which young adults are fully welcomed and fully integrated in all aspects of congregational life?
b. How can we improve our ministry to and with bridgers?
c. How can we expand and support our current Campus Ministry presence across the denomination?
We left with a multitude of new ideas, opportunities for collaboration, and deeply filled hearts. Young adult ministry is a selfless calling; one that plants many seeds hoping for a hearty yield. The Office gratefully thanks our hosts that weekend for their warm hospitality and all those who spent valuable time and money to be away from family, friends and other commitments to strengthen the work of our office, share their best practices with the convened group and participate in the beloved community we created in that building in central New Jersey. Look for a more complete report of our weekend's work on our page in the coming months.
-Nancy DiGiovanni |
| Birmingham UU Young Adults Conference: CONTINUUM |
| Birmingham Unitarian Young Adults (also known as BUYA) is holding an evening conference called CONTINUUM on Saturday, November 8, 2008, from 5 pm - 12 am.
Cost for the conference is $10, and includes dinner. The conference includes workshops, worship, music, art, and fantastic company! Anyone age 18 to 35 is invited. The church will be available for overnight stay if it is not feasible to drive home Saturday night.
Come on out, have some fun, & represent your group.
BUYA is a group of young adults, ages 18 - 35, who typically meet twice a month one meeting is devoted to worship and the exploration of social and spiritual relationships within the BUC and UU community, and one meeting is usually a social gathering. BUYA leadership and activity planning is rotated monthly in order to allow each individual the opportunity to share their unique experience and ideas with the group. Please contact Caitlin Sickels for additional information about BUYA or CONTINUUM @ 248-943-6702, or csickels1@hotmail.com. |
| Position Opening in UUA Washington Office |
The UUA's Washington Office for Advocacy is hiring a new Legislative Assistant for Women's Issues. The full job description can be found at the Social Justice Internship Program Page on UUA.org.
Title: Legislative Assistant for Women's Issues, UU Women's Federation Clara Barton Internship
Primary Role: Advocacy on public policy issues within the portfolio of gender and sexual justice, including monitoring legislation, working in coalitions, lobbying, mobilizing and supporting UU congregations and activists.
Term: Jan 2009 - Jan 2010 with a possibility of a one year extension through January 2011.
The goal of the UUA Social Justice Internship Program is to combine service, learning, and faith development in order to produce energetic young adults with the professional skills and strength of character to be lifelong leaders in Unitarian Universalism and working for social justice.
Applications must be received by noon EST on Monday, November 17th, 2008.
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| Contact the Office of Young Adult Ministries |
Hallie Andrew - Young Adult Ministries Office Administrator (617) 948-4645 - handrew@uua.orgNancy DiGiovanni - Acting Co-Director of Young Adult Ministries (617) 948-4629 - ndigiovanni@uua.orgErik B. Kesting - Acting Co-Director of Young Adult Ministries (617) 948-6463 - ekesting@uua.org | |
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