By Vicki Brown*
Aug. 30, 2007 | NASHVILLE, Tenn. (UMNS)

A cooperative ministry to provide ongoing academic and spiritual training for Hispanic leadership in the Western and North Carolina annual conferences was among four programs awarded a $10,000 ethnic in-service training grant by the United Methodist Board of Higher Education and Ministry.

The grants were approved during the Aug. 23-25 meeting of the board. The board also accepted recommendations from the Global Theological Education committee for funding theological education programs in Europe, Africa, Costa Rica and the Philippines.

The board accepted the recommendation of the Racial-Ethnic Concerns Committee to award the four grants to programs in North Carolina, Nebraska and California and also to fund a Black Methodists for Church Renewal program to train youth and young adults for General Conference, the top legislative body of The United Methodist Church.

The North Carolina Hispanic/Latino/A Leadership Academy is a cooperative venture of United Methodist-related Pfeiffer University, the Western and North Carolina annual conferences, and the Albemarle District Hispanic Ministries. The proposed academy aims to address the needs of the growing Hispanic population in North Carolina. It will gather quarterly for two-day sessions with a United Methodist professor in each of four areas: Bible, theology, Methodism and pastoral care.

According to the grant application, while about 500,000 Hispanics live in North Carolina, there is just one Hispanic elder in 30 appointments to Hispanic churches in both the Western North Carolina and North Carolina annual conferences. The rest of the churches are led by local pastors and lay missioners. The grant would provide ongoing academic and spiritual training.

Three other grants were approved conditionally and will be awarded when required letters of recommendation are provided to the board.

The grant to Black Methodists for Church Renewal would provide training to seven youth and young adults in parliamentary procedure and General Conference processes to prepare them for leadership positions in the church. The organization will select the trainees and conduct training sessions during its meeting Feb. 27-March 1, 2008.

A cross-racial, cross-cultural training program for Korean-American seminarians received money to help them experience and learn the practical aspects of cross-racial, cross-cultural ministry. The program in the California-Nevada Conference will be developed by the Rev. Henry Kim in cooperation with conference leadership, the seminary internship coordinator and the conference's Korean caucus.

A grant to the Rev. Patricia Gandarilla in Imperial, Neb., will help identify and train 50 adult and youth Hispanic leaders in Nebraska using strategies and curriculum of the National Plan on Hispanic Ministry. The training will be conducted in coordination with Hispanic leadership of the Rocky Mountain Conference in an effort to strengthen Hispanic ministry in both conferences.

The board also accepted a report from the Global Theological Education Committee that the following programs have been funded:

• The European Methodist Center for Leadership Development received $46,000 to implement the first part of a distance learning project to train faculty to develop online courses;
• $10,000 to fund a gathering of leaders to create an association of United Methodist theological schools of Africa;
• $2,000 for continuing education events for United Methodist pastors in the Philippines; and
• $15,000 for the training of Hispanic/Latino/a pastors through Latin American Biblical University in Costa Rica.

*Brown is an associate editor and writer in the Office of Interpretation, United Methodist Board of Higher Education and Ministry.

News media contact: Linda Green, (615) 742-5470 or newsdesk@umcom.org.

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Resources

United Methodist Board of Higher Education and Ministry

Office of Loans and Scholarships

United Methodist Communication's Racial Ethnic Resources

United Methodist Commission on Religion and Race

Grants