In most mainline denominations, ordaining women to pastoral office has become common, and women are well-represented in seminaries. Currently 50% of most student bodies in mainline Protestant seminaries are women, yet women make up less than 50% of clergy within mainline churches. Women are often called as solo pastors or associate pastors, but they are still significantly underrepresented in senior pastor positions.

Standing out from the crowd as a strong candidate, particularly to churches which have not had a woman senior pastor before, is a significant challenge. This program utilizes coaching to develop the capacities of women to serve in senior pastor positions, and will equip them to present themselves effectively as compelling candidates for those positions.

Commitment to developing women leaders has been a constant hallmark of Auburn’s work from when Auburn trained women as Christian leaders in the last century, to contemporary programs such as the Women’s Preaching Academy, the “Ain’t I Leader?” Program for African-American women, and its annual Lives of Commitment event. Auburn was the first Presbyterian Church (USA)-affiliated seminary to call a woman as its President, and is the first to have more than one woman president.

The two-year program will begin with an intensive residential that would include workshops on developing one’s leadership identity (i.e., sense of authority, presence, and style of power), leadership capacities (staff management, leadership development, fundraising/budget issues, etc.), and the dynamics of seeking and receiving a call as a senior pastor. It would also include multiple sessions with a coach to establish the relationship and set goals for the preparation and search process. That coaching relationship would then continue bi-weekly for the next two years as the learner journeys through the preparation and search process.

Check back here regularly for updates and announcements for this program.