NOVA Cluster Shares Adult RE Programming

NOVAsite

NOVA (Northern Virginia Cluster) website.

The Northern Virginia (NOVA) cluster religious educators have come up with a way to expand the religious education offerings for their adult members. They have created a website that lists Adult RE programming at each congregation that is open to members outside the host congregation. Cluster members now have one place where they can check out what opportunities are available. The site, which is still in development, sorts the classes by source so folks can easily find what interests them. Eventually the plan is to include a calendar so individuals can check for classes chronologically. Other types of indexes may follow.

Ann Richards, Director of Lifespan Spiritual Growth and Religious Education at Mount Vernon Unitarian Church and the creator of the website, says the site has been in the works for over a year. She states, “In our geographic area, there are so many UU churches within driving distance and we should be taking advantage of that." Having the Adult Religious Education Renaissance Module in the area last year also helped religious educators in the area think about the possibilities.

This site provides several opportunities. Professional religious educators can now see what is being offered in the cluster which helps with future planning. Religious educators who have a gap in their own programming can direct members to another site, or perhaps find a class that better fits their schedule.

The site does not list every religious education offering at every congregation in the cluster. Each church chooses which classes to include. Some programs might not be posted because they are experimental or they are specific to the home congregation, such as new member classes.

When asked what she hopes the site can provide, Ann responded, “I hope other clusters will do this as well. It just makes things so much easier.”

You can check out their site.