CER News Update - February 2026

By Central East Region of the UUA

Better Together Blog

A Welcomed Addition by Rev. Byron Tyler Coles, CER Regional Lead

headshot Lyn Cox

Ministry teams change and evolve, taking time to honor those transitions is important. It not only recognizes the ministry of the one who has departed, but it also welcomes the new partner into the work as their full selves. Between the inhale and exhale, we intentionally slow down to take stock of what it is that we are called to do and how we do it. In our context as your Regional Staff, we do the same as we are charged with fortifying your ministries as you lead with bold UU-idenity, spiritual depth, and generosity.

As we brought 2025 to a close, a hiring committee composed of Natalie Briscoe (Director of Congregational Life), Jessica York (former Director of Congregational Life), Pastor Kirk Freeman (Minister of Davies Unitarian Universalist Congregation), and myself conducted interviews for the next member of your Regional Staff. It is with great joy that I share that we have welcomed the Rev. Lyn Cox to the team. With their addition, your primary contact team is now complete, and we look forward to building and bolstering our partnerships with you across the region. Know that you are always welcome to contact any member of your Central East Region staff by email or by submitting a Partnership Activation Request Form.
Meet our new staff member by reading the rest of the post on the Better Together Blog.

UUA Congregation Certification

Let’s Stay Connected!
It’s that time of year again. Certification this year runs from January 5, 2026 through February 2, 2026.

You have likely received an email from the UUA IT team asking your congregation to certify for this year with a direct link to your congregation’s account. If you have not, it may be because your congregational leadership information is not up to date with the UUA, or that you have not provided them with an email address. Please make sure your congregation takes care of this. You can find details on the process in the emails from our IT team and on the UUA webpage about Certification. Learn more from our blog post on this topic.

Do note, this is the same location you can update your congregational leadership and if you haven’t done that yet for this church year, please do so! Questions? Please reach out to data services at data_services@uua.org and they will help you.

CER Minister and RE Gatherings

Ministers’ Gathering

If you are a minister serving of affiliated with a congregation in the Central East Region, you are invited to join CER staff for monthly gatherings. Register Today.

RE Gatherings

Starting this February, the Central East Region will be hosting monthly gatherings on topics related to religious education, with a choice of evening and daytime options: RE Essentials calls (2nd Wednesday evenings, one hour) or DeepRE Dive calls (2nd Tuesday mornings, 90 minutes). February’s topic is “Building community through RE—wherever you’re at!”

RE Essentials is ideal for very part-time or newer RE staff, congregations without paid RE staff, RE Committees learning together, and for folks re-starting programs. DeepRE Dive is for religious professionals with experience leading RE/faith development, including directors, ministers, and shared ministry leaders.

  • DeepRE Dive is on Tuesday 02/10, 11AM–12:30PM EST
  • RE Essentials is on Wednesday 02/11, 7–8PM EST

Registration is open.

Building Beloved Community Beyond the Binary

Illustrated hands representing the trans and nonbinary flag holding a chalice with the words Building Beloved Community Beyond the Binary.

Save the date for April 18, 2026! Building Beloved Community Beyond the Binary. An upcoming online event including a keynote presentation given by a transgender/gender nonconforming person, workshops from and for the trans community only, as well as additional workshops for cisgender people who are ready to learn more about how to be an ally. This event creates a space and time where transgender people, allies, advocates, and accomplices can bravely (and with more safety than usual) explore, learn and grow, bear witness, and be witnessed. Attendee registration details coming soon.

Introducing the Keynote Speaker — Logan Grendal. Bio coming soon! Follow Logan on Instagram @focusoninfinity

Interested in being a host site for this event? Sign up on the interest form for more information. Signing up on this form is neither a commitment to host nor approval to host, but an expression of interest in hosting. We will forward your information to your regional staff, and they will reach out to you with next steps.

Congregational Life Events

March is Small Congregation Month

The UUA’s Congregational Life Small Congregations Team is hosting a month of learning for small congregations. This year’s theme is Small Congregations: We’re Doing the Work. Four webinars over 4 weeks on these topics:

  • Creativity in Small Congregation RE, March 3rd
  • Mobilizing for Climate Justice, March 12th
  • Container for Justice, March 18th
  • Holding the Sacred, with the Congregational Leaders Conversation, March 24th.

Webinar dates are March 3rd, 12th, 18th at 8 pm and the 24th at 7:30 pm ET and will last 75-90 minutes. The webinars will be recorded and available to everyone who registers. Registration is on a sliding scale with a maximum cost of $20. Registration will open in early February.

Congregational Leaders Conversation Tuesday, Febuary 24, 7:30-9pm ET: Restorative Justice Practices in UU Congregations

Our guest, Aisha Hauser, will outline the basic tenets of restorative and transformative justice and invite us into conversation about the ways we already affirm many of these practices in our spaces. Together, we will explore how these principles might guide us, as congregational leaders, in practicing accountability, repairing harm, and deepening safety within our communities. What might justice look like within communities like ours, that seek to be places that nurture the spirit and honor the inherent worth and dignity of each person?

Aisha Hauser (she/her) is one half the Lead Ministry Team of the Church of the Larger Fellowship and an accomplished religious educator, facilitator, author, curriculum developer, and anti-racism advocate. Register today.

Southern Region Primer Leadership Experience

The Primer section is a self-paced experience with recorded lectures, supplemental materials, and one live processing session. The topics covered in the Primer LE are UU Theology, Covenant, and UU History. This section is for newer members who would like a grounding in our shared faith AND for long-time members who would like to deepen their relationship with our shared faith as well as gain a fuller understanding of what it means to be an every-day Unitarian Universalist. Learn more!

News from the UUA

The Media Scares Me!

February 5 at 11 am ET.
Part 2 of the UUA Communications Foundational Webinar Series
Does the idea of talking to reporters fill you with dread? What’s the difference between Instagram and TikTok, anyway? In the midst of social instability and other challenges, are you wondering how you and your congregation’s public presentation matters? The UUA’s Communications Staff Group is presenting a Communications Foundational Webinar Series to help your congregation build your communications skills and capacity, share your stories, and manage crises. This series is designed to help Unitarian Universalist (UU) congregations and communities promote UU values, highlight your mission and work to audiences inside and outside of Unitarian Universalism, and cultivate relationships with local media. Register today.

Benefits Tune-Up Workbook

The Benefits Tune-up Workbook, updated annually by UUA Church Staff Finances, helps congregational leaders understand UU benefit plan rules – necessary documents, eligibility criteria, enrollment windows, and more. We’ve just published our 9th edition! Ensure plan compliance by having good protocol in place for benefits administration. Link to Benefits Tune-up Workbook page.

Sustainable Staffing Strategizers Wave Cohort

Are you eager to pursue creative, values-based approaches to aligning your missional priorities and staffing with your financial resources? We’ll discuss staffing trends, models, and challenges; explore leadership frameworks and emerging approaches; envision small-bet experiments; and more. Light assignments between sessions will help you apply your learnings and share your imaginings. By the end of our time together, you should have greater clarity about possible directions – and thought partners from within and beyond your congregation. Multiple leaders from a single congregation are welcome to apply! Join Jan Gartner and others for six weekly 75-minute sessions: Tuesdays, March 3 through April 7, starting at 3p ET. Learn more and apply to participate.

The Spark RE and Music Leadership Professional Development Programs provide Unitarian Universalist Religious Professionals learning communities within which they can easily access applicable skills and tools for religious leadership. Courses are also open to interested lay leaders. Check out the lists of classes, these are great resources!

The UUA has a Disaster Relief Fund for those who want to make a donation to help congregations who have faced losses due to tornadoes, earthquakes, hurricanes, wildfires and more. Please donate if you can. Learn more about the work of the Disaster Relief Fund. We are Better Together.

Side with Love Events

Side with Love logo

Upcoming Gatherings

30 Days of Love 2026

Love At The Center: Reimagining the World As It Could Be 
At a time when fear, violence, and extraction dominate our politics and our planet, we practice another way. We believe love is not fragile; it is fierce. It grounds our organizing, fuels our imagination, and sustains our communities. Over five weeks, we will move through a journey from imagination to action, rooting our freedom dreams in faith and bringing them to life in our world. Each week, we will have a written reflection from Side With Love staff; a conversation with a UU theologian; a multigenerational family activity; reflection questions for journaling; a meditative body practice; and a coloring sheet connected to the weekly theme. Sign up to receive an email and/or text when each week’s content is live.

Camps and Institutes

Winter Institute 2026 Last Call for Registration

In these difficult times, we are reminded how sacred it is to be in community, raising our voices in song, sharing meals together, and enjoying togetherness. The WI Planning committee is delighted to invite you to join us in-person for Winter Institute at Salt Fork! But this is our last call for registration! The deadline of Feb 6th is fast approaching, and we have not yet achieved our “break even” point of participation! If you plan to join us for a fabulous week of cozy community at Winter Institute at Salt Fork State Park Lodge, register NOW! You may still benefit from the group rate for your room, as they are available, though the guaranteed availability date has passed. First make your hotel reservations at Salt Fork at 740-435-9000. Please tell them you would like to book a room under the UU Winter Institute 2026 block. After making your reservation, register for WI STAT!

Summer Institute 2026

The Summer Institute Planning Committee is pleased to announce that the 2026 Theme speaker will be Rev. Susan Ritchie, speaking on Co-Creating Hope: The Art and Beauty of Resilience. Join us at Oberlin College in Oberlin, OH, July 5-11, 2026. Job applications are now open and morning seminars have been posted. Registration will open in March.

Visit the websites of the camps in our region to learn more about their programs:

Calendar Items and News

For events, webinars and congregation news and events visit the following pages: