As Susan Frederick-Gray mentioned during her president’s report at General Assembly in June, LeaderLab is a tremendous resource for congregational leaders. Discover LeaderLab resources.

You can go there for extensive training by taking one of the full length leadership courses from the Unitarian Universalist Leadership Institute that are designed to help leaders with the basics of leadership and to help them understand the unique complexities of leading in the context of our UU congregations. Enrollment for these online courses is typically in the fall, winter and summer. Registration for the fall courses is open now; classes begin September 6. For a complete list of the courses offered, both elective and on demand, visit UU Leadership Institute.

Perhaps you are not looking to commit to a full course, but just want to understand the basics of board leadership. We offer 12 modular training sessions that are particularly helpful for new board members, but everyone could use a little reminder on what it means to serve on the board of a religious organization. Board members could easily do these sessions at their own pace throughout the month and then participate in a discussion at the monthly board meeting. Review the Congregational Board Member Training.

Maybe you are not on the board, are not interested in taking a full course but have specific questions around an area of congregational life. LeaderLab has a searchable database to help you with just those kinds of questions. You can type in your topic and find links to videos, articles, on-demand webinars and other resources. Start searching the database.

If you are having an issue in your congregation you need help with, you can always reach out to your Congregational Life staff. Use LeaderLab as a resource to find information that relates to your specific issue. After you do some research on your own, you will be better equipped to have that conversation with any UUA staff person.

Just like Unitarian Universalism, LeaderLab is ever-evolving. New articles and videos are being added monthly. We welcome feedback as we continue to develop resources. We are all part of an ongoing and growing community. Please check out LeaderLab and let us know what you think by commenting or giving a star rating.

It is an honor to be on the design team for LeaderLab where we are living our mission to equip congregations, train leaders, and amplify our values.

Yours in faith,

Kathy McGowan, Jonipher Kwong, and Renee Ruchotzke