Have you seen the Android commercial where the rock, paper, and scissors become friends? It’s the latest using the tag line, “Be Together. Not the Same.” I admit to loving these ads. My life has been full of experiences of being together with people in groups where I am different from the...

One of the first things I did as a new religious educator in the mid-1980s was to get in contact with those who had been doing the work for years and had much to share. I lived for monthly meetings of the Mass Bay Religious Education Team. I would come home brim full of ideas, enthusiasm, and love...

By Bart Frost My first congregational event as a brand new Director of Religious Education was an ordination. I was greeted with smiles, handshakes, and a keg sitting in a bucket of ice. This was my first professional gig and I had no idea about what the expectation was around drinking at...

The Central East Region offers a number of trainings for leaders in religious education programs in our congregations throughout the year. These trainings include Our Whole Lives Facilitator Trainings, Renaissance Modules and other trainings for religious education leaders. Youth trainings are...

The Sparks Program is expanding the opportunities for online learning in several ways. Online and hybrid modules may be sponsored by a group just as in-person module are....

You might not think that an historic resort on an isolated island would be the perfect place to talk about dynamic, innovative and faithful teamwork; but you’d be wrong! Last summer, 160 UUs came together for Lifespan Religious Education Week on Star Island and had a transformative experience in...

Last spring, 20 religious educators experienced continuing education that blended online and in-person learning in the first ever "hybrid" Renaissance module, co-led by Pat Infante and Gabrielle Farrell. ...

In a previous Call and Response post (Parents and “Fellow Laborers,” July 2013), we shared advice for parents from the famous Sunday School Address by William Ellery Channing (1780-1842). The Unitarian minister also had lots to say for those who teach in our religious...

‘Depression is way too hard without also thinking you’re alone. I want youth and kids to know it’s okay, even good sometimes, to struggle.’

The first completely online Renaissance module, UU History, has now been offered four times, including the field test in 2013. Participants have given glowing reports on the online learning format as well as the breadth and depth of the module’s content. It seems that using technology to explore...

The Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) presents the Angus H. MacLean award each year to someone who has made outstanding contributions to religious education. The award was established in 1972 by the St. Lawrence University Theological School Alumni Association and the Religious Education...

Professional Development for Religious Educators Just as we support members of our congregation in their spiritual growth and leadership capacity, it is important to encourage our staff in their professional growth and development. Enrichment opportunities abound, both within and beyond the...

By Judith A. Frediani [Editors' note: Reverend Dr. Roberta (Bobbie) Nelson died on January 2, 2015.] In 1997, the UUA’s pioneering sexuality education program, About Your Sexuality (AYS), was under attack on national television. The CBS network had obtained a copy of AYS’s explicit filmstrips.