General Agencies of the Church
The
denomination has 14 general (churchwide) agencies, each governed by a board of directors
selected from across the denomination, with attention given to racial, gender, age and
lay-clergy balance. Chief executive officers
are called "general secretaries."
The
General Council on Ministries coordinates church program and elects chief executive
officers for the four program agencies and five commissions of the church. Headquarters is in Dayton, Ohio. President is Bishop Woodrow J. Hearn, Houston;
general secretary is C. David Lundquist.
The
General Council on Finance and Administration, fiscal and record-keeping agency for the
denomination, administers trusts; coordinates and distributes church funds; and keeps
official membership, real estate and other records. Headquarters
is in Evanston, Ill. President is Bishop
Richard C. Looney, Macon, Ga.; general secretary is Sandra Kelley Lackore.
The
General Board of Church and Society, social action arm of the denomination, addresses
issues of global justice -- political, human, and economic rights; human welfare; and
environmental protection. It is based in
Washington. President is Bishop Charles W.
Jordan, Des Moines, Iowa; general secretary is the Rev. Thom White Wolf Fassett.
The
General Board of Discipleship provides training and resources for churches in Christian
education, evangelism, devotional life and worship, stewardship and lay ministries.
Headquarters is in Nashville, Tenn. President
is Bishop Mary Ann Swenson, Denver; general secretary is the Rev. Ezra Earl Jones.
The
General Board of Global Ministries, the denomination's largest program agency, recruits,
trains and deploys missionaries, and educates grass-roots United Methodists about global
and national mission concerns. Headquarters
is in New York. President is Bishop Dan E.
Solomon, Baton Rouge, La.; general secretary is the Rev. Randolph W. Nugent.
The
General Board of Higher Education and Ministry oversees ordained and diaconal ministries,
sets criteria for training United Methodist chaplains, coordinates United Methodist campus
ministries and oversight of institutions of higher learning and seminaries, and
administers loans and scholarships and the Black College Fund. Headquarters is in Nashville, Tenn. President is Bishop William B. Oden, Dallas;
general secretary is the Rev. Roger W. Ireson.
The
General Board of Pension and Health Benefits oversees $13 billion of assets used to
support various benefit plans for clergy and other church professionals. It is based in
Evanston, Ill. President is Bishop Bruce P.
Blake, Oklahoma City; general secretary is Barbara A. Boigegrain.
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