[NCC News] Baptist educator joins NCC
New York City, April 16, 2007--The Rev. Mayra Castañeda has agreed to serve as assistant director of Education and Leadership Ministries at the National Council of Churches USA (NCC). The Rev. Castañeda is ordained in the American Baptist Churches USA. She begins her new duties today.
"Mayra is an experienced pastoral educator and child advocate," said the Rev. Garland Pierce, NCC's associate general secretary of Education and Leadership Ministries Commission (ELMC), in making the announcement. "I am excited about Mayra's gifts, experiences, and passions that she will add to our shared ministry among the ELMC staff."
Castañeda comes to the NCC having most recently served as coordinator of Continuing Education and director of the Certificate in Theological Studies program at New Brunswick (N.J.) Theological Seminary. Prior to that Castañeda served as the National Christian Education Coordinator for the Board of National Ministries, American Baptist Churches USA, Valley Forge, Pa. In that capacity, she served on the NCC's committee on Justice for Children and their Families.
She holds both a Master in Christian Education and a Master of Divinity from Northern Baptist Theological Seminary, Lombard, Ill.
The Education and Leadership Ministries Commission engages in ministries of education, faith formation, and leader development for persons and communities by providing a dynamic ecumenical setting in which denominations and other institutions gather. The 14 program ministries and one consultation cover a wide array of ministry areas: family and age-level, specific cultures and settings, curriculum research and development, professional nurture and support, and education and advocacy. ELMC's signature product is the Uniform Lessons Series, a guide for Sunday School curriculum used in hundreds of Protestant congregations across the nation and abroad, annually published since 1872.
The NCC is the ecumenical voice of America's Orthodox, Protestant, Anglican, historic African American and traditional peace churches. These 35 communions have 45 million faithful members in 100,000 congregations in all 50 states.
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