Cohorts

Why The Ministry Collaborative?

We firmly believe that this is truly one of the most exciting times to be in ministry. God’s disruption of what we’ve long known ministry to be is simultaneously God’s creation of new opportunities for imagination, creativity, connection, innovation, and deep faithfulness. So, simply put, we believe you’re worth the investment! Yes, you’ll benefit in various ways from being connected to the TMC network through a cohort and other avenues, but more importantly, we will all be a part of something much bigger than cohorts; we’ll be sharing in God’s mission to reconcile, restore, and redeem the world in surprising and unanticipated ways.

When you join a cohort, you’re signing on to a journey of a lifetime. We truly believe that. This isn’t a weekend get-together or a single summer session. It’s much more comprehensive than that. A sustained, three-year commitment in which deep bonds are formed and mutually instructive relationships are nurtured is nothing short of transformative. It results in life-long relationships, support, and a network of resources.

Contact us to learn more about the Cohort Program

Our Cohort Network

Choose a state to see their cohort locations.

Georgia

Current

Atlanta, GA 3
Facilitator: Megan Johnson
Participants: 12

January 1, 2017 – January 1, 2020

Atlanta, GA 4
Facilitator: Marthame Sanders
Participants: 14
January 1, 2018 – January 1, 2021

Columbia Theological Seminary
Facilitators: Marthame Sanders & Amina McIntyre
Participants: 10
January 1, 2019 – January 1, 2022

Alumni

Atlanta, GA 1
Facilitator: Tom Tewell
Participants: 18
August 1, 2008 – June 1, 2011

Atlanta, GA 2
Facilitators: Tom Tewell & Joanna Adams
Participants: 19
January 6, 2010 – January 6, 2013

Candler Divinity School
Facilitators: Bob Winstead & Anne Burkholder
Participants: 22
September 1, 2011 – September 30, 2015

Alabama

Current

Tuscaloosa, AL
Facilitator: Joseph F. Scrivner
Participants: 12
January 1, 2017 – January 1, 2020

Birmingham, AL 2
Facilitator: Adam Mixon
Participants: 14
January 1, 2018 – January 1, 2021

Alumni

McAfee Divinity School
Facilitator: Loyd Allen
Participants: 22

Birmingham, AL
Facilitators: Ed Hurley & John Cantelow
Participants: 9
January 1, 2014 – January 2, 2017

North Carolina

Current

Charlotte, NC
Facilitator: Joe Clifford
Participants: 15
January 1, 2018 – January 1, 2021

Warsaw, NC
Facilitator: Ted Thomas
Participants: 9
February 1, 2016 – March 1, 2019

Oxford, NC
Facilitator: Willie Darby
Participants: 12
January 1, 2017 – January 1, 2020

Future

Clinton/Warsaw, NC
Facilitator: Ted Thomas
Participants: 12
January 1, 2019 – December 31, 2021

Alumni

Asheville, NC
Facilitator: Denise Thorpe
Participants: 19

Wake Forest Divinity School
Facilitators: Neal Walls & Bill Leonard
Participants: 22
January 1, 2014 – January 2, 2017

California

Alumni

Stadia LA
Facilitator: Kevin Haah
Participants: 21
January 1, 2013 – January 2, 2016

Montana

Alumni

Glacier Presbytery
Facilitator: Ed Albright & Allen Foster
Participants: 15

Montana

Current

Williston, ND
Facilitator: Jon Wellumson
Participants: 12
February 1, 2018 – February 1, 2021

Alumni

Watford City, ND
Facilitators: Sheldon McGorman & Father Brian Gross
Participants: 8
January 1, 2015 – January 1, 2018

Minnesota

Current

Twin Cities, MN
Facilitator: Jack Fortin & Kelly Chatman
Participants: 14
January 28, 2016 – February 1, 2019

Iowa

Alumni

Northern Iowa Presbytery East
Facilitator: Dave Feltman
Participants: 14
January 1, 2015 – January 1, 2018

Northern Iowa Presbytery West
Facilitator: Dave Feltman
Participants: 16
January 1, 2015 – January 1, 2018

Michigan

Alumni

Detroit, MI
Facilitator: Leon Stevenson
Participants: 12
January 1, 2019 – December 31, 2021

Kentucky

Alumni

Louisville Theological Seminary
Facilitator: Patricia Tull & Jane Larsen-Wigger
Participants: 21

Virginia

Alumni

Presbytery of the James
Facilitator: George Conway
Participants: 10
January 5, 2014 – January 5, 2017

Texas

Current

Austin, TX
Facilitator: Carrie Graham
Participants: 14
January 1, 2018 – January 1, 2021

Fort Worth, TX
Facilitator: Charles Johnson
Participants: 12
January 1, 2017 – January 1, 2020

Alumni

Dallas / Ft. Worth, TX
Facilitator: Charles Johnson
Participants: 15
January 1, 2013 – January 2, 2016

Florida

Alumni

Jacksonville, FL
Facilitator: Neely Towe
Participants: 11
January 1, 2014 – January 2, 2017

Delray Beach, FL
Facilitator: Doug Hood
Participants: 8
January 1, 2015 – January 1, 2018

New Jersey

Alumni

Princeton, NJ
Facilitator: Shane Berg
Participants: 22

New York

Current

New York, New York
Facilitator: J.C. Austin
Participants: 10
January 4, 2016 – January 4, 2019

Future

New York, NY 2
Facilitator: Kate Flexer
Participants: 12
January 1, 2019 – December 31, 2021

Ohio

Future

Columbus, OH All Female Cohort
Facilitator: Amy Miracle
Participants: 12
January 1, 2019 – December 31, 2021

Alumni

Stadia OH
Facilitator: Tom Jones & David Cauble
Participants: 23

46

Cohorts

574

Participants

50

Facilitators

631

Congregations

Who and What is a Cohort?

Cohorts are highly committed, supportive, and collaborative learning communities of 10-15 ministry leaders who make a three-year commitment to one another and to the process of learning and growing together. In order to increase the probability of generative learning and impact in the lives of participants and their communities, cohorts are designed to represent the diversity of their local community. Combining high levels of diversity with high levels of commitment for a duration of three years results in an experience that is deeply transformative and, for many, life-changing.

Cohort participants develop lasting relationships and discover new ideas and innovative ways of reaching and leading their communities. Each cohort includes:

  • High Level of Shared Commitment
  • Trained Facilitators
  • Contextualized Peer Learning
  • Access to Leading Voices
  • Formative Immersion Experiences
  • Community Engaged Congregations

Cohorts Gallery

CohortsCohortsCohortsCohortsCohortsCohortsCohortsCohortsCohortsCohortsCohortsCohortsCohortsCohortsCohortsCohortsCohortsCohortsCohortsCohorts

Deeper Learning for Sustaining Ministry

The Ministry Collaborative’s focus isn’t on “skilling up” ministry leaders. Yes, skills like fundraising, conflict management, and preaching better sermons are important, but if pastors are to effectively deploy these skills for the long term, they require growth at a much deeper level where things like sustainability, adaptivity, and intuition are developed. Here are some areas we’re currently focused on:

  • Capacity Building
  • Developing Adaptivity
  • Nurturing Healthy Leadership
  • Stewarding Change
  • Creating Cultures
  • Sustainable Ministry Economics
  • Recovering and Deploying Joy
  • Digging a Deeper Well
  • Creativity, Risk Taking & Innovation
  • Congregational Witness & Vocation
  • Dec-entering Ministry & Mission

Our Network

The Ministry Collaborative continues to expand both regionally and strategically with cohorts all across the United States and abroad. We remain committed to serving pastors in a variety of settings, especially the “hard” places, meaning places that don’t have as many available resources, places where the presence of Christian faith is rapidly vanishing, places where there are acute social, racial, and economic divides, and so forth. This trust building and resource sharing across these barriers serves as a model for what we hope to see in congregations and communities everywhere. If you’re interested in learning more about where our cohorts are located, or the other ways that we might be able to come alongside you in ministry, click the link below.