(PNS) The UKirk board of directors has called Rev. Virginia “Gini” Norris-Lane as the executive director and campus ministry advocate for UKirk.
UKirk provides professional support, empowerment and community for people engaged in campus ministry on behalf of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)
“We were overwhelmingly impressed by the pool of candidates, a reminder of how deeply talented our campus ministers all across the country are,” said Rev. Katie Owen Aumann, chair of the board’s search committee, in a news release. “Gini rose to the top because of her depth of experience, her enthusiastic commitment to college students and her deep desire to pastorally support campus ministers. We believe she will bring fresh energy to the UKirk network and are excited to have her on board.”
Owen Aumann said Norris-Lane brings experience and vision as she steps into the role.
“I am honored and excited to come alongside this outstanding UKirk board and work with them to support and expand the campus ministry network of the PC(USA),” Norris-Lane said. “The ministry being done with young adults across the nation is transformative — not only for them but also for the church — and I am thrilled to be able to share the stories of how God’s Spirit is working across the nation on college campuses and in congregations to inspire college students in discipleship and service.”
The role of executive director and campus ministry advocate is jointly to share the story of campus ministry and to support and connect ministries within the UKirk network. “I look forward to coming alongside campus ministry practitioners to help support, equip and encourage them so they may be strengthened for their important work,” Norris-Lane said.
She’ll begin her work later this month by gathering with the UKirk board to set priorities for the coming year.
Norris-Lane steps into this new role having previously served as campus minister at Schreiner University in Kerrville, Texas. She holds degrees from Temple Junior College (AA), Baylor University (BS in Education), and Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary (MDiv). She is currently working on her doctoral degree at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. She has been ordained in the PC(USA) for 20 years, having served congregations in San Antonio and Georgia and coordinating a grant for the PC(USA) from the Lilly Endowment prior to her career in campus ministry.
She and her husband, Wes, and her two sons live in Kerrville, Texas with their two dogs, Hank and Blitz.
Gini, as she likes to be called, has written curriculum for the PC(USA) on the Book of Revelation and has published articles for the Columbia Theological Seminary journal and for “Branching Out,” the Presbyterian College Chaplains Association publication. She has led retreats at Mo-Ranch Conference and Retreat Center and at various congregations across Texas and has served on local and national boards for non-profits.
Active also in interfaith work, she and her colleague and friend Rabbi Allison Bergman Vann have led workshops on interfaith engagement in San Antonio, Texas and Cleveland, Ohio.
Contact Norris-Lane at ukirknational@gmail.com.
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