Perkins to Host 2017 Hispanic Youth Ministry Convocation

DALLAS (SMU) – The Hispanic/Latin@ Ministries Program at Perkins School of Theology will be hosting the Hispanic Youth Ministry Convocation on April 6-8.

The event, co-sponsored by the General Board for Higher Education and Ministry and the National Plan for Hispanic/Latino Ministry, will gather those engaged in ministry with Hispanic youth for an enriching time of learning and networking. Participants will select a focus area of ministry and attend workshops led by field experts. The experiences of Hispanic youth and young adults will be highlighted.

Specifically, participants will:

• Identify new ways of conceiving of Hispanic/Latino ministry with youth and young adults.
• Learn from the lived experiences of Hispanic youth.
• Be exposed to academic and practical resources to aid participants in ministry with Hispanic youth and young adults.
• Be challenged to create the foundation of a network that will support ongoing dialogue on ministry with Hispanic youth and young adults.

Workshops will be offered throughout the conference focusing on five specific subject areas: art, identity, social justice, spirituality and technology.

Elizabeth Tamez Méndez, the founder and executive director of New Generation3 – an international organization dedicated to training leaders, conducting research and providing consulting services – will deliver a lecture titled “Let the Times Declare! – Rethinking Youth Ministry” as well as lead a workshop titled “Who am I? – Identity Formation and Youth Ministry.” Méndez is an ordained minister with more than 25 years of ministerial experience, is a specialist in multicultural youth development and strategic planning.

The Hispanic Youth Ministry Convocation will commence Thursday, April 6, with the annual Barton Lecture, which this year will be delivered by Dr. Elizabeth Conde Frazier, the Vice President of Education and Dean of Esperanza College at Eastern University. A dinner prior to Dr. Conde-Frazier’s lecture, titled “Latin@ Jovenes: Children of the Reign of God,” will begin at 6 p.m. in the Great Hall of Highland Park United Methodist Church, followed by a 6:45 p.m. musical performance by Ubunto Kids, an afterschool violin program serving students at Ignacio Zaragoza Elementary in east Dallas.

The entire event will be bilingual and a headset will be provided for an onsite simultaneous Spanish translation of the plenary sessions for guests whose primary language is Spanish.

Registration fees for the Hispanic Youth Ministry Convocation are as follows: $25 for youth 18 and younger; $50 for college students/seminarians; and $95 for a general attendee. To register, go to regonline.com/hymc2017.

Perkins School of Theology, founded in 1911, is one of five official University-related schools of theology of The United Methodist Church. Degree programs include the Master of Divinity, Master of Sacred Music, Master of Theological Studies, Master of Arts in Ministry, Master of Theology, Doctor of Ministry, and Doctor of Pastoral Music as well as the Ph.D., in cooperation with The Graduate Program in Religious Studies at SMU’s Dedman College of Humanities and Sciences.