By UTO Executive Committee

Due to our staff person needing to have surgery last month, we have moved the training day to June. The training will be recorded for those who cannot make the new date; and for those who can now make it, please register.

Register here
Register by Wednesday, May 30, at 9 a.m. Eastern time to ensure your swag bag arrives in time for the training. For those who register after May 30, it will be sent after the event.

It is time once again for our annual UTO training day! We are excited to invite you to spend some time with us learning about UTO and get a fun package of swag in the mail for attending. Below you’ll find all the details about the day, including some really cool changes to the workshops that we’re offering. Which is to say, if you think you’ve done a virtual training with UTO, this one will be quite different.

Let’s talk swag! This year our swag bag is actually a box—a UTO Bento Box! This bento box is made of recycled or sustainable materials and will come to you filled with a few of the giveaways we’ll have at General Convention in our booth. For those who can’t come to convention, this is a great way to see some of the new promotional materials that will then be available in your UTO material kits. We’ll also pop in one of our new UTO prayer booklets. You’re going to want this exclusive mailing!

What will we be doing in our workshops?
This year we’re offering three workshops. As you know, there are a lot changes for UTO alongside General Convention, so this training day is often the most jam-packed with new information. We’ll start with an opening reflection and welcome from current Board President Sherri Dietrich before launching into workshops hosted by the three committees of the UTO Board. We’ll end the day with some time for general UTO Q&A and a closing by new Board President Karin Elsen.

Workshop No. 1: 2025 UTO Grant Application Supporter Training
Many folks help with UTO grant applications, from the initial idea to completed and submitted packet. This year, instead of just walking you through the grant application, we are going to train you on what to look for when helping an applicant, when to ask for help, and how the new dual-deadline process works. The goal is to not have applicants get conflicting information locally by ensuring that our leaders have the best information accessible to them. If you complete the workshop and a quick online 10-question quiz, you’ll get a certificate saying that you’ve gone through the training, and we’ll list you on our website (if you would like) as someone trained locally to help with applications. You will also receive as much support as you request from UTO Staff and Board members during the application process to help your local applicant. It is our hope that this helps our leaders feel more confident in supporting applicants and helps our staff have more support in reviewing drafts. 

Workshop No. 2: 2024-2025 UTO Formation Updates
We’ve been foreshadowing a lot of changes that are coming to our UTO formation materials, and now will be the moment to learn all about the new ways we are resourcing congregations to grow in gratitude for the 2024-2025 program year. We’ll debut the new material ordering form and process, talk about the materials we offer, and how best to share them if you are a parish UTO leader or a diocesan UTO leader. This is a great chance to hear about what is coming so you can share it with your stewardship, formation, and other church leadership who might like access to free resources for congregational life.

Workshop No. 3: 2024-2027 New for UTO Leaders
Each triennium, the UTO Board reviews our leadership handbooks, and this year brings about some changes now that we are living into a new normal after the pandemic. During this workshop, we’ll share the new handbook for UTO leaders, go over some of the different and new ways we’re seeing that folks are leading UTO in parishes and dioceses, and help answer any questions or talk through things that are unclear or hard for you when it comes to leading UTO. This new approach is to really name that there’s no right way to lead, but if it isn’t bringing joy to lead UTO, then we want to support you in getting help so it is joyful.