CUWAA's Dean of Education Dr. Jim Pingel displays a Concordia chocolate bar and golden ticket. Starting Oct. 6, over 3,000 people from around the world will come “Together” in Milwaukee for the 2022 LEA Convocation. Be sure to connect with Concordia if you’ll be at the event!
Since 1984, the Lutheran Education Association has facilitated these rich and robust gatherings for Lutheran educators around the world. This week’s convocation is the 14th in LEA’s history. According to LEA Executive Director Dr. Jonathan Laabs: “The convocation exemplifies everything LEA embraces: networking, encouragement, professional growth, and, of course, celebration and joy in our callings.”
Perhaps you are a first-time attendee and/or want to experience this LEA Convocation to the fullest. Convocationing has never been easier than with “LEA Convocation 101: the CUWAA guide,” with five insider tips for optimal engagement enjoyment.
1. Keynotes are key.
The Convocation Steering Committee goes to great lengths to develop a program that will meet the needs and capture the imagination of thousands. This year’s keynote line-up is no exception. Where else can you hear from a best-friend pair of acting, comedic, and improvisation aficionados and an Olympic gold medalist at one event? Accordingly, The Skit Guys and Scott Hamilton promise to bring new insights and inspiration to this week’s convocation.
As Lutheran educators, we have the privilege of sharing the joy of the Lord each and every day. Shouldn’t our triennial convocation feature keynote speakers who can share that with us as well?
2. Get your swag on.
A distinctive draw of professional conferences is promotional merchandise, aka swag, giveaways. The LEA Convocation is no exception, as thousands of Lutheran educators will attest. Be sure to visit the Exhibit Hall during your time at this year’s convocation to gather the myriad of stickers, pens, and apparel that is yours for the taking.
Spoiler alert: if you like chocolate (and/or have always wanted to claim a Golden Ticket), you must stop by the Concordia University Wisconsin and Ann Arbor exhibit booth!
3. Break out your schedule and attend those breakout sessions.
One of the challenges and realities of full-time ministry as a Lutheran educator is that one spends so much time in the classroom with students that it is hard to make time for professional growth and development. The LEA Convocation offers amazing sessions on an astronomical array of relevant topics, and they are facilitated by caring and expert practitioners from throughout the LCMS.
In honor of this 14th LEA Convocation, CUWAA faculty members will be facilitating 14 sessions this week! (Preview their upcoming sessions on the School of Education Facebook page.) Be sure to not only take in their sessions, but also plan to meet with our faculty facilitators afterward at the CUWAA exhibit booth.
4. Spend time, well, TOGETHER.
After navigating daily life and ministry through COVID-19, who doesn’t want to spend time with three thousand of their Lutheran brothers and sisters?! The 2022 LEA Convocation theme of “Together” from Ephesians 2:19-22 comes at a perfect time.
So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.
Ephesians 2:19-22
How does this look, practically? In addition to myriad informal opportunities to meet, reconnect, laugh with, and/or encourage one another, there are also formal opportunities to be together in Christian fellowship each day of the convocation:
- Thursday, October 6 | The Convocation Banquet
- Friday, October 7 | Alumni receptions surrounding the Wisconsin Center (Please make plans to join us at Oak Barrel Public House)
- Saturday, October 8 | Convocation Closing Worship
5. Renew your mind, body, and spirit!
“Convocation is a compelling word, and it’s one we use with great intent,” shares Dr. Laabs. “A convocation is literally a ‘calling together’ of people, usually for a formal academic purpose. These educators come because of their shared dedication to the Lutheran teaching ministry. They come to be equipped and encouraged, both by the formal elements of the program, but most of all by one another.”
Whether this will be your first LEA Convocation or your fourteenth, God has great things in store for you! Embrace this opportunity for growth and renewal at the convocation through the power of the Holy Spirit.
This now concludes LEA Convocation 101. We at Concordia University Wisconsin and Ann Arbor look forward to being together with you this week. Please stop and visit us at Booth 101 in the Exhibit Hall!
Connect with us!
We can’t wait to see you at the LEA Convocation! Here are three can’t-miss opportunities to connect with us:
- Stop by our booth – We’re at Booth 101 in the Exhibit Hall!
- Snag a Concordia chocolate bar (with the chance to win a golden ticket which grants major discounts for anyone looking to enroll in one of Concordia’s grad ed programs) – Look for a Concordia employee roaming the Convention Hall with the bars.
- Attend the CUWAA alumni reception at Oak Barrel Public House (on Friday, Oct. 7 from 6-9 p.m.) Please be sure to reserve your spot!
This story is written by Dr. Michael Uden. In his role as Vice Provost of Student Enrollment and Engagement, Dr. Uden oversees efforts to enroll students and to provide them with the support to complete their academic goals successfully.