Context and Orientation

The Wheaton Center for Faith and Disability (CFD) has received (or is pursuing) a Lilly Endowment program grant under the "Nurturing Children Through Worship and Prayer" initiative. The grant funds a five-year project called the Faith and Disability Convocation Framework, which aims to create sustainable cultural change in how churches include children and families impacted by disability in worship and prayer.

The framework has three core mechanisms:

  1. Convocation Events. One-day gatherings hosted by individual churches that bring together leadership and families affected by disability. These events are designed to catalyze cultural shifts toward inclusion without assigning blame.
  2. Consortium Network. A collaborative network of experts, pastors, worship leaders, disability ministry leaders, youth ministry leaders, and children's ministry leaders who share insights, best practices, and data.
  3. Faith and Disability Summits. Larger gatherings that bring together Convocation and Consortium participants to reflect on lessons learned and influence the national conversation.

The grant's four primary goals are:

  1. Make worship and prayer practices more inclusive, especially for children with disabilities.
  2. Elevate the voices of children and families affected by disability within faith communities.
  3. Form cohorts of pastors and ministry leaders to create inclusive worship and prayer services for all ages.
  4. Share effective strategies from experts in faith and disability.

This document translates those goals and the grant timeline into an operational roadmap for the Assistant Director.

Phase 1: Foundation (Spring 2025 through Fall 2026)

Strategic Objective

Stand up the operational infrastructure for Convocations, begin building the Consortium Network, and refine the Convocation process based on early learning.

Key Deliverables