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Marcia McFee is a professor, worship designer, author, preacher, and ritual artist.  Drawing on a first career in professional dance and musical theater and equipped with a Master’s in Theology and a Ph.D in Liturgical Studies and Ethics, she understands the role of any worship artist in the church as that of creating extraordinary portals through which communities journey with the Spirit.  The task is at once deeply theological and wonderfully artistic.  Connecting worship professionals and volunteers to their passion and depth of spiritual leadership is her aim in teaching and consulting as well as equipping them with skills to carry this out.  She travels extensively, teaching and holding worship- planning retreats (www.marciamcfee.com).  Dr. McFee has designed and led worship for regional, national, and international gatherings of several denominations for the last 25 years, including the last two United Methodist General Conferences.

Dr. McFee is the Creator and Visionary of the Worship Design Studio (www.worshipdesignstudio.com), an online experience of coaching, educating, inspiring, and community-building that currently serves more than 1,000 congregations.  She is the author of The Worship Workshop, a workbook for worship teams, and, as an avid skier, wrote Spiritual Adventures in the Snow: Skiing and Snowboarding as Renewal for Your Soul.  Her third book, Think Like a Filmmaker: Sensory-Rich Worship for Unforgettable Messages, has become a bestseller and is utilized by churches all over the world.

Velda Love

A native of Chicago, Love brings to the national setting of the UCC her knowledge and expertise of critical race theory, leadership development, and community outreach, along with preaching, teaching, writing, and even fund development.

She was a member of Trinity United Church of Christ for more than 20 years.  That experience developed her spirituality, theology, biblical understanding, and racial justice from an African and African-American perspective.  That experience also led to being deeply committed to social justice, gender equality, issues of race, and eliminating racism.

Velda hopes to develop relationships with national staff and colleagues to understand how racial justice intersects with other issues, such as environmental justice, economic justice, criminal justice and mass incarceration, public education, millennial movement advocacy, and civil and human rights.  Accomplishing this work will assist in developing a curriculum for dismantling racism in church and society that is comprehensive and strategic for the short-term and long-range.

Prior to joining the UCC, Love spent nine years (2008-2017) at North Park Theological Seminary in Chicago as an adjunct professor and conference speaker, and served North Park University as the director of intercultural justice and learning for 16 years (2000-2016).

Love earned her bachelor's degree from Roosevelt University in 1990, and a master's degree from North Park Theological Seminary in 2006.  She attended Chicago Theological Seminary and obtained her D.Min. in 2016, and served various boards and task force that address interfaith dialogue, homelessness, and youth incarceration.

Velda believes that given this critical juncture in our nation, conversations on race are still a priority.  Racial justice and racial equality need to be part of our national dialogue.  As Christians in the United Church of Christ, we are responsible for changing the narrative of how we engage the Gospel of Jesus Christ that is inclusive, liberating, and radical.