For Children and Youth

Based on our First Unitarian mission, principles, and values, we welcome people in love, create connections, and foster inclusion for people of all identities and abilities. We facilitate lifelong learning and help people cultivate spiritual practices through social action and faith development. We recognize that this is a journey that we walk together, in compassion and justice.

First Unitarian offers a comprehensive faith development program for children and youth from infancy through early adulthood during the school year. In the summer, a program for young children is provided each Sunday.

Most Sundays during the church school year, young people age pre-kindergarten through seventh grade first go to their individual classrooms to check in and then go to auditorium for a chapel worship before returning to their classrooms. On holidays and other important Sundays, youth join adults in the Meeting House for a multigenerational service.

Chapel services incorporate a blend of music, art, meditation, stories, celebrations, and listening. Classes are taught by a dedicated group of volunteers who teach in teams.

Click below to watch a video introducing you to Mandy Neff, our Interim DRE, and to our program and how it works.

Registration

Welcome back to Spiritual Pathways for children and teens!

Please be sure your family is registered for the program:

Just enter your child’s name at the prompt, and be sure to check off all of your children’s names on the second screen.

Having trouble with Realm? Please contact Jenn Nardone (mem@firstunitarianprov.org) or Walter Sotelo (assist@firstunitarianprov.org) for help.

Class times

Groups meet from 10:30 to noon. A light snack is served.

We begin in the Auditorium at 10:30am with a Chapel service for children in levels Prek-7th grade.

8th graders please meet in the Haynes Room, 1st floor, at 10:30am.

High school aged teens, please meet in the Youth Room, Basement Floor, at 10:30am.

More information

You can find individual class descriptions and class meeting locations on the following pages.

Mandy Neff, First Unitarian’s interim director of religious education, is available Sunday – Thursday to talk with you, answer your questions, and help your children find their way to their classrooms.

For Adults

Adults are highly motivated to explore and navigate the joys, sorrows, opportunities, and challenges of our lives. Sometimes you find religious growth through deliberate engagement with programs, practices, readings, and small group discussions. Sometimes you grow in spirit through your life experiences: relationships, making a living, raising children, confronting injustice in the world, and facing illness, loss, or grief.

Programs for adults at First Unitarian support lifelong learning and spiritual development. Some programs meet every week of the year, and others meet just once or a few times.

From a white supremacy anti-racism discussion to an advanced healthcare directive workshop, we offer a range of programs for adults of all ages and stages of life. Explore the opportunities to get involved on the Adult Programs page. Be sure to check for new programs that continually will be added and announced throughout the church year.

What is an Interim Year?

An Interim year is a time of intentional growth and change to prepare for new, settled professional leadership. This is Year 2 of our Interim religious education search process.

In Year 1 we focused on History & Heritage, Denominational Connections, and Core Values, creating a congregational history timeline, sending a team of youth and adult delegates to the UUA General Assembly, and updating the Spiritual Pathways mission with inclusive language and a focus on cultivating spiritual practices.

This year, we will turn our attention to Core Stories, Leadership Development, and the Future of the Spiritual Pathways Program. We have formed a search team with the goal of hiring a settled DRE in spring of 2024. Please look for monthly updates on the search process in our Friday newsletter.

This process is supported by Interim DRE Mandy Neff. Interim DREs are leaders trained by GIRE, the Guild of Interim Religious Professionals, to support congregations through the adaptive changes of a major staffing transition.

Questions?  Contact dre@firstunitarianprov.org.