The Rev. Nancy Dolan is a second-career pastor with close to 20 years in corporate Human Resource leadership. She received her M.Div. from McCormick Theological Seminary and has dedicated all of her professional ministry to settings in transition, conflict, and uncertainty.

In her ministry as pastor and church leadership consultant, Nancy has served churches from 50 to 1500 members in a wide variety of transitional challenges, including discernment of future viability and direction, closing with purpose and grace, deep division and conflict, staffing redesign, staff misconduct, and leadership development. Consulting congregations and pastors inside and outside the denomination for over 15 years, she particularly enjoys helping leaders deploy the gifts of spiritual practices in this time of change and possibility.

This is Nancy’s first year as part of the PC(USA) Interim/Transitional Ministry Faculty for Union Presbyterian Seminary.

The Rev. Laura Sherwood received her M.Div. from McCormick Theological Seminary in 1998 and has been working in Interim and Transitional Ministry since her ordination in 2000. Laura has served churches in Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, as both Pastor/Head of Staff and Associate, in rural/small town, college campus, and urban settings. Membership in those churches has ranged from 100-900, with various transitional needs, including conflict mediation, size transition, and creative visioning.

In these recent years of pandemic and disruption, Laura has seen an increased openness in churches to understand the transitional nature of all ministry and explore the spiritual and practical implications for how they follow God’s call. She is currently serving as Interim Associate Pastor for Transitional Discovery in a suburban Chicago congregation, and has been part of PC(USA) Interim/Transitional Ministry Faculty since 2013, teaching with the UPSEM and MALT (St. Louis) sites.