Retiring
Dawn Wiggins Hare of the General Commission on the Status and Role of Women addresses a briefing for women delegates to the 2024 United Methodist General Conference in Charlotte, N.C. The briefing was hosted by the General Commission on the Status and Role of Women and United Women in Faith. (Photo by Mike DuBose, UM News)
General Commission on Status and Role of Women | Aug. 12, 2024
CHICAGO - The General Commission on the Status and Role of Women (GCSRW) of The United Methodist Church (UMC) announces the upcoming retirement of General Secretary Dawn Wiggins Hare. Wiggins Hare intends to retire in January 2025. Per Book of Discipline standard, the General Secretary role allows 12 years in service. In a letter to the Board of Directors, Wiggins Hare celebrated “12 of the most rewarding years of my life” during her tenure at the agency.
GCSRW President, Bishop Tracy Smith Malone, praised Wiggins Hare’s time with the agency: “Dawn Wiggins Hare has served as General Secretary of the General Commission on the Status and Role of Women with great distinction. Her visionary and strategic leadership has helped to expand the training and resources that the commission provides to the world-wide connection of The United Methodist Church and she has increased the commission’s leadership capacity. Her unique ability to cultivate collaborative partnerships has proven to serve both GCSRW and the denomination well. We are grateful for her 12 years of excellent service.”
As Wiggins Hare announces retirement, GCSRW officially opened the search process for candidates interested in applying to its General Secretary position. The position is remote-based with a resource office located in Chicago. Following precedent of its previous hire, GCSRW formed a search committee to conduct the formal search, which will remain open until the position is filled. The deadline for online applications is Sept. 20, 2024 (midnight CDT). The position profile can be found here and interested parties can apply at this link.
The GCSRW General Secretary is elected and accountable to the GCSRW Board of Directors, from nomination of the search committee. The search committee collaborates closely with its most recent Board President, Bishop Tracy Smith Malone, to align the search with the organization’s mission, purpose, and strategic goals, and to further the work of GCSRW, which is to achieve full and equal participation of women and minorities in The UMC. The role of the General Secretary oversees this work in an international denominational capacity and partners often with other UMC General Agencies to fulfill its mission.
Rev. Emily Nelms Chastain, a GCSRW Director and member of its Human Resources Committee, will chair the search committee. She and the members of the committee have cherished the tenure of Wiggins Hare, which leaves a path of hope and excitement going into the next phase of the agency. “This is a truly exciting time in The United Methodist Church, and we are grateful to hang onto the coattails of this new energy as we discern the best candidate to move the work of our agency forward into the future,” Nelms Chastain said.
To learn more about the role of the General Commission on Status and Role of Women General Secretary position, please visit its website at GCSRW.org.