Lay Professional Advocacy

The Lay Professional Advocacy Committee (LPAC) exists to:

Advocate for all lay employees at The General Convention of the Episcopal Church by:
- testifying, tracking, and advocating for pertinent convention resolutions that affect lay employees,
- maintaining contact and advocacy with other lay employee groups,
- communicating with AAM members who serve in the House of Deputies, and
- presenting and staffing exhibit booth promoting the work of AAM to the wider church.

Encourage AAM members to be proactive in their diocesan elections.
Support the work of the Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music.
Provide resources so that AAM members can be successful advocates for themselves.
Provide workshop and educational resources at the annual conference, along with updates to The Journal of AAM and the AAM Board throughout the year.

Become Involved in the Wider Church

Diocesan Level
- Attend events and network within your Diocese.
- As a musician, this might include involvement in musical needs of diocesan events.
- Each diocese holds an annual Diocesan Convention, at which leadership is elected for the upcoming year.
- If you are member of your parish, consider running as a parish representative to your Diocesan Convention.
The Wider Church
- Consider running to be a deputy to General Convention. Deputations from each diocese consist of four lay and four clergy deputies and four alternate deputies in each order. These elections occur at Diocesan Conventions.
- Apply to serve on an Interim Body of the Episcopal Church. These groups do the work of the wider church between General Conventions.

Resources for Lay Employees working in the Episcopal Church

Church Pension Group – The Church Pension Fund (CPF) and its affiliated companies, collectively the Church Pension Group (CPG), provide retirement, health, life insurance, and related benefits for its clergy and lay employees.
The Episcopal Church’s Manual of Business Methods – A comprehensive, user-friendly manual that supports the increasingly complex work of all treasurers and parish administrators.
Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music – An interim body of the General Convention created in 1997. This commission combines the work and responsibilities of two previous bodies, the Standing Liturgical Commission and the Standing Commission on Church Music.
FORMA – Network for Christian Formation for the Episcopal Church which advocates for Lay Employees.
Relevant General Convention Resolutions
- 2022-A003 Uniform Paid Family Leave Policy
- 2018-A237 & 2018-D045 Study Parity Between Lay and Clergy Pensions
- 2018-B006 Encourage Letters of Agreement in Hiring Processes
- 2018-C023 Ensure Availability of Multiple Insurance Providers
- 2009-A177 Amend Canon I.8 to Establish a Denominational Health Plan

Church Pension Group Client Council

The Church Pension Fund and its affiliated companies, collectively known as the Church Pension Group (CPG), is a financial services organization that serves The Episcopal Church. CPG supports clients through the provision of retirement, health, and related benefits tailored to the needs of clergy and lay employees, as well as property and casualty insurance and publishing.

AAM Executive Director, Patrick Fennig, serves on CPG's Client Council through May 2028 and can bring your concerns to the group. If you have issues with any aspect of your health or retirement benefits, please submit your feedback below AND be in touch with CPG. Their direct email is benefits@cpg.org. Please continue to make your concerns known. While we can't solve all issues, we can help amplify your voice.

Lay Professional Advocacy Committee

Mario Buchanan — Chair
The Rev'd Thomas Alexander ('28)
Matthew Estes, Ph.D. ('27)
Mary Hamlin-Spencer ('26)
Brother Andrew Aelred Morehead ('27)
Victoria Shields ('28)
Michael Kleinschmidt — AAM President, ex officio