November 2005

NEAC Board Plans for Coming Triennium

At its October meeting in Chicago, the NEAC board discussed its plans for the coming triennium. The NEAC board acknowledges the church’s continued need for education and awareness about HIV, but realizes that producing conferences to meet those needs is not the most cost-effective means of delivering information. In order to focus on more effective strategies and on better methods of addressing the needs of people affected by HIV in the church, NEAC has decided to cancel the third of its regional conferences, which was scheduled to take place in Long Beach, CA, in January. NEAC Board Chair Chris Haley said, “NEAC is certainly disappointed to have to cancel its upcoming conference, but we are very excited about our plans for the future that will more effectively reach many more individuals than a single regional conference could.”

The NEAC board set goals for the next triennium that respond to the SMART imperative:

  • Specific,
  • Measurable,
  • Achievable,
  • Realistic, and
  • Time-based.

The board commits to do the following to advance the NEAC mission:

  1. Work with local partners to replicate in a different part of the country the very successful spiritual retreat for people affected by HIV held annually at the Kanuga Conference Center by the Province IV Episcopal Network of AIDS Ministries.
  2. Conduct a grassroots education and awareness campaign through which NEAC board members will each make three to four significant contacts per year to bring HIV education and awareness materials to Episcopal congregations and groups within a 100-mile radius of where they live.
  3. Complete a full revision of the Episcopal version of the Teens for AIDS Prevention (TAP) peer education program for use by Episcopal youth.
  4. Produce one HIV education program to be broadcast through the Internet or by satellite that will provide a cost-effective means of providing needed information for individuals throughout the Episcopal Church.
  5. Continue work on AGAPE (All Generations AIDS Prevention Education), NEAC’s intergenerational HIV education project.

NEAC will also have a significant presence at General Convention in Columbus, OH, in June 2006.

While the goals are ambitious for a small non-profit organization with a volunteer working board, the NEAC board is energized and feels that its goals for the next triennium will do much to meet the needs of the church. NEAC is particularly excited about the prospect of replicating the Kanuga conference that each year provides a much-needed spiritual retreat for hundreds of people affected by HIV.

Each year, Kanuga hosts 350 individuals living with or affected by HIV. The retreat is a blessing to all who attend and all who volunteer their time to produce the event. NEAC has been involved with the Province IV retreat since the beginning and it wants to help another province or region to share this gift that the church provides for the HIV community.

At its board meeting in January 2006, NEAC will present the plan for the next triennium to the board (including members newly elected at the annual meeting) for adoption.