Board of Trustees
Contact us at board@lreda.org.
The mission of the LREDA Board of Trustees is to serve our membership. A fully volunteer board, we:
-
SUPPORT the professional development of our membership;
-
ADVOCATE for professional religious educators in congregations and in alliance with our professional colleagues and the UUA; and
-
SUSTAIN our organization through responsible fiscal stewardship and creative, visionary leadership
​
Central to LREDA's mission is active support and advocacy for religious educators. Ongoing advocacy and relationship building is inherent in the work of the Board and a lens through which all governance concerns itself. Contact the board at board@lreda.org.
​
​Among their duties, the Board oversees the strategic plan for the organization, and provides oversight and guidance for the Nominating Committee, Mentoring Program, Good Officers, and continental events.
Meet The LREDA Board & Staff
_Crop_1x1_HiRes%20(1).jpg)
President: Mandy Neff
Term: July 2026 - July 2029
Mandy uses she / her pronouns
Mandy is a seasoned Unitarian Universalist Religious Educator with over 20 years of leadership experience in faith development, worship, and community transformation. Known for her warm presence and strategic vision, Mandy specializes in program development across the lifespan, volunteer engagement, and justice-centered ministry.
​
Throughout her career, Mandy has nurtured faith formation programs for congregations in Massachusetts and Rhode Island, developed national curricula, and led immersive youth leadership experiences. Her published works include With Justice and Compassion: Immigration Sessions for Children’s Religious Education and Worship Weaving, a middle school worship curriculum. Mandy most recently served as the Interim Director of Religious Education at First Unitarian Church of Providence, RI. There, she has guided children, youth, families, and volunteers through a vibrant Spiritual Pathways program, while supporting healthy congregational transitions and reimagining what spiritual exploration can look like in changing times.
Mandy has served the denomination through ongoing board leadership in national organizations, growing a passion for building collective liberation through not only inner spiritual work, but also systemic analysis of governance, operations, and budgeting to align our actions with Unitarian Universalist values. She served as the president of the New England chapter of LREDA during the pandemic, supporting religious educators through a shifting landscape of faith exploration as programs expanded their virtual offerings and reimagined the purpose and delivery of multigenerational programs and faith exploration.
Mandy was clerk of the Unitarian Sunday School Society, where they explored the origins of their endowment and worked with Edgar Villanueva’s Decolonizing Wealth framework to gather a summit of Unitarian Universalist funding organizations. Mandy facilitates anti-oppression learning cohorts through the UUA’s Mosaic program and currently serves on the Board of the Church of the Larger Fellowship.
​
An alumna of Kenyon College with a dual degree in Drama and Biology, Mandy holds certifications in Adaptive Leadership, Spiritual Direction, and multiple levels of the Our Whole Lives sexuality education curriculum. When she is not leading creative workshops or multigenerational worship, she can be found painting or foraging in the local woods.
Vice President: Kathy Smith, CRE
Term: July 2024 - June 2027
Kathy uses she / her pronouns​
Kathy has been a professional religious educator since 2007. She currently serves as Director of Family Ministries for the Unitarian Church in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. She previously served as Director of Religious Education for congregations in Fort Worth and Plano, Texas, and as Coordinator of Youth Activities for the Joseph Priestley District.
​
She has served as president of the Southwest LREDA chapter, a LREDA good officer, and a member of the Music Leadership Certification Committee (the equivalent of the RECC for UU musicians). She has also served on the Youth Caucus staff at General Assembly, the right relations/conflict & covenant team for General Assembly, and the community relations team for LREDA Fall Con.
​
Currently, she is an OWL trainer and facilitator. She is also the author or co-author of several curricula (most recently, Building a Better World: What Role Will YOU Play? with Rev. Craig Schwalenberg, Ellery Churchmouse Sacred Play for All Ages with religious educator Jen Shattuck, Games to Build Community, and Lego ValUUes). In her free time, she is an amateur musician and an avid board-gamer. She lives with her partner and a large fuzzy black cat, and loves the food and the festivals in Southern Louisiana.
Secretary: Kiersten Moore
Term: July 2025 - June 2028
Kiersten uses she / her pronouns
Kiersten is the Director of Lifespan Faith Development at the Vancouver Unitarians, BC, Canada, and has served there as Religious Educator since 2016.
She grew up through the youth group at First Universalist, Minneapolis, in the 90’s, and this faith has been a central part of their identity ever since.
Kiersten’s work as a theatre artist, doula, and religious educator has focused on creative collaboration, lifelong learning, the importance of community connections and belonging. Her professional growth has focused on antiracism, effective communication, storytelling, trauma-informed care, and empowering radically inclusive communities.
Apparently, she also likes governance because after six years on the Board of the Canadian Unitarian Council, she’s looking forward to serving LREDA as Board Secretary.
Treasurer: Nic Kaplan
Term: July 2026 - June 2029
Nic uses they/them pronouns
Nic became a Unitarian Universalist in 2017 while working as a doula and childbirth educator. They began volunteering with Our Whole Lives and
youth programming shortly after joining their first UU congregation.
In 2022, they moved their family to Iowa to serve as the full-time director of lifespan religious education at the Unitarian Universalist Society in Coralville. They have a passion for creating curricula specific to each congregation they've served and love to take learning and growth opportunities outside.
In 2023, Nic launched a series of summer camps for their congregation and community and the programs have grown every year since. Focusing on nature-based, child-led exploration and musical theater, each camp utilizes the staff, building, and grounds in a unique way that community members love and keep coming back for.
When not working, something Nic’s 12 year old daughter claims never happens, Nic enjoys time with their family playing geeky games of all sorts
and enjoying their animals and the outdoors. Nic’s home and office would quickly overflow with plants and animals if they ever won the lottery and lost
all their willpower.
At Large, Good Offices: Rev. Sarah Osborne
Term: July 2026 - June 2029
Sarah uses she / her pronouns
Rev. Sarah Osborne has served as the part time Director of Religious Exploration at Neshoba Church in Cordova, TN since 2010. In 2023, Rev. Sarah became the half-time minister for The Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Oxford, MS. She is a trained facilitator of Our Whole Lives (OWL) and a certified facilitator of SACReD.
​
She is a member of the collaborative design team that created the online program for Beloved Conversations. She has served as a Good Officer for LREDA since 2017. And she loves to help her Southwest LREDA chapter plan and lead retreats.
​
As a ritual artist and “preacher teacher,” as her mama called her, Sarah believes in the power of mirth and reverence. She finds inspiration in the rhythms of nature and in the good storytelling of spiritual traditions from around the world.
​
As a Unitarian Universalist religious educator and minister centering love, she has a passion for helping people move more deeply into their hearts by holding sacred space, engaging in embodied practices, and encouraging folks to be active in serving the needs of the wider community. She facilitates, instigates, and collaborates on a variety of faith formation and justice-seeking offerings through shared ministry in the covenantal communities of Neshoba and UUCO. In her free time, Sarah loves to travel, do water aerobics, talk Tarot, and read lots of books. She lives in Memphis, TN with her family.
​​
At Large, Continental Events: Nicci Kennedy
Term: July 2025 - June 2028
Nicci uses she / her pronouns
Nicci currently serves as the Director of Lifespan Religious Education at Westside UU Church in Fort Worth, TX since 2019. Nicci has served as an officer in SWLREDA and is certified SACReD Facilitator as well as OWL Facilitator and participated in Sparks Modules.
​
Nicci has also served as a church educator for over 20 years and as the director of a social service organization and is currently part of the InterFaith Core Team for Raise Your Hand Texas (an organization whose sole purpose is to support public education immediately and long-term).
Outside of her professional role, she is often called Nini, adventuring around Fort Worth which involves giggles, creating, hiking, and supporting nieces and nephews. She is often seen supporting young people at events around the community, including games, concerts, recitals, school events, and coffee conversations.
​
Nicci is particularly passionate about creating opportunities for those who share time and talents to engage in meaningful ways during conferences and events to support, equip, and engage.
At Large, Continuing Education: Amanda Esko
Term: July 2026 - June 2027
Amanda uses she / her pronouns
Amanda brings over 20 years of dedicated experience as a Unitarian Universalist to her role as a Religious Educator, beginning her professional journey in 2017. Currently, she holds the position of Director of Religious Education at the First Unitarian Church of Salt Lake City. Prior to her work in religious education, Amanda contributed her talents to the field of education as both a teacher and administrator in public schools.
​
Deeply engaged in her professional community, Amanda has played an active role within MDD LREDA, having recently served on their board. Her commitment to continuous growth is evident through her participation in various training opportunities facilitated by LREDA and Renaissance modules, reflecting her passion for ongoing professional development.
​
A staunch advocate for Unitarian Universalism, Amanda firmly believes in the transformative power of faith development in people's lives. Beyond her professional commitments, Amanda finds joy and fulfillment in diverse creative pursuits, including gardening, artistry, storytelling, and music. She resides in Salt Lake City with her husband, two children, and three beloved canine companions.
LREDA Staff: Juliet Donaldson, Finance & Strategy Consultant
Juliet uses she / her pronouns
Juliet handles the administration and finances for LREDA, supporting the board and our membership as required.
​
In June 2018 Juliet stepped in to fill the incomplete term of the LREDA Board treasurer position, serving for two years. She then stayed on the board as an ex-officio member after her term expired to support the incoming treasurer. Juliet graduated from Cambridge University (UK) with a degree in Economics, before becoming a Chartered Accountant (the UK equivalent of a CPA) and working in various finance positions in both the public and private sector.
​
She moved to the United States seventeen years ago with her husband and four children and it was here that she discovered Unitarian Universalism. After teaching in the RE program at her local church she became the Director of Religious Exploration at a small UU congregation in Massachusetts, where she adapted the faith development program, matching the Minister’s sermon and her own Time for All Ages with the lesson plans to create a unified feel for families on Sunday mornings. In 2018 she moved to the larger congregation of First Unitarian Church in Worcester, Massachusetts, where as the Director of Faith Development, she led the children and youth programs and supported Wiogora, their magical summer camp which brings UU values to local area families. In April 2017 she was awarded the credentialed level of the UUA’s credentialing program for religious educators.
In September 2025, Juliet returned with her family to the UK, where she continues to support LREDA in a consultancy position.
Note that the UK is 5 hours ahead of US Eastern Time and 8 hours ahead of US Pacific Time.
​
For administrative questions email Juliet at admin@lreda.org
For finance questions email Juliet at finance@lreda.org
LREDA Staff: Christina Strong, Communications Coordinator
Christina uses she / her pronouns
Christina has served Unitarian Universalist congregations for over seventeen years. Since 2019, she has led Child & Family Programs at First Unitarian Church of Omaha, nurturing volunteer leadership, creative spiritual exploration, and community connection. At the national level, she has collaborated on resources for Soul Matters’ elementary packets and the children’s program at Star Island’s Building Bridges conferences. Prior to her current congregational position, she spent ten years as Administrative Associate at the Unitarian Church of Lincoln.
​
A native Nebraskan, Christina earned her B.A. in Psychology and Anthropology and completed several years of graduate study in Sociology at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. A lifelong learner, she has completed over 90 hours of the UUA’s Renaissance (now Sparks) modules, along with hundreds of professional development hours in early childhood education. In her spare time, Christina usually finds more work to do—but often manages to enjoy books, movies, travel, crafting, and conversations about theology/philosophy/everyday wonder along the way.
Contact Christina for continental LREDA and chapter articles, newsletters, or other communications (communications@lreda.org).
​​
LREDA Staff: Tanya Webster, Portal Librarian
Tanya uses she / they pronouns
Tanya Webster works as a Director of Religious Education in the Bay Area of California where she also functions as a co-lead for the PCD-LREDA chapter. She enjoys collecting shared resources for the LREDA Library and working on the LREDA Portal and website.
Tanya grew up UU, as did her three (now young-adult) children, and she has been involved with facilitating RE and youth advising for almost twenty years. She has completed more than ten Renaissance/Sparks modules and is a certified facilitator for all levels of OWL. Her compassion for how we each approach our journey through life is informed by her degree in the history and philosophy of pre-Newtonian science.
Tanya especially enjoys sharing slow living, mindfulness skills, and practicing gratitude as anecdotes to today's culture, which too often is busy and stressful. In her spare time, Tanya plays music, writes, and creates art, including the UUA atom and flower artwork for our UU Shared Values.
​
For portal questions and to share resources, email Tanya at librarian@lreda.