Lutheran educators gather in St. Louis

Matthew Janssen, instrumental music teacher at Lutheran High School South (LuSo), St. Louis, directs the LuSo Wind Symphony while Dr. Kurt von Kampen, music department chair at Concordia University, Nebraska, directs a choir onstage during the Lutheran Education Association convocation opening service on Oct. 2. The convocation choir was made up of students from four St. Louis-area high schools: LuSo, Lutheran High School North, Lutheran High School St. Charles and Metro East Lutheran High School (Edwardsville, Ill.). (LCMS/Frank Kohn)

By Brianna Dehn

Lutheran educators from around the world gathered Oct. 2–4 for the triennial Lutheran Education Association (LEA) convocation, held at the America’s Center in downtown St. Louis. Under the theme “Together 2025,” the convocation featured hundreds of sectional options on topics ranging from curriculum to teaching strategies to school safety to mental health to sharing the Gospel.

Stronger together

In addition to opportunities to learn, convocation attendees benefited from time for recreation, worship and fellowship.

“It’s very important that people who are like-minded are able to get together and share their experiences so that they can battle what is out there in the world,” said Jennifer Neifer, who teaches at Valley Lutheran School in Cedar Falls, Iowa. “We are stronger when we work together so when we band together in a conference like this, we have a much stronger testimony to the world. … There’s so much telling our kids the exact opposite of what we teach, that we need to shine that truth out to them so that they are not drawn away.”

“The breakout sessions, workshops and keynote speakers are always dynamite,” said Julie Bourgeois, principal of St. Paul Lutheran School, Napoleon, Ohio. “We get to come together as teachers and see people [we] went to college with or maybe taught with at other Lutheran schools. … It’s like a big family reunion.”

“Lutheran school teachers are some of our greatest advocates and influencers,” said the Rev. Dr. James Baneck, executive director of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS) Office of Pastoral Education and of Set Apart to Serve, the LCMS effort to create a culture of church work recruitment and formation. Baneck gave a sectional on curriculum from Concordia Publishing House (CPH) that encourages people of all ages to consider pursuing church work.

From left, Holy Cross Lutheran School, Fort Wayne, Ind., teachers Ashley Neuhaus (third grade), Ember Swing (third grade) and Lydia Hobby (second grade) greet an exhibitor during the 2025 LEA convocation in St. Louis. (LCMS/Frank Kohn)

There were many teachers who were experiencing the LEA convocation for the first time, taking in all it has to offer. “I’ve never been before, but I know there are a lot of resources here that can teach me how to be a better teacher for my Lutheran school, and I can find new ways to show God’s love to the kids that I teach,” said Claire Hannon, a teacher at St. Peter-Immanuel Lutheran School in Decatur, Ind.

Events like the LEA convocation “are incredible for those who attend because you get to learn from sectionals, but the exhibits are just as great because you get to learn about what resources are out there,” said Lisa Clark, senior editor at CPH.

Clark presented at a sectional about how to use confirmation resources in the classroom. “A lot of middle school teachers are trying to think about various ways to teach religion, and they often try to work with the churches that they are in partnership with, so [this sectional] looks at different ways to teach the faith,” said Clark.

“It’s important to have convocations like this to network and see all the great things being done in other Lutheran schools,” said Dr. Kristen Conrad, professor and education department chair at Concordia University, St. Paul, St. Paul, Minn. “It’s also great for us as professors to be able to tell our students who are considering church work of … the support and collaboration that happens here.”

Maddie Durkin, a graduate of Concordia University Irvine, Irvine, Calif., has known she wanted to be a Lutheran educator since she was in seventh grade. “Lutheran education is special,” Durkin said. “There’s something about the way we teach, and the biblical basis. Any person can come to our schools, and they know they are loved, they are valued, and we speak in truth and love at the same time,” said Durkin.

LEA is a Recognized Service Organization of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. According to its mission statement, LEA “links, equips, and affirms educators and workers in ministry for the purpose of building up the body of Christ.” Learn more at lea.org.

Brianna Dehn is a freelance writer and a graduate of Concordia University, Nebraska.

Posted Oct. 31, 2025