Dr. Jennifer Hockenbery accepts WELCA executive director position, discusses future

by Women of the ELCA

 By WELCA Staff

The Women of the ELCA churchwide executive board voted April 18, 2026, to offer Dr. Jennifer Hockenbery a four-year term as executive director for the organization. Dr. Hockenbery had served as the interim executive director since July 1, 2024.

Churchwide executive board president Myrna Wells-Ulland announced the decision, saying: “Dr. Hockenbery’s performance has been outstanding and deeply impactful across all areas of responsibility. Her effectiveness, faith-driven commitment and transformative leadership have positioned Women of the ELCA for stability and renewed engagement.”

With “joy and gratitude,” Dr. Hockenbery accepted the position, which was finalized in May. “I was so honored to be hired as interim executive director of Women of the ELCA in 2024, to work with WELCA’s wonderful churchwide staff,” she said. “In that time, I have attended conventions and retreats all over the country, as well as the Churchwide Assembly; the installation of our presiding bishop, the Rev. Yehiel Curry; ELCA Church Council meetings; and many other ecumenical and churchwide events. Everywhere I go, I see the impact Women of the ELCA has had on the lives of women and all those whom these women serve. And there are so many people these women serve!”

“It is such a blessing to be called to this work,” Dr. Hockenbery said. “I am so grateful to the 2023-2026 board, especially President Myrna Wells-Ulland, for their tremendous work during this transitional triennial. I am blessed by the work of the staff, who took on new responsibilities while continuing the programs, publications, and leadership opportunities that are so crucial to WELCA and to women in the organization.”

When Dr. Hockenbery began as interim executive director, the organization was facing serious financial issues that needed to be addressed. “The staff, board, and women all across the country came together to fundraise,” she said. “We have successfully finished the Campaign for Katie’s Fund—with $1 million in gifts and pledges collected during this campaign. The board has approved budgets that will help us continue to pay back past deficit spending, while increasing our reach into new areas like intergenerational programming and justice work. The goal of financial health is for the greater goal of being able to serve women, the church, and the world.”

Looking ahead

Women of the ELCA’s Thirteenth Triennial Convention will be held virtually Monday, July 13-July 14. Guiding the next phase of work of Women of the ELCA, memorials and resolutions passed at the convention “will include care for participants, others, our church, and our world,” Hockenbery said. Such care is not only WELCA’s past, but WELCA’s future. Hockenbery pointed to two fast-approaching milestones. In 2027, the Women of the ELCA will turn 40. And in 2030, the church will celebrate the 500^th anniversary of the Augsburg Confessions. Hockenbery said both anniversaries are “wonderful [opportunities] to remember what is at the heart of our confession—that we are justified by God’s grace and not by our actions, our politics, our works, or our words. …We are saved—and that good news frees us to listen to the needs of our neighbor and find ways to help.”

This has ramifications for not only Women of the ELCA, but the entire church. “We are not worried about our egos or proving our worth, because God made us worthy,” Hockenbery said. “So we are not afraid to say we are sorry. We are glad to welcome the stranger and to nourish those who need nourishment. And we know that we already have everything we need from God, who calls us to be thankful and enjoy our lives of service with others. This message, which Martin Luther preached, is one we need to remember in this time of division, strife, and war.  We are called to peace, and we must answer the call to love.”