This summer, before the start of the new school year, educators and pastors in the Southern California Conference (SCC) gathered at Glendale Adventist Academy for a day of connection and collaboration. This One Mission Summit focused on strengthening the partnership between these two ministries under SCC’s mission to exalt Christ by cultivating healthy churches and schools.
The day kicked off with a devotional from Jonathan Henderson, Vallejo Drive church pastor, and a message on shared mission from John H. Cress, SCC president. Karl Haffner, vice president for student experience at Loma Linda University, was the keynote speaker.
“One of the most surprising, and frankly heartbreaking, realities in the Seventh-day Adventist Church is this: The two full-time professionals hired by the denomination—pastors and teachers—often work side by side but rarely together,” Cress said. “Though both are called, committed, and embedded in the life of the local church, their worlds rarely intersect. They face similar battles; they fight for the same souls; yet too often, they do so in isolation.”
“Pastors are not just preachers; they are teachers of truth,” Cress added, referring to the spiritual gifts Paul describes in Ephesians 4. “And teachers aren’t merely educators—they shepherd hearts. These two roles were never meant to be divided.”
With shared mission at the heart of the event, attendees were assigned to groups mixing educators and pastors across schools, positions, and regions, in which they engaged in discussions throughout the day. They answered questions regarding communication and support among the two ministries, spiritual gifts and calling, practical application and next steps, and many other topics—all to foster deeper understanding and intentional collaboration.
“I’m energized by the time we spent in our groups with our educators and our pastors to come up with ideas how we can connect, minister to families, and be a blessing overall in our communities,” said Ben Guerrero, Whittier church pastor.
The presentations, the breakout groups, and a panel moderated by SCC Executive Secretary Danny Chan that featured three educators and three pastors were all designed to equip and encourage those serving in these different yet complementary ministries.
“This summit is going to help us start to think of what is the best way for creating organized systems and structures for schools and churches to communicate better,” said Samantha Macias, Glendale Adventist Academy principal.
“Instead of asking the other party to do something for you,” said Miles Yu, San Gabriel Academy teacher, “ask the other party, ‘What can we do for you? How can we serve you?’ I believe that would begin a great relationship building that will fit our mission, which is to exalt Christ and build a healthy church and school.”
