Grant Project Assistant, Flourishing Pastor Network Lilly Grant

Grand Canyon University!  One of Arizona’s leading institutions of higher learning. Located in the Valley of Sun in the heart of Phoenix, Arizona, GCU is a regionally accredited, private, nondenominational Christian University. This position provides vital support for Grand Canyon Theological Seminary’s (GCTS’s) new Flourishing Pastor Network in collaboration with seminary leadership. The Grand Project Assistant provides vital management and support for the Executive and Senior Directors of the Network at GCU in coordination with the Dean and Assistant Deans of Grand Canyon Theological Seminary as well as the project’s Executive and Senior Directors. The Seminary operates under the auspices of GCU’s College of Theology. This 12-month administrative staff position.

This position centers on data analysis related to student admissions, student tracking, retention and success, and alumni tracking as well as assistance with grant reporting and management of ecclesial relationships. This 12-month position also entails responsibility for event planning and coordination, program-related communications, and pastoral/ecclesial networking.

Grand Canyon Theological Seminary is the lead school for the Flourishing Pastor Network (FPN), which is a scalable network focused on establishing pastoral residencies in partnership with local churches. The FPN is funded by a large-scale collaborative grant from the Lilly Endowment, Inc. Currently, network membership consists of five theological schools and one parachurch organization specializing in pastoral residency development and support. Central objectives of the network include: 1) Increasing the capacity of seminaries to prepare and support pastoral leaders; 2) Developing and improving pastoral residencies that require partnerships between seminaries and churches; and 3) Developing a sustainable network of seminaries and churches that will support pastoral residencies beyond the grant period.

This position will provide capacity and oversight during the duration of the Lilly Endowment, Inc. grant to Grand Canyon University. The grant commitment dates are January 1, 2026 through December 30, 2030.

Target Hire: January 2026
Schedule: Mon-Fri, 8am to 5pm onsite
Location: GCU Main Campus

Benefits: Full benefits portfolio including tuition benefit

What You Will Do:

• Gathers, analyzes, and disseminates data related to key performance indicators for the Flourishing Pastor Network (FPN) and pastoral residency students in order to improve student retention and success as well as deployment into ministry roles post-graduation.
• Under the guidance of the Executive Director, prepares required reports related to grant funding in alignment with outcomes and evaluation plans articulated within the grant proposal. 

• Assists in management of the FPN grant budget, contributing to required reports related to expenditures for grant-related activities.
• Develops internal reporting processes and analyses data to fulfill grant-related outcomes and the overarching objectives of the FPN.
• Gathers, analyzes, manages, and disseminates data to the College’s Program Director and seminary leaders in support of all grant-related objectives and student success.
• Supports intra-network activities led by the Executive Director, Senior Director, and seminary leadership to ensure alignment to network goals and fulfillment of all network-related objectives.
• Assists in planning and preparations for regular meetings of Program Directors as well as annual meetings of the FPN.
• Supports admissions processes related to pastoral residency programs as well as processes related to required site and supervisor approvals for pastoral residency.
• Communicates key information to students, alumni, and church partners in support of programmatic goals, student retention and success, and church-related networking.
• Manages information related to strategic church partnerships and the cultivation of strategic relationships with churches more broadly.
• Coordinates FPN-related events and activities in partnership with the Executive Director, Senior Director, seminary leadership, other seminary stakeholders, and relevant GCU departments.
• Manages content and engagement for the College’s job board and relevant social media channels in support of student placement and ongoing ecclesial networking efforts.
• Tracks and records grant-related expenses in support of Program Coordinator, Barnabas events, invited speakers, church relations efforts, and training initiatives.
• Maintains master timeline for submission of grant-related documentation and informs stakeholders of action items in advance to ensure the university meets requirements.
• Reviews outcome of curricular and co-curricular programmatic assessments and prese