TARYN STRAUSS
Atlanta,GA
Summary
Transformational leader with extensive experience in staff development, mission alignment, and spiritual guidance. Facilitated significant congregational growth and program expansion during critical and challenging periods. Experience spearheading large-scale fundraising initiatives and fostering partnerships with international grassroots organizations. Employs strong communication skills and a collaborative approach to enhance ministry impact.
Overview
26
26
years of professional experience
Work History
Senior Minister
Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Atlanta
07.2018 - Current
- Spearheaded $7 million capital campaign, guiding hiring process for consultants and shaping messaging after feasibility study.
- Cultivate core donor base, resulting in a seven to eleven percent increase in contributions since 2020 campaign.
- Partner with congregational leaders for full campus renovation, establishing a hub for activism and faith.
- Lead a 15-person staff team, promoting empowerment, collaboration and transparency in leadership.
- Manage direct reports, including executive director and other high-level leaders, to foster a cohesive leadership team.
- Oversee hiring, annual evaluations and overall staff leadership initiatives.
- Created new mission and vision with board of trustees through year-long strategic planning sessions.
- Delivers inspiring messages during challenging times, reinforcing Unitarian Universalist values and community resilience.
Associate Minister
UU Congregation of Atlanta
01.2018 - 12.2018
- Led worship services and served as liturgist, enhancing spiritual engagement.
- Launched small group ministry program to promote dynamic interaction and spiritual exploration.
- Supervised eight staff members, including communications director and religious education personnel, fostering collaboration and enhancing program effectiveness.
- Trained and recruited volunteers to build capacity for sustainable family ministry program.
- Implemented new strategic vision, resulting in 30% growth in registration and attendance.
- Created young adult group to encourage fellowship and spiritual growth. and partnered with Emory staff for campus ministry development.
- Oversaw lay pastoral care program, training lay ministers to enhance skills and support community needs.
- Delivered pastoral care focused on life design and spiritual discernment during transitions.
Director of Religious Education and Family Ministries
All Souls UU Church of NYC
08.2011 - 05.2016
- Recruited and managed team of over 70 volunteer teachers, enhancing educational support for 230 students.
- Increased program enrollment and attendance by 40% over five years through staff growth.
- Mapped inclusive mission and vision, creating a new curriculum for multi-age program to foster engagement.
- Collaborated with committee to establish new policies, review, and develop curriculum for program.
- Led diverse worship experiences for children, youth, and adults, emphasizing artistic and theological inclusivity.
- Supervised and trained team of 2 full-time caregivers and 10 part-time teaching artists in arts as spiritual practice.
- Developed and managed $80k annual program budget, ensuring sustainable programming for families.
- Facilitated small group ministry and support groups for single parents and UU parenting topics.
Intern Minister
Middle Collegiate Church
09.2013 - 05.2014
- Provided pastoral care and personalized prayer to congregants, supporting their spiritual needs and fostering a sense of community
- Launched Adult Religious Education Program for Art and Soul worship by facilitating a 6-week Spiritual Discernment Course, fostering deeper spiritual engagement among participants
- Led liturgy for experimental Art and Soul evening arts-based worship as a worship leader
- Preached and led prayers during Art and Soul worship
- Attended weekly theological reflection meetings with clergy; contributed theological reflection and exegesis
- Attended senior staff meetings; contributed programming strategies to enhance mission, vision, and community impact at Middle Collegiate Church
- Supervisors: Rev. Adriene Thorne, Rev. Jacqui Lewis
Chaplain Intern
Beth Israel Medical Center, Healthcare Chaplaincy Network
06.2013 - 08.2013
- Completed one unit of clinical pastoral care for ten weeks in community NYC hospital
- Provided compassionate support to patients and families in medical ICU, addressing emotional and spiritual needs amid serious health challenges.
- Supported patients and families in emergency department, offering emotional and spiritual care during critical moments.
- Practiced deep listening, theological reflection, and customized prayer with patients on four units
- Collaborated with hospital staff and palliative care team to enhance patient care and address diverse pastoral needs.
- Led weekly guided meditation with patients on the psych unit
- Supervisor: Rabbi Bonita Taylor
Director of Lifespan Religious Education for Children and Adults
UU Church of Asheville
08.2006 - 08.2011
- Conceived and launched adult lifespan religious education program, engaging six hundred-member congregation in meaningful learning experiences.
- Partnered with board of trustees to design curriculum and establish vision, aligning religious education program with community needs.
- Coordinated oversight of over eighty-five volunteer teachers in re program for two hundred students.
- Supervised and trained one full-time and three part-time programmatic support staff to enhance program delivery.
- Collaborated with minister, music director, and lay leaders to create dynamic worship experiences.
- Increased membership and attendance in re program by twenty-five percent over five years.
- Implemented strategic membership program with congregational staff, increasing annual giving over five years.
- Developed and managed annual budget of $12,000, doubling programming size during five-year tenure.
Board Member
Our Voice Rape Crisis Center
Asheville, NC
01.2009 - 01.2011
- Collaborated with staff to launch city-wide rape prevention education programs through artistic ventures like The Survivor Theatre Project and Survivor Art Fair, fostering community dialogue and support
- Planned and implemented city-wide fundraisers that engaged community participation and raised awareness for local initiatives
- Oversaw staffing changes and developed staff policies to enhance operational effectiveness as part of the personnel committee
Artistic Director
Scapegoat Theatre Collective
01.2006 - 01.2011
- Secured 501(c)3 Status and Initial Funding to launch a socially/politically motivated theatre company in Asheville, NC
- Principal director and founding board member of community theatre company; directing four plays per year for three years, casting actors, supervising crew and casting the vision for a collaborative theatrical experience
- Provided artistic leadership and vision for all creative decisions, shaping the overall direction and impact of productions
- Collaborated with production crew of designers and directed actor rehearsals, fostering a cohesive creative environment
- Coordinated over 60 volunteers per production, ensuring seamless collaboration and execution of theatrical performances
- Developed and upheld policies and procedures of burgeoning 501(c)3 organization
Women and Youth Education Director
Western North Carolina AIDS Project
01.2002 - 01.2006
- Wrote annual grant to secure funding from the NC DHHS
- Implemented STD/HIV prevention education curriculum for high-risk populations in prisons, halfway houses, homeless shelters, and schools, improving access to vital health information
- Organized community initiatives, training youth activists to advocate for enhanced health education policies
- Trained community leaders to implement curricula and distribute harm reduction materials in neighborhoods, bars, treatment centers across Western North Carolina
- Supervised quarterly reporting process to state funding source
- Hired and supervised two part-time community organizers in publicly subsidized housing to deliver health education and community empowerment curricula
Financial Counselor
Fund for Women
09.2002 - 04.2003
- Allocated funds to women based on demonstrated financial need
- Counseled NC women on financial options related to pregnancy termination assistance
- Drafted grant proposals for Ms. Foundation and other funding sources to secure financial support
Center Assistant/Intake Counselor
Planned Parenthood of Asheville
02.2002 - 11.2002
- Counseled women and teens on contraceptive and family planning options, supporting informed health decisions
- Managed front desk operations, including patient check-in and appointment scheduling. including multi-line phone, patient triage and daily accounting
- Prepared patients for nurse practitioner, assisting with daily lab tasks to ensure smooth patient flow
Co-Founder and Project Coordinator
ESL Tutoring Program
Greensboro
08.2000 - 05.2001
- Conceived and launched community-based ESL tutoring program, continued for 15 years
- Developed and delivered comprehensive training for Guilford College student tutors, equipping them to effectively support adult Latinos in ESL learning
- Partnered with Greensboro Public Library to recruit community participants and train them in citizenship process and liberation pedagogies, enhancing community engagement
- Implemented theories of liberation theology to create a community interchange where college students taught English literacy and Spanish-speaking community members taught conversational Spanish, fostering mutual learning and cultural exchange
Education
Master of Divinity - Psychology and Religion
Union Theological Seminary of New York At Columbia University
New York, NY05-2015
Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Arts - Secondary Education, English Literature, Theatre Arts
Guilford College
Greensboro, NC05-2001
Skills
- Theatre of the Oppressed Practitioner, Studied under Augusto Boal and Julian Boal at Brecht Forum ‘07
- Fellowshipped minister in the Unitarian Universalist Association, Ordination Date: May 5, 2019
- Clinical Pastoral Education Unit, Beth Israel Medical Center, completed Aug 2013
- Fundraising strategy
- 2014 Fahs Fellow, with the Fahs Collaborative Center for Innovation in Religious Education at Meadville-Lombard Seminary
- Professional Theatre Director
- Staff management
- Strategic planning
Languages:
Spanish Proficiency
Affiliations
- Community Organizer/Study Abroad, Guadalajara, Mexico 8/99-12/99
Collaborated with grassroots organizing partners on the ground in the outer neighborhoods of Guadalajara called Intercolonias, deepening relational connectivity and learning methods of popular education and shared empowerment
Facilitated community building workshops with women in impoverished communities
Collaborated with community leaders of grassroots organization to support citizen’s rights, supporting their organizing efforts through advocacy and shared education
Studied Paulo Friere's principles of liberation theology and community empowerment models of education
Timeline
Senior Minister
Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Atlanta
07.2018 - Current
Associate Minister
UU Congregation of Atlanta
01.2018 - 12.2018
Intern Minister
Middle Collegiate Church
09.2013 - 05.2014
Chaplain Intern
Beth Israel Medical Center, Healthcare Chaplaincy Network
06.2013 - 08.2013
Director of Religious Education and Family Ministries
All Souls UU Church of NYC
08.2011 - 05.2016
Board Member
Our Voice Rape Crisis Center
01.2009 - 01.2011
Director of Lifespan Religious Education for Children and Adults
UU Church of Asheville
08.2006 - 08.2011
Artistic Director
Scapegoat Theatre Collective
01.2006 - 01.2011
Financial Counselor
Fund for Women
09.2002 - 04.2003
Center Assistant/Intake Counselor
Planned Parenthood of Asheville
02.2002 - 11.2002
Women and Youth Education Director
Western North Carolina AIDS Project
01.2002 - 01.2006
Co-Founder and Project Coordinator
ESL Tutoring Program
08.2000 - 05.2001
Master of Divinity - Psychology and Religion
Union Theological Seminary of New York At Columbia University
Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Arts - Secondary Education, English Literature, Theatre Arts
Guilford College