The Reverend Gradye Parsons

Professional Ministry Experience

Associate Stated Clerk/Director of Operations, Office of the General Assembly, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.): 2000 to present
Operations officer for the Office of the General Assembly (OGA), providing major leadership to interpretation and building of partnerships with pastors, congregations, and agencies related to the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and Presbyterian affinity and advocacy groups. Responsible for leading the OGA in articulating its vision, developing strategic directions, and achieving operational excellence in its ministries.

Executive Presbyter/Stated Clerk, Holston Presbytery: 1994-2000
Holston Presbytery is located in northeast Tennessee with 66 congregations and three related Presbyterian Colleges.

Pastor, Windsor Avenue Presbyterian Church, Bristol, Tenn.: 1984-1994
A neighborhood congregation in a city with a population of 50,000

Pastor, Newport Presbyterian Church, Newport, Tenn.: 1979-1984
Ordained by Holston Presbytery and installed in this congregation, located in a small, county-seat community in Appalachia

Education

Degrees
B.S., University of Tennessee; M. Div., Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary

Continuing education
Columbia Theological Seminary, Alban Institute, Princeton Theological Seminary, Union Theological Seminary/ Presbyterian School of Christian Education

Service to the Wider Church

Minister Member, Holston Presbytery
Active participant in the life and ministry of Anchorage Presbyterian Church, Anchorage, Ky.

Other memberships
Association of Stated Clerks
National Association of Parliamentarians

General Assembly leadership
Board member and vice moderator, Board of Pensions; member, Mission Funding Task Force; staff to the review committees on Presbyterian Publishing Corporation, Presbyterian Investment and Loan Program, Presbyterian Foundation, Board of Pensions and the General Assembly Council; staff to the Theological Task Force on Peace, Unity, and Purity of the Church

Ecumenical leadership
Chairperson of the constitution and bylaws committee, member of the governing board of the National Council of Churches of Christ; ecumenical delegate to the General Assembly of the Uniting Church of Australia

Personal and Civic

Married to Kathy Parsons; two children, Joshua and Rachel
Member of the board and former president of the Bristol (Tenn.) Sheltered Workshop
Member of the board and former chair of the Bristol (Tenn.) Women’s Shelter