Paola Rojas is making an important contribution to the Uniting Church through her Faithful Futures and schools engagement roles.
A week in the life of Paola Rojas
Program Officer, Faithful Futures and schools engagement
Monday
The week begins with an early touch base with the Faithful Futures Project Lead Karen Roberts to review key milestones and finalise preparations for the Secretariat SMO meeting, where Faithful Futures was invited to present a brief update to all the Secretariat team.
Faithful Futures is at an important stage, and these activities are great opportunities to ensure we are communicating clearly across the Synod and keeping people involved in its progress.
Tuesday
Although Tuesdays are usually focused on schools engagement, the morning begins with Faithful Futures preparations for the Secretariat SMO meeting, including testing an interactive game, organising materials and ensuring everything is ready to go.
The meeting itself offers a valuable opportunity for the Secretariat team to gather, discuss and reflect together new ways to live out the goals in our workplace.
The afternoon shifts into schools engagement work. Planning continues for our August 18 event: refining the agenda, coordinating with partner organisations and distributing communications across our network.
I close the day with a meeting alongside Karen to align priorities and confirm next steps before she heads on leave. Being part of two projects involves juggling diverse activities and not having a monotonous day.
Wednesday
The morning begins with a call to the Director of Chaplaincy and Connections, who is attending a national UCA conference in Queensland. Together we confirm that locally printed resources will arrive on time, a small but important detail in supporting our representation at the conference.
The rest of the day focuses on keeping work moving for the Faithful Futures project. I update minutes and key documents from the most recent Faithful Futures Steering Committee meeting and upload them to SharePoint, so our committee members remain informed. Coordination with the EA Policy Coordinator ensures terms of reference are stored in the right place.
Later, I continue developing a high-level report that captures data from the Expressions of Interest process, a key process to continue establishing key stakeholders who will support the implementation of Faithful Futures.
Paola Rojas and Faithful Futures Project Lead Karen Roberts at Wesley Place.
Thursday
Today brings the quarterly SMO Administration and Governance gathering, connecting colleagues from the Centre for Theology and Ministry and Wesley Place. These meetings provide space to share procedures and process updates, exchange ideas and strengthen the systems that support our work.
Held at CTM, the setting offers a welcome contrast to the pace of the city, surrounded by gardens, it creates a natural pause for reflection.
The afternoon continues with work on the schools engagement program, brainstorming ideas for our upcoming newsletters and planning our program calendar for 2027 events.
Alongside this, I have begun preparing a maternity leave handover, capturing key information and ensuring a smooth transition so the work can continue well.
Friday
The week closes with a bright Melbourne winter day and a continued focus on Faithful Futures, this time from my home. I begin by preparing the weekly report for the Associate General Secretary, who is supporting the Project Lead role during this period.
A key milestone this week is the progress of Goal Group formation, so I spend time analysing Expressions of Interest applications and preparing a report to support next steps.
The day continues with updates to the Faithful Futures website and coordination with the Communications and IT teams, ensuring we keep the wider Church informed and engaged as this work continues to grow.
