Faith-based Organizational Consultant
Greater New York City Area
- Current
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- Consultant at Thomas K. Chu
- Past
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- Intern at Disaster Accountability Project
- Staff Officer, Ministries with Young People Resources at DFMS/Episcopal Church Center
- Program Director, Ministries with Young People at DFMS/Episcopal Church Center
- Staff Officer, Young Adult & Higher Ed. Ministries at DFMS/Episcopal Church Center
- Program Assistant, Congregational Development at DFMS/Episcopal Church Center
- Education
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- Hofstra University School of Law
- New School University
- Columbia University in the City of New York
- Connections
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151
connections
- Industry
- Non-Profit Organization Management
- Websites
Thom Chu’s Summary
18+ years of experience in non-profit management with the worldwide headquarters of the Episcopal Church in New York, proficient in organizing networks, motivating volunteers, communicating mission and purpose, producing events and resources that educate and inspire.
Completed in July 2009 a major contract with the United Church of Christ to survey and evaluate its ministries with youth and young adults, eventually to recommend a comprehensive mission strategy). Currently working with a number of individual clients in the United Church of Christ and the Unitarian Universalist Association. My focus is shifting towards conflict transformation, a creative approach to engaging (not avoiding conflict)--this is a subset of therapeutic jurisprudence and alternative dispute resolution.
I interned this summer with Disaster Accountability Project, a legal non-profit focused on bringing increased accountability from FEMA and American Red Cross in responding to current crises and being better prepared for future ones.
Thom Chu’s Specialties:
Board development, staff development, strategic planning, program planning and implementation, community organizing, resource development and production, copywriting, branding and identity, event planning, training
Thom Chu’s Experience
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Consultant
Thomas K. Chu
(Non-Profit Organization Management industry)
April 2008 — Present (1 year 9 months)
Solo organizational development consultant practice focusing on religious organizations' reaching out to younger constituencies, leadership succession and transition, and mission clarification. My most recent major client has been the United Church of Christ national offices, which engaged me on a one-year contract to evaluate the needs of youth and young adults and those who work with them and to provide a comprehensive mission strategy.
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Intern
Disaster Accountability Project
(Non-Profit Organization Management industry)
June 2009 — July 2009 (2 months)
Worked on Pandemic Influenza Preparedness research and a range of organizational sustainability efforts, including developing an online newsletter, website improvements, database management, board development, and general communications improvements.
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Staff Officer, Ministries with Young People Resources
DFMS/Episcopal Church Center
(Religious Institutions industry)
October 2001 — March 2008 (6 years 6 months)
• Directed two generations of website resource production in traditional HTML and RedDot CMS focusing on free electronic resources, relational networking, and specialized list groups.
• Produced "Listening to the Voices of Young Adults," a DVD resource distributed to over 9,000 congregations and church leaders.
• Oversaw planning, editing, design, production, and distribution of all group print resources, including promotional, educational, and worship materials with larger distributions exceeding 10,000 copies, reducing unit production costs by 50% over five years.
• Improved group resource development through the use of online interactive software developed by communications office.
• Generated and produced multimedia DVD, website, and educational resources on the crisis in Sudan and its refugees (interviews, presentations, downloadable material) with a distribution of 4,000. -
Program Director, Ministries with Young People
DFMS/Episcopal Church Center
(Religious Institutions industry)
June 1997 — March 2008 (10 years 10 months)
• Increased annual program and salary budget from $1.1m to $1.76m within ten years.
• Conducted five successful staff officer searches and played a part in six supporting staff searches; managed a staff of seven others on a day-to-day basis including performance management, personnel development, leading regular meetings and seasonal off-site staff retreats.
• Introduced concrete measures of local and regional utilization of programs and resources, including a systemwide paper and online survey with over 1,000 key respondents.
• Streamlined strategic program planning and implementation, interpretation, marketing, and pricing in specialty areas
• Implemented a shift from a hierarchical culture of “command and control” to a collaborative culture of shared commitment and work.
• Developed a grassroots learning approach that brings teachers and learners together to develop new resources that tap into hidden insights. -
Staff Officer, Young Adult & Higher Ed. Ministries
DFMS/Episcopal Church Center
(Religious Institutions industry)
June 1993 — October 2001 (8 years 5 months)
• Initiated and completed a multi-year collaboration with the Episcopal Church Foundation to raise the profile and reinvigorate campus ministry, training for local boards, and designed a structure for campus ministry fund raising (now operated as CampuSource).
• Produced four churchwide gatherings for college and university students (two ecumenical) ranging in attendance from 400 to 2,000.
• Revitalized churchwide young adult ministry network after a ten-year hiatus eventually involving over 60% of US regions through regular meetings, e-mail networking, personal appearances, and one-on-one organizing.
• Developed Episcopal MissionWorks concept with Young Adult Service Corps and Domestic Young Adult Internships collaborative.
• Organized and raised funds for Young Adult Ministry certificate program at Seabury-Western Theological Seminary in Evanston IL. -
Program Assistant, Congregational Development
DFMS/Episcopal Church Center
(Religious Institutions industry)
September 1989 — June 1993 (3 years 10 months)
• Assisted staff officer in programming, research and training in new church development, congregational revitalization, and church-based community organizing.
• Developed interpretation materials and led workshops with a focus on demographic and marketing research and methods, including market segmentation, telephone marketing, and door-to-door visitation.
• Provided staff support by automating mailing lists, preparing correspondence and publications, negotiating and arranging venues for 15 week-long training events, travel for staff and consultants, preparing contracts, payments, and budget maintenance.
Thom Chu’s Education
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Hofstra University School of Law
JD , 2008 — 2012 (expected)
- Activities and Societies:
- OutLaw LGBTQ students (alumni/ae liaison), Asian-American/Pacific Islander Law Students Association (student mentor), Staff Writer, Out-of-Court Statements, student newspaper
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New School University
Non-degree , Spanish Intensive (equivalent to four semesters of undergraduate study) , 2007 — 2007
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Columbia University in the City of New York
BA , Urban Studies, Political Science, Elementary Education , 1985 — 1989
Additional Information
Thom Chu’s Websites:
Thom Chu’s Groups:
President, FaithTrust Institute, a multi-faith organization dedicated to ending sexual and domestic violence, 2006-present (Treasurer, 2003-06)
Commissioner, Education and Ecumenical Formation, World Council of Churches, 2000-2006
Administrative Board Member, Education and Leadership Commission, National Council of Churches, 1994-2008
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United Church of Christ -
Columbia University Alumni Network -
LinkedEpiscopalians -
Yale Club of New York City -
Ivy Referral Network (IRN) -
Columbia Referral Network (CRN) -
IVY GROUPS - The Professional Network for Ivy League Alumni -
IVY GROUPS: Law & Legal Services -
Disaster Accountability Project -
IRN-NYC
Thom Chu’s Honors:
Publications:
Staff Writer, Out of Court Statements, student publication of Hofstra Law School, co-author of "It's no Secret: Part-Time Program Terminated", April 2009.
Author, "Youth, Young Adults & the UCC: Where are we now?", United Church News, April-May 2009.
Contributor, PushIt! Young Adults Engage the Bible, United Church Press, 2002.
Contributor, Disorganized Religion: The Evangelization of Youth and Young Adults, Cowley Publications, 1999.
Co-author, GodWorks: Evangelism with Youth and Young Adults, Morehouse Publishing, 1997.
Thom Chu’s Contact Settings
Interested In:
- career opportunities
- consulting offers
- new ventures
- expertise requests
- reference requests
- getting back in touch
