Who we are

The Children's Ministry Partnership

The Children's Ministry Partnership聽(CMP) is an initiative to revitalize parish communities by providing creative faith formation materials that awaken wonder and awe to nurture children's lifelong relationships with God and the Church.

The CMP invites parish leaders and families to join a cohort of partners throughout New England and New York. This treasury of unique programming and materials provides a tender, joyful introduction to the Catholic faith. Discover a multimedia collection of children's books, video series, downloadable guides, and turnkey templates for projects and events that will ignite a child's faith imagination and harmonize parish and family life.聽

The CMP was founded in 2025 by the Boston College Church in the 21st Century Center as part of the Nurturing Children Through Worship and Prayer Initiative. The project is coordinated by the Strengthening Ministry with Children program through the Lilly Foundation.

The Church in the 21st Century Center

Drawing from both the Boston College community and others, the C21 Center engages in critical conversations facing the Catholic community focusing on four critical issues: handing on the faith, roles and relationships in the Church, sexuality in the Catholic tradition, and the Catholic intellectual tradition.

The Church in the 21st Century Center was originally conceived as a two-year initiative in September 2002 to explore the problematic issues highlighted by the sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic Church. Boston College offered symposia, lectures, conferences, published papers, and other resources to assist the Church to negotiate the movement from crisis to renewal. In 2004, the University established The Church in the 21st Century Center as a permanent commitment to explore the neuralgic issues facing the Catholic Church today.

Meet Our Team

Karen Kiefer

Karen Kiefer


Director, The Church in the 21st Century Center

Karen Kiefer


Director, The Church in the 21st Century Center

| The Church in the 21st Century Center

Karen Kiefer '82 serves as the director of the Church in the 21st Century Center at Boston College. Before joining the C21 Center in 2008, she held positions in University Advancement and as an adjunct faculty member in the Communication Department. Karen is the founder of Spread the Bread, an award-winning, nonprofit organization and taught religious education in local parishes for 25 years. She is author of the children's book, "The Misfit Sock" and recently authored the聽children's book, "Drawing God", sparking a world-wide movement. The mother of four daughters, Karen resides in Wayland with her husband, Sam.

Megan Stevens

Megan Stevens


Assistant Program Director, Children's Ministry Partnership

Megan Stevens


Assistant Program Director, Children's Ministry Partnership

| The Church in the 21st Century Center

Megan Stevens, MCAS '23, serves as the Assistant Director of the C21 Children's Ministry Partnership for the Church in the 21st Century Center at Boston College. Before joining the C21 Center, she volunteered as a St. Joseph Worker at St. Mary's Academy in Inglewood, CA, completed a WorkArt Kunstverein Fellowship at the Museum f眉r Photographie Braunschweig in Germany, instructed dancers of all ages, and taught elementary art using a faith-informed classical curriculum. She was drawn to the C21 Center by its budding children's ministry work, which aligns with her passion for expanding access to and cultivating love for creative expression. Her work with the Children's Ministry Partnership draws on her inter-faith upbringing, performing and visual arts education, and experience in homeschool, classical, Christian, and Catholic educational settings. She is grateful for the unique opportunity to build resources that combine art and faith to invite children to seek goodness, truth, and beauty in their daily lives.聽

Behind the Project

Established to support the three causes of community development, education and religion, the Endowment seeks to identify experienced organizations and emerging efforts that have the potential to address effectively important challenges and needs. By providing funding, consulting and technical assistance, research and evaluation support, and connections to other organizations with relevant aims and experience, the Endowment helps these organizations realize this potential. The Endowment strives to keep foremost in mind the impact these organizations have and will have on the individuals, families, and communities they seek to serve.

Through the Nurturing Children Through Worship and Prayer Initiative, Lilly Endowment is funding聽highly promising and creative endeavors聽that help children come to know and love God and grow in faith. Intergenerational corporate worship services and prayer practices will help congregations address one or more of the following objectives:聽

  • Strengthening worship and prayer practices that attend to and respect how children experience God and express their faith.
  • Enhancing worship and prayer practices that are more fully inclusive of all children, including children with disabilities.
  • Drawing more fully on the arts (e.g., music, visual arts, drama, etc.) to enhance the experience of worship and prayer for children.
  • Creating opportunities for Bible storytelling that help children hear and tell stories of faith through worship and prayer practices.
  • Enhancing worship and prayer practices that more intentionally connect worship with the daily lives of children and their families.

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