Rev. Wanda Frenchman and Patterson Yazzie Among First TEIL Graduates at PLTS

The Grand Canyon Synod gives thanks to God as Rev. Wanda K. Frenchman and Patterson Yazzie join the first graduating cohort of the Theological Education for Indigenous Leaders (TEIL) program at Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary (PLTS).

The PLTS commencement service will take place on Saturday, May 23, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. PT at St. John’s Presbyterian Church (2727 College Ave, Berkeley, CA). A reception will follow the service, and a livestream option is also available. Registration for both in-person attendance and the livestream is available at tinyurl.com/24ypjyc. Day of livestream is clu.zoom.us/j/94949204163.

The TEIL program was created to support Indigenous leaders preparing for ministry within the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, grounding theological education in Indigenous context, culture, leadership, and community. The graduating cohort includes eight Indigenous leaders from across the church.

For the Grand Canyon Synod, this commencement marks an especially meaningful moment as two leaders connected to Indigenous ministry in our synod are among the graduates.

Rev. Wanda K. Frenchman serves in ministry through Native American Urban Ministry in Phoenix and was ordained in the ELCA in December 2025. A member of the Oglala Lakota and Lenape tribes, Wanda has written and spoken powerfully about Indigenous faith, healing, culture, and leadership within the church. Her ministry reflects a vision of the Gospel rooted in both Lutheran theology and Indigenous identity, helping create spaces of welcome, healing, and belonging for Native peoples.

Patterson Yazzie, a longtime leader connected with Navajo Evangelical Lutheran Mission in Rock Point, Arizona, is also part of the graduating cohort. Yazzie has spent years supporting Indigenous communities through leadership development, nonprofit work, advocacy, and ministry leadership in Navajo communities.

This graduation is an important milestone not only for the graduates themselves, but for Indigenous ministries across the ELCA. It reflects ongoing efforts to raise up Indigenous leaders who can serve their communities while honoring language, culture, history, and tradition alongside Christian faith.

In an email shared with the synod, Wanda described the graduation as “great news for our Synod and for Indigenous Ministries in the ELCA.”

As the church continues to reckon with the painful legacy of boarding schools, forced assimilation, and the historic harms done to Indigenous peoples in the name of Christianity, ministries like TEIL represent part of a broader movement toward listening, healing, accompaniment, and reconciliation.

We give thanks for Rev. Wanda Frenchman, Patterson Yazzie, and all the graduates of the inaugural TEIL cohort. May God continue to guide and strengthen Indigenous leaders throughout the ELCA and beyond.