The NPCL is a partnership between the Dakotas-Minnesota Area and Dakota Wesleyan University, with funding assistance from the Lilly Endowment. More than 50 congregations have benefited from their clergy participating in the program and gaining new skills. 

Diane Owen, director of the Dakotas-Minnesota Area Lilly Grant Initiative that made the NPCL program possible, says every pastoral leader benefits, regardless of church size or experience in ministry.

Dr. Alisha Vincent, director of the program, shares that the applied projects, coaching, and peer learning make a difference. "Our primary objective is to improve the clergy confidence with those administrative skills."