General Synod Location Announced for 2024 and 2025

Contracts have recently been signed, confirming the location for General Synod 2024 and 2025: the Westin La Paloma in Tucson, Arizona. This decision was made following a positive experience at the hotel during General Synod 2021 and after extensive research by the RCA events team.

Traditionally, General Synods have been held on college campuses, most often hosted by one of the RCA’s three colleges: Central, Hope, and Northwestern. Pandemic restrictions in 2021 made it necessary to hold General Synod at a hotel. After the meeting at the Westin, delegates reported that the hotel setting significantly improved their ability to do the work of the synod. Combined with the reality of a smaller RCA staff, which makes it difficult to manage the more involved level of setup required at colleges, the General Synod planning team reevaluated the location options for General Synod. 

“I value the RCA’s historic and ongoing relationship with our colleges, and I am grateful for the many General Synods they have hosted on their campuses. We have received hospitality and excellent support from events staff at our colleges,” says general secretary Eddy Alemán. “We have made this decision to hold General Synod at a hotel after careful consideration.”

That careful consideration included site explorations and visits across the United States and a great deal with the Westin La Paloma.

“Because of our preexisting relationship with the Westin, we were able to negotiate very affordable rates to return there in 2024 and 2025, and they were truly wonderful to work with when we held General Synod there in 2021,” says Liz Brand, director of General Synod operations. “Their staff is very supportive in helping with the complicated logistics of a General Synod meeting.

“Our colleges have wonderful staff and we are so grateful for the many times they’ve warmly hosted General Synod meetings,” she adds.

Even with affordable rates with the Westin, holding General Synod at a hotel does have a higher cost than holding it at one of the RCA’s colleges. But consideration for the delegates’ well-being and ability to do their work well at General Synod held considerable weight in this location decision.

“It is important to give General Synod delegates every advantage in doing their work, especially in 2024 as they consider the report of the restructuring team,” says Alemán. “Being well rested in comfortable accommodations will help with their discernment.”

The location of future General Synods will be considered based on decisions that arise from the work of the RCA’s restructuring team, which may affect the length and frequency of General Synod meetings.

General Synod 2023 will run June 8-13 and will be held at Central College in Pella, Iowa. General Synod 2024 will be held June 13-18, 2024, in Tucson, Arizona; General Synod 2025 will be June 5-10, 2025, again in Tucson.