Norton concludes role with AMBS Church Leadership Center
Published: November 13, 2025
By Annette Brill Bergstresser
ELKHART, Indiana (Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary) — Steve Norton, BA, of Goshen, Indiana, concluded his time with the Church Leadership Center of Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary (AMBS) in Elkhart, Indiana, on Oct. 31, 2025, after six years of service. He will return to pastoral ministry, beginning Nov. 17 as Pastor of Union Center Church of the Brethren in Nappanee, Indiana, a congregation of the Northern Indiana District of the Church of the Brethren.
Norton joined AMBS in September 2019 as half-time Program Assistant for the Thriving in Ministry grant program of the Church Leadership Center (CLC), which houses the seminary’s continuing education programs. In February 2021, he added the half-time role of Assistant Director of Human Resources (HR) and Payroll for the seminary. In January 2023, he ended his HR role to serve the CLC full time as Assistant Director of the Journey Missional Leadership Development Program and Church Leadership Center Program Coordinator.
“Steve has approached his work at AMBS with excellence, steadiness and care,” reflected Jewel Gingerich Longenecker, PhD, Dean of Lifelong Learning and Doctor of Ministry Program Director. “He brought remarkable organizational skills and genuine pastoral care to everything he did, whether managing complex programs, communicating with grace, or supporting students and church leaders.”
During his time at AMBS, Norton provided administrative support for multiple CLC offerings, including Ministry Reflection Circles, Transition to Leadership, Online Short Courses and the annual Pastors & Leaders conference. He launched and managed the Invite AMBS program, in which seminary faculty and staff serve as presenters or consultants on topics of interest for congregations and organizations. According to Gingerich Longenecker, since the Invite AMBS program began in February 2020, AMBS has sent 28 faculty and staff to 269 churches, conferences, businesses and other venues.
In 2023, Norton added responsibilities for the Journey program and two new seminary programs: the Practical Leadership Training modules and Doctor of Ministry in Leadership program.
Gingerich Longenecker affirmed Norton’s initiative, reliability and follow-through as well as his leadership experience and commitment to the church. From 1994 to 2008, he and his spouse, Sharon Brugger Norton, served with Eastern Mennonite Missions as church planters in Germany, also launching a short-term mission program in partnership with the Theological Seminary Bienenberg in Liestal, Switzerland. After moving to Goshen, he was Pastor of Outreach for eight years for Goshen City Church of the Brethren, a congregation of the Northern Indiana District of the Church of the Brethren. He then helped establish the Rise ‘n Roll Bakery in Elkhart, serving as General Manager for two years.
“Alongside Steve’s strong administrative gifts, over the years I continuously saw in him a passion for the work of theological education here and around the world,” Gingerich Longenecker said. “His giftedness and enthusiasm for the Journey program, in particular, led me to appoint him as Assistant Director of Journey, a key leadership function that has strengthened the program in numerous ways.
“As I’ve observed Steve’s work, it’s been clear that his work is not only a job, but also a ministry,” she continued. “While we will miss him, we are grateful for his contributions and affirm his decision to respond to a call to return to pastoral ministry. I believe that his work here will have a lasting impact on the church.”
Norton holds a Bachelor of Arts in Social Work from Goshen College and a Graduate Certificate in Public Management from Indiana University South Bend. He is currently enrolled in AMBS’s Graduate Certificate in Theological Studies program.
Located in Elkhart, Indiana, on ancestral land of the Potawatomi and Miami peoples, Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary is a learning community with an Anabaptist vision, offering theological education for learners both on campus and at a distance as well as a wide array of lifelong learning programs — all with the goal of educating followers of Jesus Christ to be leaders for God’s reconciling mission in the world. ambs.edu
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