NEWTON, Kan. — The Leadership Discernment Committee of Mennonite Church USA has announced David Boshart of Wellman, Iowa, as the nominee for moderator-elect of Mennonite Church USA for the 2015-17 biennium.

The denomination’s delegate assembly will vote on the nomination in July during the biennial convention in Kansas City, Mo.

Boshart is executive conference minister for Central Plains Mennonite Conference. He also is in his seventh year of service on MC USA’s Executive Board.

“David’s experience in leading the church at the local level, the area conference level and the national level make him uniquely positioned for this role,” said Terry Shue, MC USA director for leadership development and the staff member assigned to work with the Leadership Discernment Committee.

“Anyone who has served on a board with David becomes aware of his ability to listen to those around him and to lead with clarity and courage. His pastoral heart and his keen mind have served the church well through some very important stages, and I believe that these experiences will continue to be used by God in very positive ways.”

If affirmed at the Kansas City assembly, Boshart will serve two years as moderator-elect and two years as moderator and chair of the Executive Board. He would succeed the current moderator-elect, Patricia Shelly of North Newton. The present moderator is Elizabeth Soto Albrecht of Lancaster, Pa.

Prior to being appointed as executive conference minister in 2010, Boshart served as a pastor for more than 25 years. He has a doctorate in leadership studies with an emphasis in missional theology from Andrews University in Berrien Springs, Mich., and is the author of Becoming Missional: Denominations and New Church Development in Complex Social Contexts and Sex and Faith, a Bible study guide on male sexuality from the Closer Than a Brother series published by Faith and Life Press.

Boshart also is an adjunct professor at Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary in Elkhart, Ind., and Eastern Mennonite Seminary in Harrisonburg, Va.

In his current role, Boshart provides leadership for the mission, vision and direction of Central Plains Conference. He works with congregations to help them focus their vision for ministry in their local contexts and to help develop partnerships among congregations to expand their capacity for witness and mission.

During their Sept. 25-27 meetings in Kansas City, MC USA’s Executive Board members unanimously affirmed Boshart’s nomination. Support was echoed by members of the Constituency Leaders Council at their Oct. 6-8 meeting in Schiller Park, Ill.

Boshart is married to Shana Peachey Boshart, Central Plains’ conference minister for Christian formation. They are part of Wellman Mennonite Church.

The Leadership Discernment Committee consists of Horace McMillon, Jackson, Miss., who chairs the committee; Dionicio Acosta, Lititz, Pa.; Kim Vu Friesen, Minneapolis, Minn.; Paula Brunk Kuhns, Colorado Springs, Colo.; Edie Landis, Telford, Pa.; Sharon Waltner, Parker, S.D.; Louise Wideman, Bluffton, Ohio; and staff members Terry Shue, Kidron, Ohio, and Kathryn Rodgers, Elkhart, Ind.