The Rev. Emily Kuhn Hartner serves as the 79th bishop, and the first female bishop, of the North Carolina Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Elected at the North Carolina Synod Assembly in Greensboro, NC, on May 31, she began her term on August 1. She is a child of the NC Synod having received much faith formation at her home congregation of Beth Eden Lutheran Church in Newton, NC. She earned a BS from Davidson College, an MDiv from Yale Divinity School, and an STM from the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia (now United Lutheran Seminary). Prior to her role as bishop, she participated in the ELCA’s Young Adults in Global Mission program, working with the unhoused community in Edinburgh, Scotland. She also served two congregations in North Carolina: St. Mark’s Lutheran Church and Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, both in Charlotte. She lives in Huntersville with her husband Ian and son Oliver and enjoys tap dancing in her free time.