The Future Communities Lab (FCL), originally founded as the Program for the Future Church (PFFC), began at Baylor University's George W. Truett Theological Seminary in 2021 as a collaborative project committed to bringing people together to collectively engage and respond to complex ministry challenges. Since its beginning, the Program was rooted in the understanding that strong healthy churches are deeply connected to the well-being of the communities around them. As this work unfolded, this connection became increasingly central to our mission and identity.
Co-founded by Dr. Angela Gorrell and Dr. Dustin Benac, the PFFC was formed with the underlying values of collaboration, convening, conjunctive imagination, contextual engagement, and creativity as foundational to the development of the program as a hub for research, relationships, and resources. By engaging in contextually-rooted research, the PFFC worked to strengthen the collaborations, conditions, and conceptual frameworks that support local churches and those who lead them. Dr. Gorrell transitioned to pursue other creative opportunities in 2022, and the original co-director structure of the program shifted to sole director.
The Program for the Future Church relaunched as a university-wide effort and took a new name, Future Communities Lab, in 2026. This change reflects a central learning that had emerged out of the early years of this work: the questions facing churches are inseparable from the questions facing the local communities in which they live, serve, and minister. The new name allows the Lab to more clearly include all the groups who participate in and shape this work: students, church leaders, community leaders, and researchers. The Future Communities Lab honors PFFC's inaugural mission while naming the broader ecosystem of partners who join its work in building a hopeful, collaborative future.