On August 5, 2025, the Administrative Committee elected a group of elders from among its own members to search for the nominee to serve as the next stated clerk of the Presbyterian Church in America. The search committee consisted of four ruling elders (Frank Cohee, Marty Moore, E.J. Nusbaum, and Alan Walters) and four teaching elders (Drew Field, Mike Hearon, Jason Helopoulos, and Rick Phillips).

In January, the search committee presented a unanimous recommendation that TE Fred Greco be nominated for the role. The 53rd General Assembly will consider Greco’s nomination to serve as stated clerk when it convenes in Louisville on June 22-26, 2026.

Frank Cohee from Providence Presbytery was elected to serve as chairman of the search committee. Cohee serves as a ruling elder at Cornerstone Presbyterian Church in Huntsville, Alabama. ByFaith interviewed Cohee to learn more about the search process that ultimately led them to their final candidate. This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

When you first convened, how did you decide to structure your work? 

We looked back to see how previous searches were conducted. There haven’t been many searches for a stated clerk, so you don’t have a lot of material. But we wanted to learn from those who had previously done it.

Thankfully, some men on the committee had experience in conducting searches both inside and outside of the church. Marty Moore had served on the presidential search committee for Covenant College, and I have some experience with executive and pastoral searches. Using insights from the past and our own experience, we structured a process we could use to find our nominee.

We all agreed that we had two jobs as a committee. First, we had to find a qualified candidate to serve as stated clerk. Second, we had to apply a sufficient amount of rigor throughout the process to ensure we had done the first job correctly. The process we used was designed with those two goals in mind.

What traits and characteristics were the committee looking for?

We leaned heavily on the description of the stated clerk found in the Rules of Assembly Operations. RAO 3.2 describes the job responsibilities of the clerk. We knew we had to find a candidate who could faithfully execute in the role. RAO 3. 5 also describes the personal character traits that should be exemplified by the stated clerk.

But the reality is when you have a list, everyone in the room may put an emphasis on particular items being more important than others on it. We needed to be aligned in our understanding.

How did the committee make sure it was aligned?

First, we created a survey that we took among ourselves. We listed out all the responsibilities and characteristics listed in the RAO, and each committee member had to prioritize from most important to least important.

We evaluated the results to see how aligned we were with each other. But we also needed to know that our priorities were aligned with a broader group within the denomination. So, we circulated the survey to every presbytery clerk, presbytery moderator, members of permanent committees and agencies, former General Assembly moderators, and the Administrative Committee staff.

We invited 441 people to provide input and received 207 responses to the survey. We examined the results to create a list of the top responsibilities and character traits desired in the final candidate.

What did you learn through the survey?

Based on the research of the committee, along with the stakeholder inputs, the following key traits were defined for the Stated Clerk candidate:

• Fair-minded arbiter
• Administrator
• Love for the Church
• Respect of all levels of the PCA
• Love of and knowledge of PCA polity
• Graceful and dignified gentleman
• Serves rather than leads the plurality of Presbyterian polity

What was the interview and selection process like?

We designed the process to make sure a few things happened.

• First, we made sure every question was directly connected to a responsibility or character trait. By the end of the process, candidates would have answered 50 questions we created at the beginning.
• Second, we made sure every candidate was asked the same set of questions and was given an equal amount of time at every stage of the process. We wanted to keep the playing field level.
• Finally, at every stage of the process, we took time to pray over the candidates as we considered them before moving on to the next round.

Through the survey, we received 40 names of potential stated clerk candidates. Every single person recommended received a personal invitation to apply to the Stated Clerk position. We also posted the position and invited anyone interested to apply.

As part of their initial application, candidates were asked to answer a series of rather difficult questions. We read through all their materials before deciding which candidates to interview.

We conducted a two-hour Zoom interview in the first round. After that, we invited a select group for in-person interviews.

As the process moved forward, what additional steps were required of the finalists?

By this point in the process, we didn’t need biographical information. We were focused on the questions we had created. But when we got to in-person interviews, we added another layer of scrutiny.

Candidates were required to complete a personality test. Though we felt we had a good grasp of the candidates, we wanted another barometer by which to assess them. We also analyzed their digital presence and social media. Also, every candidate was required to provide eight references which had to include people from every level of church courts (session, presbytery, and General Assembly). We also conducted a background check.

These additional steps, along with all the other data we had accumulated along the way, were used to help us choose our nominee.

What do you think people would be surprised to learn about the process?

First, our search committee truly enjoyed doing this work together. We vary in personality and preferences. But there was a strong sense of brotherhood among us.

Second, we prayed throughout the process for each other, our churches, the denomination, and the candidates. We designed the process to make sure it included more prayer, not less.

Third, there were a number of highly qualified candidates that we got to know through the process. It made the process more difficult, because you could see the gifts and expertise each one would have brought to the role.