JACKSON, Miss. -- Irene Howard, chancellor of the United Methodist Church's Mississippi Annual (regional) Conference, will become general counsel of the denomination's General Council on Finance and Administration (GCFA) on July 1.

An active member of Madison (Miss.) United Methodist Church, Howard will join Michelle Thorne and David Ullrich, associate general counsels, in working to protect the legal interests of GCFA and the denomination.

While on the GCFA staff, the general counsel is often consulted by other units and leaders of the church, particularly the bishops.

Howard has been a managing partner of the DelKen Group Inc. since 2000. Previous professional positions have included vice president and chief counsel of KLLM Transport Services Inc. in Richland, Miss.; partner of a private law firm in Jackson, Miss.; special assistant to the executive director of a Mississippi Legislative Audit Committee; and division director for the Mississippi State Personnel Board.

She earned her juris doctor degree from the Mississippi College School of Law in Jackson; a master of science in public administration from Florida State University in Tallahassee; and a bachelor of arts in sociology from Millsaps College, a United Methodist-related institution in Jackson.

A member of the chancel and hand-bell choirs in the Madison congregation, Howard has also served her church and conference as a member of the pastor parish relations committee, lay member to the annual conference, an officer in the United Methodist Women and a member of various conference boards. She is an active participant in the Kairos prison ministry.

Howard succeeds Mary Logan, who left the staff last October to serve as chief operating officer of the American Dental Association. Logan had been on the GCFA staff since 1995.