Fuller Seminary Receives Historic $17 Million Gift from Lilly Endowment to Accelerate TENx10 Collaboration
Fuller Theological Seminary is excited to announce a significant $17 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. to support the TENx10 Collaboration, whose mission it is to help faith matter more for 10 million young people during the next ten years. This generous contribution marks the largest single gift in Fuller’s history.
Launched in October 2023, and housed at Fuller Seminary, the TENx10 Collaboration is working to reverse the trend of faith decline among young people in the United States by rallying 100,000 faith communities to implement relational discipleship radically focused on Jesus Christ. The groundbreaking movement has so far united a diverse coalition of more than 200 denominations, training organizations, and ministry networks.
Dr. David Emmanuel Goatley, president of Fuller Seminary, said, “The faith formation of adolescents is among the most critical work that congregations can do. It is transformative for individuals, families, churches, and societies. The connectivity of teenagers makes possible an even larger global impact, and nurturing people in these formative years is faithful service for the kingdom.”
Since its inception, TENx10 has convened one of the largest and most diverse networks of Christian leaders in the country. The initiative has developed and launched the Faith Formation Framework, the Relational Discipleship Inventory, the Relational Discipleship Kickstart, and a suite of training resources now used by thousands of ethnically and ecumenically diverse churches. In 2025 alone, TENx10 impacted more than 10,000 congregations, and in 2026, the collaboration plans to reach 12,720 faith communities, laying the foundation for exponential growth in the years ahead. Through national awareness campaigns, conferences, and digital outreach, TENx10 has engaged more than 300,000 ministry leaders, demonstrating remarkable momentum and widespread interest.
TENx10’s unique strength lies in its collaborative approach, grounding in Scripture, research-based expertise from the Fuller Youth Institute and other high quality research partners, and commitment to listening to the voice of those they serve. With a diverse coalition of partners and with the support of Lilly Endowment and other generous donors—including Pinetops Foundation, Murdock Charitable Trust, Harold C. Smith Foundation, and The Duke Endowment—TENx10 will be able to deeply impact nearly 100,000 teenagers annually through relationally-supported church training and will also pilot scalable, lower-cost models to reach thousands more faith communities and expand its network of coaches, denominational partners, and innovative resources to serve churches of all sizes and traditions.
TENx10 founder Dr. Kara Powell, who also serves as executive director of the Fuller Youth Institute and as chief of leadership formation at Fuller Seminary, said: “At TENx10, and at Fuller overall, we believe that if our mission can be accomplished on our own, our mission is too small. Given our mission to impact 10 million teenagers in the next decade, we are grateful for our partnership with visionary partners and the support of donors, including Lilly Endowment. While our goal is God‑sized, the impact is personal—like Emily, a youth pastor in the Midwest, who returned post‑COVID to four students and, through TENx10’s relational‑discipleship cohort and 10‑week training, reframed success around adults walking with teenagers over time. Today, their youth ministry draws dozens of students and mentors, and one teenager—who once felt forgotten—now arrives early to serve. This is what our mission looks like in real churches.”
About Lilly Endowment Inc.
Lilly Endowment Inc. is a private foundation created in 1937 by J.K. Lilly Sr. and his sons Eli and J.K. Jr. through gifts of stock in their pharmaceutical business, Eli Lilly and Company. While those gifts remain the financial bedrock of the Endowment, it is a separate entity from the company, with a distinct governing board, staff and location. In keeping with the founders’ wishes, the Endowment supports the causes of community development, education and religion and maintains a special commitment to its hometown, Indianapolis, and home state, Indiana. A principal aim of the Endowment’s religion grantmaking is to deepen and enrich the lives of Christians in the United States, primarily by seeking out and supporting efforts that enhance the vitality of congregations and strengthen the pastoral and lay leadership of Christian communities. The Endowment also seeks to improve public understanding of religion and lift up in fair, accurate and balanced ways the roles that people of all faiths and various religious communities play in the United States and around the globe.
About TENx10
TENx10 is a collaborative discipleship movement of more than 200 diverse US ministry organizations and denominations working together to make faith matter more for ten million young people over ten years—in the spirit of John 10:10. TENx10 works across denominational, racial, and cultural lines to elevate relational discipleship radically focused on Jesus and transform the ecosystem of Christianity in the US, offering the resources, training, and support needed to rally local faith communities to prioritize the next generation and address their most relevant realities so their faith can thrive. For more information, visit tenx10.org.
About Fuller Seminary
Fuller Seminary is a multidenominational graduate institution that has equipped visionary ministers, scholars, teachers, mental health professionals, and intercultural leaders since 1947 to share Christ’s hope and healing in the church and the world. With graduate degrees, certificate programs, and professional and personal development courses delivered through two schools and a global online community of students and learners, Fuller comprehensively prepares Jesus-led women and men to become the compassionate, resilient leaders the world needs now.