Newsletter Articles
Transforming Leaders Initiative: Whom are we trying to reach?
With the decision to hold our first TLi annual conference April 14-19, 2009, we are moving our design-build process into high gear. We are finalizing major components, creating our business plan, initiating major grant requests and developing partnerships and resources across the country. So far, we have had 40+ potential candidates recommended to us. For the full picture of our iniative, see our TLi update here.
Our first year conference will be at Sheridan Lutheran in Lincoln, Nebraska. Larry Arganbright our newest board member offered to host this inaugural event. A number of large churches across the ELCA have invested in the TLi, and offered their partnership as Signature Ministry mentoring sites and Conference hosts as we move forward.
Who is the target audience?
When you look at the demographics of active parish pastors across the ELCA, very interesting facts emerge. We have around 11,000 active roster pastors today. We have determined our primary target will be pastors in their 30’s and 40’s. We will have some younger and some older than the primary target.
The demographics for ELCA Ordained Pastors by age group look like this:
30 to 34.9 = 495
35 to 39.9 = 704
40 to 44.9 = 858
45 to 49.9 = 1,512
50 to 54.9 = 2,222
Total for age:
30 to 54.9 = 5791
Number of pastors ordained by the ELCA in
2007 = 282
2006 = 287
2005 = 276
2004 = 267
2003 = 295
All 2007 ordinations may not have been reported yet.
Vision to reach 10% of ELCA parish pastors in their 30’s and 40’s in 10 years.
These data tell us that almost half our pastors will be eligible for retirement in the next ten years. So, if we have 5200+ pastors eligible to retire over ten years, we will be retiring around 500 a year while ordaining 300.
Our vision is to reach the 10% of the 3569 pastors in their 30’s and 40’s over the next ten years by sending an average of 70 a year through our learning journey. We will seek those who are identified by our network of leaders as having strong gifts of leadership, which are already being demonstrated in the parish. We also seek those who have discipleship in their DNA. If we accomplish our goals, we will reach 10% of those under 55 by 2020.
Who else will we reach?
There is a deep yearning amongst pastors across the ELCA for connection, community and mutual support. We will be bringing together Signature Ministry leaders for learning and fellowship. Our National Conferences will be open to our Signature Ministries, and others who invest in our initiative. These conferences will become annual reunions for those who have already graduated, and a networking and learning event for the broader church. Out of this journey will come a virtual network, a connected church.
Creating a connected church(see the article here).
We will create an interactive online community where best practices will easily flow among our churches. Anyone who shares our passion for discipleship and renewal will be welcome in our virtual community. Much of the learning will be shared as our graduates become coaches and mentors in their Synods. We will create distance-learning opportunities for those in and beyond our network, so the events we create can impact far beyond those in our Learning Journey and present at the conference church.
We invite the whole Church to invest in equipping our future leaders
Because the whole church is invested in raising effective leaders, in our financial models, TLi participants and their local congregation will only be expected to contribute one third to one half of the cost of the experience. Agencies, foundations and private donors who believe in the power of faithful and effective leadership are investing significant financial resources in this work. Those joining our network will be invited to invest in the initiative.
For those participants in our TLi Learning Journey from very economically challenged contexts, we will have some scholarship money to reduce the financial barrier even further. The ELCA Office of the Bishop has already contributed $60,000 to provide scholarships to those who will need them most as they enter this work.
How will first year participants be chosen?
We are gathering recommendations now from ELCA Large Church Pastors, our Board and Advisors, Bishops and others from across our community. We seek to identify our participants by Reformation Day. Feel free to contact Gregg Burch for conversation. Click the Contact Us button on our TransformingChurch.com home page for more information.
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