Course Description: Leadership in Ministry is a twice-a-year, peer-based, clergy leadership development program. It is part of the Pastoral Excellence Programs of the Center for Lifelong Learning of Columbia Theological Seminary. Many participants have attended for several years, with some participating for over a decade, reaping the benefits of long-term commitment to personal and professional growth. This program’s goals are to:

  • Provide a peer-learning forum for clergy to explore the issues particular to their congregational contexts;
  • Help participants develop a theoretical framework for interpreting practice and context using Bowen Systems Theory;
  • Help clergy accurately identify and name the particular challenges of ministry in their context;
  • Provide clergy with a safe and stimulating peer group experience for renewal and challenge.

The Leadership in Ministry Online workshops will apply Bowen Family Systems Theory as further developed by Edwin Friedman, author of Generation to Generation and A Failure of Nerve, to ministerial and organizational leadership. The majority of time is spent in peer group case studies led by experienced faculty coaches. As such, participants work to apply the theory to the “real world” realities of their ministry context.

Location: Online

With: Margaret Marcuson, Julie Josund, Bill Pyle, and Meg Hess

Schedule: Meeting dates and times will be arranged by faculty members at a beneficial time for all. Group coaching sessions usually last three hours. Spring sessions will be scheduled March-May and the fall sessions September-November. Please register by Friday August 25th. Any registrations after that time will be added to the small group that works best with their schedule. 

Program Fee: $850 for both spring and fall. It includes access to past and upcoming webinar presentations by LIM faculty and a minimum of 3 group sessions per season.  Single session rate is $510.

Limited scholarships are available. Submit your financial aid request HERE. Payment plans can also be arranged.

 

 

Earning CEUs for this course: If you desire to earn a certificate confirming earned CEUs in this course, please contact the Center for Lifelong Learning.

In order to qualify for CEUs in this course you must fulfill the following requirements:

  1. Confirm that you have read the assigned text.
  2. Participated in the full course and all discussions.
  3. Completed any assignments, papers, and projects.
  4. Completed the course evaluation.
  5. Made a formal request for a CEU certificate.