Higher Education Bulletin

May 2010

The Higher Education staff in the Education Division at Church House (Stephen Heap and Gabriella Di Salvo) produce this Bulletin to support the network of Anglican Higher Education Chaplains in England by providing accessible and relevant information for Chaplains and other interested parties. We are happy to make it available to others also. Please contact Gabriella or Stephen to go on the mailing list. If there is something you would like considered for inclusion, please e-mail gabriella.disalvo@c-of-e.org.uk. We hope to have the next bulletin out on June 21st. Please let us have material for inclusion by Monday 17th June. Thanks!

To contact the National Adviser, Stephen Heap, please e-mail stephen.heap@c-of-e.org.uk or phone 020 7898 1513 or write to The Revd Dr Stephen Heap, Higher Education Adviser, Church House, Great Smith St, Westminster SW1P 3NZ

In this bulletin:

1. Forthcoming Events2. Inter-faith issues3. Higher Education Issues4. Books5. Vacancies6. Courses7. Religious Literacy Project

Higher Education Bulletin – March 2010

1. FORTHCOMING EVENTS

1.1 Conference of European University Chaplains Conference 2010 Coventry 14th-18th June 2010.Registrations for the June 2010 Conference for European University Chaplains are underway!   This conference offers an exciting programme with inspirational speakers, academic input and an excellent social programme.Come to this conference and meet other chaplains from around the world!  There are three additional opportunities:

· offer to present a paper or give a workshop· we are now offering a daily rate· 2 half day sessions led by the academic department of peace & reconciliation will give you a 'certificate in peace & reconciliation studies'

To take part in this unique conference register: www.ceuc2010.org

1.2 Anglican and Methodist Chaplains conference (includes those serving in ecumenical chaplaincies linked to either or both denomination). This will be held in High Leigh from September 6th to 9th 2010. Your committee has been working hard to re-shape this since the previously booked speaker had to pull out. It is now looking like a really exciting conference around the theme ‘Dreams and Realities’. Music, literature and art will help us to dream, including about what we are about in higher education …… and we will face some realities about the place of religion in society and (hopefully) about the funding constraints of the present days. Speakers include, Bishop John Saxbee (Chair of Church of England Board of Education) and Steve Egan (Deputy Chief Executive of HEFCE)

1.3 In Bad Faith –Workshops Speaker - Christian Szurko

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Higher Education Bulletin – March 2010Othona Community in EssexSaturday 28th August to Saturday 4th September

Workshops examining the nature of what the organisers of the workshops call extremist authoritarian sects and the needs of people harmed by involvement with them. Organised by the Dialog Centre UK, which has worked in this field for over 30 years. Link: http://www.dialogcentre.org.uk/Link: http://www.bos.othona.org/

1.4 Transforming the Mind2010 conference theme - Transforming the Mind: Captivating Thoughts Dates - 18th to 20th June Speakers - Prof Alister McGrath and Edith Reitema (from L'Abri). …

Transforming the Mind is an annual conference held in Derbyshire for Christian postgraduates and postdocs. Seehttp://www.christianpostgrad.org.uk  

 1.5 New Chaplains TrainingThe Churches Higher Education Liaison Group offers training to all new to chaplaincy (chaplains and chaplaincy assistants). The training begins on 22nd July 2010 with a day session at Methodist Church House in Marylebone Rd, London. There is then a residential session January 19th to 21st, 2011. Further details soon - but please do book the dates and alert any new chaplains in your team to this opportunity.

1.6 Study day on the Church Colleges CertificateCUAC UK, the Church of England Board of Education and the National Society invite you to‘The Church Colleges Certificate: resurrection and reformation?’Monday 28th June at Church House, Great Smith Street, Westminster SW1P 3NZ 10.30am- 3pm

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Higher Education Bulletin – March 2010

1.7 Week of Guided Prayer - Chaplaincy Retreat in Daily LifeLoyola Hall (Jesuit Spirituality Centre) continues to offer subsidised retreats for students and staff at universities in England and Wales.Cost depends on numbers.  For example, 20 participants (students and staff) would be £500.  The six day retreat in daily life involves opening and closing meetings, three workshops (usually ways of praying, Christian decision making and images of God) and daily one-to-one spiritual direction from trained prayer guides.  The programme fits around the university timetable.We have been running these retreats for many years now and are continuing in the light of our positive experience.  Retreatants encounter the God who loves them and enjoy many of the graces of a residential retreat.For more information and available dates, please contact Stephen Hoyland at stephenhoyland@yahoo.co.uk

You might like to talk to another chaplain who has experienced the week of guided prayer at Royal Holloway, UEA, Bedfordshire, Warwick , Keele, Manchester, Leeds, Lancaster, Newman (Birmingham) or Newcastle.  We still have some spaces for summer term 2010 and also next academic year.

2. INTER- FAITH MATTERS

2.1 Yad Washem Seminar - 4-15 October 2010CCJ is the UK’s leading agency for the Church’s relationship with the Jewish people. Since 1942 we have pioneered Christian and Jewish dialogue, making great headway in theological, community and cultural understanding.

The Seminar comprises an intensive 10 days of lectures, seminars and workshops specifically for clergy and lay leaders.  The programme is designed jointly by the Head of the British Desk at Yad Vashem, and Dr Jane Clements, CCJ consultant. It features lectures from international scholars and opportunities to engage with rabbis exploring religious and theological perspectives.  The topics covered include Jewish life before the Holocaust, communities, the history of Jewish/Christian relations, art, the Final Solution, survivor stories and theological issues.

Places are extremely limited and are taken up very quickly. More information and application form can be found http://www.ccj.org.uk/Yadvashem-Seminar

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Higher Education Bulletin – March 2010The cost is just £832 which includes flights, in-country transport, all taxes, full board, excursions, entry fees, tours.  Please complete the on-line application form and send to:

 cjrelations@ccj.org.uk  marked Yad Vashem Seminar

2.2 Inter Faith Week 2010: 21-27 November Inter Faith Week will run from Sunday 21 to Saturday 27 November 2010. Its aims are:

to strengthen good inter faith relations at all levels; to increase awareness of the different and distinct faith communities

in the UK, in particular celebrating and building on the contribution which their members make to their neighbourhoods and to wider society;

to increase understanding between people of religious and non-religious belief.

The Week is being led by the Inter Faith Network for the UK, working with its member bodies. It will be community-led, with local people and groups of different backgrounds holding their own events and highlighting work going on to promote understanding between people of different faiths and beliefs.

Please follow the link below:http://www.interfaithweek.org/

3. HIGHER EDUCATION ISSUES

For logistical reasons, this Bulletin is being written before the General Election. By the time you read it, the result will be known! Thus far HE has not figured much. The suspicion is that, whoever wins, cuts will follow. For how much longer will HE get so much of its funding from the public purse? Where else might it look for funding? What strings might be attached?

4. BOOKS

4.1 Leadership in Christian Higher Education. Michael Wright and James Arthur, eds, (Exeter, Imprint Academic, 2010).

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Higher Education Bulletin – March 2010

This book is particularly about the church foundation HEIs and leadership in them, but does have a wider relevance. There are chapters from the UK (James Arthur, Gerald Pillay, Janet Trotter, Michael Wright and Jeremy Law), from India (Nirmala Jeyaraj) and the USA (Joel Cunningham). The Archbishop of Canterbury contributes an ‘Afterword’.

Michael Wright is VC at Canterbury Christ Church University and James Arthur is Professor of Education and Civic Engagement at Birmingham University. Amongst the other contributors, Jeremy Law will be well known amongst chaplains as Dean of Chapel at Canterbury Christ Church. His chapter is a very useful, and theological, one on the purposes of HE, as is Archbishop Rowan’s. Gerald Pillay is VC at Liverpool Hope University and Janet Trotter was VC at Gloucestershire, as well as holding a number of national roles. Both these chapters, along with Michael Wright’s and James Arthur’s, concentrate on the church foundation HEIs, but what they say helps reflection on HE more generally. The Indian and American contributions are a bit more removed from the coal face most of us work on, but it is good to hear voices from other places.

4.2 Love Across Latitudes: A workbook on Cross-cultural Marriage, Janet Fraser-Smith. (Loughborough, AWM)

This book is a useful resource for anyone seeking to work with diverse culture groups, though its particular focus is those entering into cross-cultural marriages. In various sections, it looks at a range of issues people may face in cross-cultural relationships. They include living with different beliefs about life, assumptions about marriage, the impact of culture and history, how to bring up children, where to live, which language to speak etc. There are also sections on more specifically Christian considerations, including for those involved in mission in cultures not their own. Each section contains a story to illuminate its theme and some ‘questions for consideration’. Most of us work on campus with diverse cultural and ethnic groups and this book will help with that.

Janet has also written ‘Widen your horizons with your Passport’ (Loughborough, AWM). This is a slender volume which uses the different sections of a passport as conversation starters to help people tell their stories to each other. Again, a useful resource for working with people from different cultures.

Both books are available from PO Box 51, Loughborough, Leicestershire LE11 OZQ.

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Higher Education Bulletin – March 2010

4.3 Retreats for everyoneA common misconception about retreats is that they are only for those on the very serious end of prayerfulness and holiness and that they demand a certain kind of discipline of body and mind to even think about attending. The reality is that retreats are for everyone – and there are as many different kinds as there are people to go on them.The Retreat Association publishes the annual journal Retreats, listing 230 different retreat houses and their programmes. This year’s edition has a particular focus on ‘Active retreats’ with a variety of articles exploring how you can discover or develop a hobby or enjoy an activity while going on retreat. The house programmes include a broad range of retreats – both active and reflective, including such twenty-first century issues as managing change and coping with stress.We have 25 of these journals (usually £8.50 including postage) available FREE to readers of this bulletin. Contact us on 01494 433004 or email info@retreats.org.uk and request a copy quoting 'Higher Education Bulletin'. For more information, please go to www.retreats.org.uk

5. VACANCIES

5.1 Chaplain of Anglia Ruskin UniversityThe Bishop of Bradwell and the Chaplaincy Council are seeking to appoint a full time Anglican Chaplain to the Anglia Ruskin University’s Chelmsford Campus to replace the Reverend Canon Ivor Moody who took up his appointment as Vice Dean and Canon Pastor of Chelmsford Cathedral in April.Please see the link below:http://www.chelmsford.anglican.org/anglia-ruskin-university-chapliancy.html

5.2 Trinity College, University of Cambridge/ ChaplainThe College expects to appoint an Anglican priest as Chaplain for a period of four years from late summer 2011. The person appointed will be one of two Chaplains who play an important part in the life of the College and particularly in pastoral care.  He or she will work closely with the Dean of Chapel and the Director of Music.Details are also available on the Trinity College Website: www.trin.cam.ac.ukClosing Date: 30/06/2010Trinity College, Cambridge Anthea Smith, Assistant Chapel SecretaryCB2 1TQ as2040@cam.ac.uk

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Higher Education Bulletin – March 2010

5.3 Outreach workers-Sheffield UniversityThe Anglican Chaplaincy Trust at the University of Sheffield is looking to recruit two part-time Student Outreach Workers to work with the new Anglican Chaplain in the academic session 2010-2011. You will be a University graduate and a practising Anglican (or committed Christian in sympathy with the Anglican tradition), with a pioneer spirit, as well as flair, imagination, enterprise, and a sense of humour!

Applications should be sent to Mrs Kathryn Fey-Beatson, the Chaplaincy Administrator, The University of Sheffield Chaplaincy Service, 344 Glossop Road, Sheffield, S10 2HW by Friday 18th June 2010Please see the link below:http://www.shef.ac.uk/ssd/chaplains/news/vacancies.html

5.4 Universities Chaplaincy in Leeds are looking for a Student Outreach Worker 1st September 2010 – 31st August 2011 Salary £13950 for period of employment

An exciting opportunity, ideal for a recent graduate, to work as part of the Universities Chaplaincy in Leeds connecting faith with students in two universities.

Application deadline is noon on Wednesday 9th June Interviews to take place Thursday 17th June

For full job description, background information and an application form http://www.leeds.ac.uk/chaplaincy/Vacancies/vacancies.htmlor contact Revd. Matt Ward 0113 3435070.

5.5 University of Gloucestershire

Trainee Chaplain Dept/Location: Student Services, Francis Close Hall, CheltenhamClosing date: 25 May 2010Interview date: 10 June 2010Availability: Internal and external applicantshttp://resources.glos.ac.uk/jobs/index.cfm?jobRef=S759

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Higher Education Bulletin – March 2010

Assistant Chaplain Dept/Location: Student Services, Park Campus, CheltenhamClosing date: 25 May 2010Interview date: 9 June 2010Availability: Internal and external applicantshttp://resources.glos.ac.uk/jobs/index.cfm?jobRef=S758

If you want to find out more about these posts then please do get in touch withTamsin Merchant (Senior Chaplain).Rev. Tamsin Merchant (Senior Chaplain) tmerchant@glos.ac.uk or 01242 714592 or Stewart Dove (Director of Student Support) stewartd@glos.ac.uk or 01242 714536

5.6 Co- ordinating and Anglican Chaplain Loughborough University and Loughborough College The Bishop of Leicester in partnership with the Vice Chancellor and Principal wishes to appointa chaplain to this dynamic, high-achieving university and thriving further education college withtheir large, diverse communities of staff and students.

Further details and an application form are available from:- Archdeacon of Loughborough’s Secretary – Wendy Dunnington on 0116 248 7409 or email : wendy.dunnington@leccofe.orgalso available on the Diocesan Website : http://www.leicester.anglican.org/your-church/subsite/current-vacancies.aspx

Closing date for applications : Friday 21st May 2010Short list of applicants : Tuesday 25th May 2010Interviews : Friday 11th June June 2010

5.7 University Chaplain

£36,715 to £43,840 with a housing allowance of c£4,000.

You will be Chaplain to the University of Edinburgh / Head of the Chaplaincy Support Service. You will lead the work of a forward-looking, multi-faith Chaplaincy team to reach out to and support the diverse student and staff

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Higher Education Bulletin – March 2010community across the University.

Ordained, or eligible for ordination, and in good standing within your own faith community you will have excellent communication, inter-personal and leadership skills.

The post is available from 7th September 2010.

Apply online, view further details or browse more jobs at www.jobs.ed.ac.uk Alternatively, telephone the recruitment line on 0131 650 2511. Please quote job reference number 3012872.

Closing date: 8th June 2010

Visit www.ed.ac.uk / www.chaplaincy.ed.ac.uk / www.labyrinth.ed.ac.uk for more information.

 

6. COURSESPlease find attached a notice about a course at King's College, London. Further details at  http://www.kcl.ac.uk/schools/sspp/education/courses/research/ministry/

7. RELIGIOUS LITERACY PROJECTRemember ‘Faiths in Higher Education Chaplaincy’ by Jem Clines, done

under the auspices of the Board of Education and my predecessor, Hugh Shilson-Thomas? I am still working away at possible follow-up to that. Not exactly a follow-up, but building on the work done there, is a project on Religious Literacy for those in Leadership in Higher Education. It is an attempt to do what it says …. help those in leadership in HEIs understand religious issues on campus. The project was launched in the Commons recently, endorsed by David Lammy, and with a number of VCs as ‘champions’ of the project. There is a web site: www.religiousliteracyHE.org

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With best wishes,

Gabriella

Gabriella Di Salvo – Executive Assistant, Lifelong Learning Team, Education Division 

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Higher Education Bulletin – March 2010

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