New DRE TrainingFall 2012

Presented by:Nancy Combs-Morgan, Faith Development DirectorHeartland District of the UUAncombsmorgan@uua.org

Introductions

Please introduce yourself by sharing the following: Name Congregation Name Your role/job in the congregation Congregation Size/Approximate RE

Enrollment Strengths you bring to the position

Roles of the Religious Educator

Supervisor, colleague, cheerleader, arbiter, teacher, creator.

Discover your own working style. Discover your strengths &

weaknesses. Personality testing such as Myers-Briggs

or Kiersey-Bates (www.kiersey.com)

Breaking Down the Role of the Religious Educator

Theological: Tradition, ritual, story telling, UU Identity building

Philosophical: Faith development, developmental theory

Educational: Curriculum mapping, teacher development

Administrative: Everything else!

Responsibilities

Administrative Program & Budget Worship Special programs/Holidays Volunteer Management & Training RE Committee Communication

Working with Others

Minister Covenantal Relationship Understanding Lines of Authority &

Accountability Other Staff – think TEAM! Confidentiality The Religious Education Committee

Know when to lead, when to listen

Essentials of Building Good Relationships

Clarity in documents, Contract, Job Description, Evaluation of Program and all involved in making it happen

Clarity in who does what task Rotation System for volunteer Lay Leaders Financial and Public Support from Board

Leadership Cooperation and interaction with other

standing committees of the church Support of the minister or Board

Working with Parents

Relationship with Parents Parents are the Primary Religious

Educator Working with parents whose children

are challenged Confidentiality Welcoming of new families

Religious Educator Responsibility for Self Care

Avoid overfunctioning Seek clarity about roles and

responsibilities Claim authority Delegate & Seek a mentor Engage in Spiritual Practice “D” is for Director not Do-er

Congregational Responsibility for Nurturing the Religious Educator

Fair Compensation & Time Off Support for Professional Connection

and Professional Development Institutional Support for faith

development Shared Leadership

Professional Connections

Liberal Religious Educators Assocation – LREDA (www.lreda.org) Code of Professional Practices Guidelines for Professional Religious Educators Good Offices Program

REACH-L UUA Listserve (open to all) LREDA-L UUA Listserve (LREDA

membership required) District and regional listserves & Facebook

pages

The Renaissance Program

Each 15-hour module provides standardized basic training in a specific area useful to Religious Educators in local congregations. The following modules may be taken in any order: Administration of RE Programs Curriculum Planning in the Local Congregation Developing a Philosophy of Religious Education Ministry with Youth Teacher Development Adult Faith Development* Unitarian Universalist Identity Worship for All Ages Multicultural Religious Education

Current Renaissance Modules

Curriculum Renaissance Module, Nov. 8-9; Cedar Rapids, IA. Registration link: psduua.org

Continental schedule on uua.org

Feb. 28-Mar. 2nd, St. Louis, MO either Adult Faith Development or Ministry with Youth

The Tapestry of Faith Era

Tapestry of Faith, the on-line curricula series, is available at uua.org

The ToF vision statement is a centering source of direction

Consider the 4 strands: Ethical development, spiritual development, UU Identity, and Faith Development

The Religious Education Credentialing Program

Was created to strengthen Unitarian Universalist religious education through the continued development and professionalization of lay religious educators, and to provide a clear and effective system for standards and recognition of these achievements.

recredentialing@uua.org

Evaluation and Assessment

Job description: Clarity is important Start as you mean to continue!

Goals for Religious Educator Who is your supervisor?

Goals for Religious Education Program Program Assessment/Feedback

Personnel Committee

Next Steps

Recommended next steps: Go to www.lreda.org and review the Code of

Professional Practices

Reflect on the following questions: Are there aspects of my job description that remain

unclear? Are there areas where I may find it difficult to

distinguish healthy and appropriate boundaries? Who can help me with my growing edges?

Questions

Are you wondering about….? Have you connected with other

religious educators in neighboring congregations?

Have you linked with your district’s LRE resources and events…Cluster opportunities?

Thanks…

Thank you for taking part in this webinar.

Feel free to contact me: Nancy Combs-Morgan, ncombsmorgan@uua.org

(With appreciation to Pat Infante, CERG, for sharing many of these slides!)