wfn.org | UCC Executive Council moves to explore unified governance

[Worldwide Faith News <wfn@igc.org>]

UCC Executive Council moves to explore unified governance

> Written by Gregg Brekke
> October 20, 2009

The UCC's Executive Council, acting on the recommendation of General
Synod 27, has approved a plan to revisit governance of the national setting.

A working group was chartered at the Executive Committee's fall
meeting, Oct. 17-19, in Cleveland. Twenty-nine delegates, representing
diverse constituencies within the UCC, were assigned to this Unified
Governance (UGOV) dialog and discernment team.

Members of the working group are: Douglas Andrews, United Black
Christians; Jim Antal, Council of Conference Ministers; Marti Baumer,
Executive Council; Diane Bennekamper, Local Church Ministries; Lynda
Bigler, UCC Disabilities Ministries; Geoffrey Black, Collegium; Anita
Bradshaw, Office of General Ministries; Deborah Blood, Wider Church
Ministries; Elizabeth Clement, Office of General Ministries; James
Darnell, Justice and Witness Ministries; Mike Downs, Pension Boards;
Julia Estrella, Pacific Islander and Asian American Ministries; Sylvia
Ferrell-Jones, United Church Foundation; Yvette Flunder, Seminaries of
the United Church of Christ; Edith Guffey, Collegium; Beau Heyen,
Council for Youth and Young Adult Ministries; Linda Jaramillo,
Collegium; Bill Land, Ministers for Racial, Social and Economic
Justice; Marilyn Pagán-Banks, Council for Hispanic Ministries; Rich
Pleva, Council of Conference Ministers; Phil Porter, Coalition for
LGBT Concerns; Inez Reid, Local Church Ministries; Cally Rogers-Witte,
Collegium; Steve Sterner, Collegium; Jeannie Thompson, Justice and
Witness Ministries; Bing Tso, Wider Church Ministries; and Bernard
Wilson, Executive Council. Representatives from CAIM (Council for
American Indian Ministry) and two additional Young Adult
representatives are to be named.

Key milestones will guide the Unified Governance process, culminating
in the proposed presentation of bylaw and constitution changes to
General Synod 28 in 2011.

Steps include the December design of a dialog process concerning
governance to be used throughout the denomination and constituency
groups by July, status reports to the Executive Council in spring
2010, presentation of recommendations to the Executive Council and
Covenanted Ministry Boards in spring 2011. Upon approval at the spring
2011 Board meetings, the recommendations will proceed to the General
Synod for vote.

In his address to the Executive Council earlier in the weekend,
General Minister and President the Rev. Geoffrey A. Black listed
governance as one of his three main priorities, saying, "No matter
what happens with our work specifically on the design of our
governance structure, we are going to need to develop a culture of
governance here in the United Church of Christ."