wfn.org | DHE Board of Directors Learns From Church Leaders

["Communication Ministries" <wshuffit@cm.disciples.org>]

Date: April 24, 2002
Disciples News Service
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
E-mail: news@cm.disciples.org
Web: http://www.disciples.org

02a-35

Contact: Brad Lyons, Director of Communications
Division of Higher Education
11720 Borman Drive, Suite 104
St. Louis, MO 63146-4187 
(314) 991-3000, blyons@dhedisciples.org

ST. LOUIS -- Students learn the most from the best
instructors. That's why the Division of Higher Education
Board of Directors welcomed three guests, known in the
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) for their abilities
to transform institutions and people, for a day of
conversations about transforming leadership.

DHE continues its mission to develop transforming
leadership for the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).
Helping to clarify what leadership means during DHE's
spring meeting were John Moore, president of Drury
University; Holly McKissick, pastor of St. Andrew Christian
Church in Olathe, Kan.; and Wallace Ryan Kuroiwa, leader of
the United Church of Christ's Economic Justice Ministry. 

The board asked each guest to describe the experiences that
prepared him or her for leadership and to list qualities to
look for in leaders. In the discussion, each guest
identified traits of a leader:

7	Leaders lead by example. "I think setting standards is
something the leader does. You set a tone for a place. You
set expectations for how the place will operate.
Personality, style, and values color the atmosphere of the
place," said Moore.

7	Leaders have a vision that includes change. "It is
important as we think about leadership for the 21st Century
to think of American Christianity and where we are headed
and what we will be like in 2050," Kuroiwa said. "In 2050,
the church will not look like it looks today. Are we
preparing a leadership for the kind of church we will be in
2050?"

7	Leaders need be willing to take risks and have a
willingness to fail. "If a mission has a 100 percent chance
of success, there's no need for God, is there?" asked
Kuroiwa.

7	Leaders often learn from mentors. "Strong leaders nurture
other strong leaders," McKissick said. "We have got enough
room for everybody to do the best dang job they can do."

7	Leaders must be prepared to struggle. "We need to go to
people and say, 'this is going to be the hardest thing
you've ever done.' I would discourage people from (entering
the ministry) unless they have stamina and a call from
God," McKissick said.

7	Leaders have to be committed for the long haul. "To stay
over a period of time, if you can do it and are effective,
gives you leverage over that organization," Moore said.
"Anybody can be a blasted genius over two or three years.
The mark of a leader is to be able to do it over a long
period of time."

7	Leaders surround themselves with resourceful coworkers.
"You have a key role in picking people," Moore said. "If
you want to be successful as a leader, the quickest and
easiest way is to get people who are smarter and better
than you are."

7	Leaders never stop learning. "I think I'm at about 60
percent as a leader," McKissick said. "I've learned a lot,
and I have an infinite amount to learn."

7	Leaders are discovered differently in different cultures.
"Markers we set for determining excellence are conceived
within a certain cultural context, and they're not
necessarily the markers that would signal a person as a
potential leader," Kuroiwa said. "If we look for those
markers, we may miss some people."

"These hallmarks are already evident in the college
students DHE has identified as future leaders," said Carla
Fletcher, chair of the DHE Board of Directors. "Our guests
reaffirmed our belief that leadership can be nurtured and
taught. They taught us that with more opportunities to lead
in a variety of environments and contexts, leadership
ability will grow and strengthen."

"This dialogue tells us that DHE is on the right track as
we ask our Leadership Fellows to participate in leadership
development activities such as representing DHE at
Quadrennial and regional assemblies, taking leadership
roles on their campuses, and working at church
internships," Fletcher said.

The board will continue discussing leadership development
at its next meeting, scheduled for November in St. Louis.

In other action, the board:

7	Approved an initiative to develop a program to enhance
cooperation with ethnic minority constituencies;

7	Directed staff to develop portions of the DHE web site in
Spanish and Korean in an effort to improve communication
with ethnic minority Disciples;

7	Agreed to research existing options for alternative
ministerial education, currently offered in some regions
and institutions, to serve as a common resource to the
whole church;

7	Established a subcommittee to examine changing the name
of the division to reflect more accurately the division's
leadership development mission;

7	Approved the executive search model, a set of guidelines
from the General Board of the church to be considered when
a Disciples-related institution is in the process of
calling executive officers;

7	Approved awarding the College/University Grants to
Culver-Stockton College, Drury University, Jarvis Christian
College, and Lynchburg College;

7	Affirmed the election of Miriam Cruz, Madge Vasquez, and
Paul Rivera to the board;

7	Accepted the annual review of the audit of 2001 financial
activities, and directed DHE President Dennis Landon to
determine whether DHE will contribute to a fund to pay for
emergency needs of the denomination;

7	Approved a new parental leave policy for all staff and a
sabbatical policy for the DHE president; and

7	Set May 2-4, 2003, as the date of the spring meeting.

Fourteen universities and seven theological institutions in
12 states are in covenant with the Christian Church
(Disciples of Christ), serving more than 24,400 students.
In addition, three schools and three theological
institutions maintain historical or associate ties with the
denomination. DHE is also affiliated with more than 80
campus ministries programs across the country. Including
cooperative efforts with local congregations, DHE helped
distribute almost $178,000 in scholarships in 2000.

                                                 -- end --

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