Faculty Planning Meeting
Western Mission Cluster
At Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary

March 27-28, 1998

Agenda

PART I: PRE-MEETING BACKGROUND ASSUMPTIONS AND GOALS

Schedule

• Friday, March 27, 5:00 p.m. dinner, focused conversation until 9:00 p.m.
• Saturday, March 28: 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Facilitation

• Facilitation responsibility belongs primarily to faculty members.
• Shelby Andress will assist Jim Boyce and Gary Pence in facilitation of those portions as agreed on prior to the meeting

Structure

• Preliminary selected areas or questions should guide the structure, but there should be flexibility to include crucial questions and issues that arise in our conversation.
• Shelby Andress will assist in clarifying the process as we go.

Participants in the meeting:

• From PLTS: Michael Aune, Tim Lull, Gary Pence, Ted Peters, Walter Stuhr, Board Rep. Steve McKinley
• From LS: Jim Boyce, Marc Kolden, Craig Koester, Gary Simpson, David Tiede, Paul Westermeyer; Board Rep. Phil Gansei

Key Purposes of the Event:

1. To review and affirm the significance of current shared understandings and commitments of our two seminaries, including the documents: "Eleven Imperatives;" "Principles and Strategies Toward Clustering;" "Fisher's Net;" "Principles for Western Mission Governance"
2. To learn to know one another better as teachers of the church -- what drives, encourages, challenges us in our work -- and to strategize about appropriate collaboration in our particular responsibilities in these seminaries and the Western Mission Cluster.
3. To develop share understandings of the distinctive traditions and contributions each seminary and its faculty bring to the church.
4. To identify issues to be addressed and ways to involve the faculties in the processes relative to governance and strategic planning for the Western Mission Cluster.
5. To agree on ways to move this conversation further (e.g. into the PLTS strategic planning process; to the LS Task Forces and the May 22 dialogue with constituency; to respective faculty retreats; to documents; to joint faculty events)

Specific Areas to be Addressed relative to these Purposes

Re: Curriculum:

• The rationale, shape, delivery, of current programs together with strengths and expertise of each faculty
• What areas might be appropriate for collaboration and/or new designs
• Residential and off-campus; professional/rostered and lay leadership educational opportunities
• The structures necessary to assure quality first call and life-long continuing education for the church

Re: Faculty

• Current state of faculty development
• Common concerns of faculty development in the Western Mission Cluster
• Identify areas of present and future collaboration
• The responsibility of research in and for the church
• Faculty responsibility and involvement in the Fisher's Net

Re: Strategic Planning

• Sharing of information on the strategic planning processes underway at each seminary
• Provide faculty input into the respective visioning and planning processes

Re: Governance

• Clarification of the respective roles of boards, faculty, and administrators in the clustering process
• What governance issues need to be addressed from the perspective of faculty
• When is the appropriate time for faculties to address governance issues

PART II: PROPOSED AGENDA FOR THE MEETING

FRIDAY EVENING

Dinner 5:00 p.m.

Discussion: What drives each person as a teacher of the church -- what encourages, informs, draws each person into this work and into the future?

Foundation for discussion: Basic documents of shared commitments distributed in advance ("Eleven Imperatives;" "Principles and Strategies Toward Clustering;" "Fisher's Net;" "Principles for Western Mission Governance" quick review if any by Jim Boyce) Facilitor: Shelby Andress.

Concluding by 9:00 p.m.

SATURDAY

9:00 a.m. Morning Prayer - Michael Aune

9:15 . Curriculum: Opportunities and issues

Conversation on current shape of programs (Mdiv, PhD, Masters, Specialized); rationale, strengths, weaknesses; areas for working separately or in collaboration; on and off campus opportunities, etc. Resources: Wally Stuhr, PLTS; Marc Kolden, LS

10:30 Break

10:45 Faculty Development and the Western Mission Cluster

Conversation on expertise, hiring, retirement, potential for cooperative planning and development; Fisher's Net, additional issues of common concern. Resources: Michael Aune, PLTS; ? , LS

NOON Lunch

1:00 p.m Asian Studies Program. Ed Yee, PLTS

1:45 Governance and the Western Mission Cluster

Conversation on principles, roles, and strategic planning processes, the place of Fisher's Net in Western Mission Cluster. Resources: Presidents Lull and Tiede; Board reps. Gangsei and McKinley.

3:00 Break

3:30 Next Steps: Future Agenda, Responsibilites, Commitments

Conversation on what we have heard; identifying and summarizing the issues; what agreements, what issues for further discussion; ways to move the conversation to the respective faculties and strategic planning processes. Resource. Shelby Andress

5:00 Conclusion.

Dinner and Option of SF Symphony in Evening