Episcopal Press and News
Episcopal Church Foundation Awards Grants for Leadership Growth
Episcopal News Service. December 8, 1989 [89256]
Projects aimed at strengthening leadership in the Episcopal Church have received priority funding from the Episcopal Church Foundation in its second grant cycle for 1989. Out of 38 grant applications, nine were selected at the foundation's late October board meeting for a total of $178,600.
According to Peter Megargee Brown, president of the foundation, the focus on Excellence in Ministry has been a springboard for many of the grant commitments in the past two years. The foundation awarded $165,000 to the Excellence in Ministry project. "Leadership development and training has been one of our primary goals," Brown said. "By supporting projects throughout the Episcopal Church that contribute to strong and dynamic leadership, we believe the entire church will benefit."
The foundation awarded $37,000 to the Office of Congregational Development at the national church center. The award will be spent to develop a national model for dioceses to use when building mission strategies. The project will be tested in at least three dioceses of different sizes and needs. In-depth demographic and statistical research will pinpoint growth trends, potential for congregational development, and resources needed.
According to Arlin Rothauge, project director, one of the unique assets of the venture is its reliance on extensive data gathered from participating dioceses, parishes, and surrounding communities. Resources from the fields of strategic planning, communications, and marketing will also be used to assist the dioceses in planning for the future.
"With these methods, dioceses will track successes and identify trouble signs in existing congregations as well as target the right growth areas for new churches," Rothauge said. "It's one of the first times that the national church has offered a partnership effort with the dioceses in pro-active long-range planning."
The Diocese of Massachusetts was awarded $30,000 for a two-year project aimed at developing a national model for building team leadership in the episcopate. The goal of the project is to synthesize the skills and talents of the three Massachusetts bishops into a model of episcopal leadership and diocesan organization.
Other grants were awarded to the Washington Cathedral, the Diocese of Minnesota, the Diocese of Delaware, the Diocese of Western New York, the Diocese of Easton, the Episcopal Family Network, and the diocesan center for the Diocese of Virginia.