In Trust Center

Send us a textThe Pathways for Tomorrow Initiative was designed by Lilly Endowment Inc. to create  ways for theological schools in North America to train ministers for Christian churches. The Rev. Dr. Jo Ann Deasy, director of institutional initiatives of the Association of Theological Schools, and Amy Kardash, president of the In Trust Center for Theological Schools, discuss key findings and themes. ATS and the In Trust Center are co-coordinating the initiative. Learn more at:ATS' Pathways page.A project directory.The In Trust Center's page, which includes stories, webinars, podcasts, and more.  

Send us a textAn award-winning author and longtime pastor's wife, Karen Stiller admits to a struggle with the concept of holiness. In her new book, Holiness Here: Searching for God in the Ordinary Events of Everyday Life , Stiller addresses the everyday tension between what we want to do and where we are in a book that could be used devotionally or in a seminary classroom. As a board member of a theological school, Stiller also reflects on what makes governance holy. The book can be found here.

Send us a textNAIITS, an Indigenous Learning Community, is using Pathways for Tomorrow grants to explore ways to decolonize theology and provide trauma-informed education for the Indigenous community. Shari Russell, the director of NAIITS, and Mike Hogeterp, lead facilitator, discuss the project and the ways they're approaching the work ahead. 

Send us a textMcCormick Theological Seminary is using a Lilly Endowment Inc. Pathways for Tomorrow grant to explore how to help people heal from trauma. The Heart-Work Rising Trauma Healing Initiative is exploring theological education that will help students to be trauma-informed. The Rev. Dr. Stephanie Crumpton and Dr. Jina Kang discuss the impact of trauma-informed education, the integration of restorative justice and biblical interpretation, and the transformative potential for theological institutions. 

Send us a textAt China Evangelical Seminary  North America (CESNA), leaders are looking at ways to engage leaders and congregants of immigrant churches. They've done so with new programming aimed at helping congregations, including a Center for Public Theology. Drs. Frank and Anita Liu, leaders at CESNA, explain how they're doing that with a Pathways for Tomorrow grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. 

Send us a textDr. Rebekah Burch Basinger considers the "invisible balance sheet" - things that institutions are responsible for that may not be on the actual balance sheet. With candor and years of experience, Basinger offers insight on how a board might consider the welfare of an entire institution. She refers to an article by Roland Kushner in the Stanford Social Innovation Review that can be found here. 

Send us a textKairos University has worked to develop contextual, competency-based theological education, and now educates students across the world using their approach.  Greg Henson, the president of Kairos University, and Nate Helling, the CFO and vice president of operations, talk about their work and how a Pathways for Tomorrow grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. is helping. 

Send us a textThe Academy for Jewish Religion received a grant in Lilly Endowment Inc.'s Pathways for Tomorrow Initiative and used the money to make a series of explanatory videos about Judaism. Ora Horn Prouser, Ph.D., the CEO and academic dean of the Academy for Jewish Religion, discusses how the project, "Mosaic Religion and the Religious Mosaic," contributes to theological education. The project can be found here. 

Send us a textDr. Philip Dearborn, president of the Association for Biblical Higher Education in the United States and Canada, discusses the need for specialty accreditation and how it provides an assurance of an institution's commitment to its mission. Dearborn also examines the pressures on schools but also expresses a hope for the future of theological education. 

Send us a textDr. Kent Anderson, president of Providence University College and Theological Seminary in Canada, considers competency-based theological education and suggests that it's really not new but a return to ancient practices of education. The co-author with Greg Henson of the book Theological Education: Principles and Practices of a Competency-Based Approach, Anderson says mentoring and learning by doing can provide benefits in the field. He says institutional humility and a willingness to adapt will help theological schools. The book can be found on the publisher's page here. You can find an interview with Greg Henson here.