MISSION
Committee chair: Max Torkelsen
Members: Randy Bovee, John Kriegelstein, John McVay, Doug White, Darren Wilkens
The message and mission are at the core of Adventist education, which exists to teach not only readiness for societal success, but also to engage each student in the core mission of the Adventist Church. Because this is so crucial to the current and future relevance of our church, we recommend the following 10 areas for action:
- Strategies—Annual lesson plans and class outlines will include strategies to integrate our mission into every class and subject.
- Prayer— student in an Adventist school will have at least one face-to-face personal conversation and prayer with a teacher/administrator each school year.
- Mentors—All students who have not been baptized will be assigned a mentor who will guide that student towards a decision for baptism.
- Opportunities—School personnel will utilize “teachable moments” to convey mission to students.
- Education—The NPUC education department will develop a required mentoring/continuing education plan to engage faculty in the unique mission of Adventist education.
- Practics—Integrate into every class on Bible doctrine or Adventist beliefs practical training on personal sharing and Bible studies.
- Discipleship—Require a spiritual discipleship class or include it in the Adventist Beliefs class for all Adventist school graduates.
- Commitment—Include in the hiring and interview process for all new teachers questions about their personal commitment to Jesus and their personal application of the Adventist mission.
- Symbols—Make sure that appropriate symbols and artwork in our educational facilities exist and are compatible with our mission.
- Recognition—Create a scholarship or other recognition of students who demonstrate personal commitment to mission and message—showing that we value this as much as academic achievement.
July 8th, 2007 at 8:38 pm
Naturally we want committed teachers but how do we really evaluate this in an interview. I assume some version of this already exists but will there now be some bar that needs to be passed in order to “qualify” as committed enough?
The root of my concern in this area is that we end up with a checklist type of system that hopes to somehow mandate a certain type of “Christian character” who is worthy of being a teacher/administrator. School staff have to be able to connect with a broad range of family values, beliefs, and viewpoints so having a system that creates a narrow range of these things will likely not be attractive to a fair bit of the potential market. Yes, perhaps it is making it “better”, but if that version of better doesn’t resonate with your market they will choose other options.
Personally, I think that the mission of SDA schools could very well be directed more outward to non-SDA families. I’m sure this has been debated more than once with some of the concern being the “risks” of having non-church members somehow “diluting” the quality of SDA beliefs and teaching. If the true mission of the church is to “…go unto all the world…” then inviting and accepting some of that world into the education system seems to be a very elementary step. I get very frustrated with the “us and them” mentality of Adventism and creating an environment for our kids to not get stuck in this thought pattern is very worthwhile to me.
In general, I’m supportive of Adventist education and think it’s good for any organization to take a close look at itself and analyze ways to improve. I appreciate that you reported what you’ve been up to and are willing to take comments and feedback into the further development of the plan.