Brief questionnaire seeks information from church educators

Fulfilling a requirement of the 223^rd General Assembly, the questionnaire will help shape training opportunities

by Mark Koenig, Administrative Services Group | Special to Presbyterian News Service

Photo by NeONBRAND via Unsplash

LOUISVILLE — The Office of the General Assembly (OGA) wants to hear from all who are currently serving, have served, or have retired from service in the field of Christian education or Christian formation. The OGA has partnered with Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Research Services to create a brief questionnaire to gather this information. The questionnaire should take about five minutes to complete.

Who works in the field of Christian education and Christian formation in the PC(USA)? Where do people serve in ministry in those fields? How are they compensated? While researching trends in employment for Christian educators and certified Christian educators, the Special Committee to Study the Reformed Perspective of Christian Education in the 21^st Century discovered that the church has no statistical documentation to answer those questions.

By adopting the Special Committee’s report, the 223rd General Assembly (2018) acted to change that. The Assembly directed the OGA to “collect disaggregated data on certified Christian educators and non-certified Christian educators (employed or volunteer who are functioning as staff).”

“We hope to learn more about our colleagues who serve the church in ministries of Christian education and formation,” says Martha Miller, the OGA’s Manager for Ministry Education and Support. “This will allow us to communicate information about training opportunities and resources to those involved in such ministries. The results could also aid in identifying educators who might be encouraged to enter the certification process.”

Responding to the questionnaire will benefit the church as well. The information gathered will help the PC(USA) learn who Christian educators are, where they serve in ministry, and how they take part in the life of the church. This will allow the denomination to understand employment and benefit trends in Christian education and formation and discover needs that might exist. It may assist mid councils in writing compensation guidelines for educators. Mid councils could also learn about individuals with gifts to share.

“Christian educators and those who serve in ministries of education and formation are vital to the church,” Miller said. “We encourage all who are serving, and all who have served, in these important ministries to respond to this brief questionnaire so we can provide more effective support to the ministries that help form disciples of all ages.”

Contact Angie Andriot for more information about the questionnaire.