Meadville Lombard moving forward with new educational design

New Meadville Lombard Educational Model condenses seminary to three years, integrates practice with theory

August 4, 2008 (updated September 5, 2008)

Seminary students entering Meadville Lombard in the Fall of 2009 are anticipating being able to take advantage of the school's new educational design that will give them hands-on, community service experiences beginning their first year and help them complete their degree in as little as three years.

In June, the Board of Trustees endorsed the direction of the changes to the current educational model and instructed the President to present a more complete implementation plan at the next scheduled meeting of the Board in November, 2008. The administration and faculty have been weighing the options for the new design, addressing concerns and input from key stakeholders. Should the Board approve the design in November, the students matriculating in 2009 will do so under the new Meadville Lombard Educational Model. 

Board Chairman Lawrence Ladd, in a letter to the Meadville Community in June, said "the Trustees feel strongly that Meadville Lombard is moving in the right direction with the proposal, and that we are very positive about the progress being made to continue the highest standards in the preparation of students for UU ministry." (Read the complete letter here.)

The changes to the overall structure of the school's educational design include:

• integrating practice with theory throughout the student's tenure at Meadville Lombard,
• incorporating a three-year mentoring relationship with a minister and a congregation, and
• providing an arc of formation that prepares students for ministry in three years, rather than the traditional four.

Under the new model, students who chose to live in the Chicago area and students who study at a distance will operate under the same structure of incorporating the practical experience of ministry with their academic studies. Through "modules" or "rotations" students will work with religious and community leaders to gain practical experience while they work in the classroom with our faculty on issues of theology, ethics, religious education, and arts of ministry.

The program also requires Meadville Lombard's students be mentored by a minister throughout the three-year program, allowing them to gain a depth of connection and involvement with a congregation. "Whether a student is studying in residence in Chicago or at a distance," said Lee Barker, President, "the desired result for this mentorship is that our students experience what it means to be in relationship with a congregation over the long haul--experiencing the highs as well as the lows, the successes along with the failures."

Details of the curriculum are being developed by the faculty and a final plan will be presented to the Board of Trustees at its November meeting.

Key to the development of the model is the addition of Mark Hicks, Ed.D.  to the faculty. With his expertise in "contextual" education and his background as a Unitarian Universalist, Mark brings a unique perspective to the development of a model that provides opportunities for students to immerse in both practical and academic experience at the same time.

The school has already developed a signature portion of the Meadville Lombard Educational Model for first-year students, the Community Partnership Program, which is in place for students entering in Fall 2008.  In that program, first-year students will be partnered with a social service agency in the Woodlawn neighborhood of Chicago.  This is a neighborhood with a great variety in culture, race, and socio-economic standing that is rebuilding after being devastated by poverty, homelessness, un- and under-employment, and crime.  It is also the area where the school will be relocating.

The Rev. Dr. Qiyamah Rahman, MDiv '08, (right) our new Director of Contextual Ministry and Senior Lecturer, has been working on the development of the sites for the Community Partnership Program and will work with students in their site placement as well as lead, with other faculty, the course work for the class.

"I am so excited by the developments we have made in just the last month on this program," said Barker. "We returned from General Assembly just buoyed by the amount of support this new model has from prospective students, lay leaders, and ministers," said Barker. "It is a ground-breaking model that will allow our students to gain an education that is shaped by a breadth and depth of experience with some of the best ministers this faith tradition has to offer as they receive an academic grounding in liberal theology from some of the world's leading scholars in religion such as Sharon Welch and Michael Hogue. This is good for the school, but it is even better for our movement, and the best way to prepare ministers to step into their role as religious leaders who change lives to change the world."

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Contact:
Tina Porter tporter@meadville.edu
(773) 256-3000 ext. 236

Related Content

Frequently Asked Questions about the Meadville Lombard Educational Model

Moving Forward Declaration

Letter to Meadville Lombard Community from Lawrence Ladd, Board Chair, June 2008

Community Partnership Program

Learn more about our new faculty members:

Mark A. Hicks, Ed.D.

(Click watch a video of Mark talking about coming to Meadville Lombard.)

Rev. Qiyamah Rahman, Ph.D.