 | Degrees Doctor of Ministry in Educational Leadership | WHY A DMIN IN EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP?
Our world needs wise and spiritually-grounded leaders, especially in schools, universities, and indeed all cultures of learning – leaders who can integrate religious perspectives with the insights and best practices of education. Such leaders are better able to make sense of the challenges of education, think on their feet, point to the Greater Good, and open paths of transformation in the lives of students, teachers, parents, and communities.
Since 2005, we have been helping leaders in Christian educational settings be just that, in a program designed to fit with and relate to the ebb and flow of life in educational institutions.
Educational leaders from many denominations come to our Educational Leadership program. The DMin in Educational Leadership is for ordained and lay ministers with at least three years of experience who work full-time as professionals in educational settings – heads of schools, chaplains, campus ministers, rectors and senior pastors, teachers of religion, and judicatory and para-church ministry educational leaders. We particularly seek people with proven skills in teaching, leadership, or religious life, who want to wrestle with new challenges.
This one-of-a-kind doctoral program brings together a focus on theology, education, human development, and organizational leadership. The heart of our work is fostering deep, integral practical wisdom and courage, as we bring our educational contexts into conversation with the finest insights from scripture, theology, and various human sciences and professions. Your educational context of ministry becomes your laboratory of focused learning, testing, and reflection.
WHAT YOU WILL DO IN EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP
- Focus on questions of God's ultimate purposes and desires for individuals, faith communities, and societies - particularly in relation to the aims and practices of education.
- Learn best practices pulled from a range of professions including religious mission and ministry, education, business and labor, government and the military.
- Work with peers on your real-life situations, to gain new insights and develop new habits in your educational ministry and leadership
- Examine your own actions and assumptions in your ministry and leadership, through theological, behavioral, and organizational lenses.
- Know and claim afresh what you are trying to achieve in Christ's name, why you are trying to achieve it, and how you can pursue it through transformational ministry, leadership, and mission
- Improve your capacity to guide, shape, and energize schools, colleges, and other educational contexts around their highest purposes and aims.
- Work side-by-side with leaders in your educational setting to stimulate change and open doors for transformation.
- Work with peers in case study groups to develop new habits in your leadership in classroom, administration, worship, and service
- Use what you learn to conduct little “experiments” in education, ministry and leadership, trying on different approaches in real-life situations.
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Application processReflection on your ministry begins during this process.
Requirements to apply:
- Three years of full-time educational ministry are normally required for participation in the DMin program.
- A Masters of Divinity (MDiv) or an equivalent graduate-level degree in a theological discipline is expected. Candidates with a Masters degree in Education or other academic disciplines may be admitted with an expectation of additional theological coursework. Exceptions are made, depending on ministry experience and recommendations.
- Be at work in full-time, continuing school, campus, or educational ministry
- Strong motivation for professional and spiritual growth.
- A strong capacity for writing, reading, reflection and conversation in the English language.
- Curiosity, humility, and courage to learn and try new ways of leading.
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Preparatory readings and assignmentsThese set the stage for on-campus sessions.
Required reading for first summer:
The Practice of Adaptive Leadership, by Ronald Heifetz
A Failure of Nerve, by Edwin Friedman
Doing Local Theology, by Clemens Sedmak
Theologies of Religion, by Paul F. Knitter |
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9 total weeks of on-campus residencies at VTSParticipate in 3 week-intensive courses and case study sessions spaced over 3 summers.
SCHEDULE:
Summer (Year 1 – three-week session)
Introduction to Doctor of Ministry Studies
Three weeklong intensive seminar courses
Case Studies
Summer Leadership Lectures
Daily Worship & Biblical Reflection
Summer (Year 2 – three-week session)
Three weeklong intensive seminar courses
Case Studies
Summer Leadership Lectures
Discussions on theologies of educational leadership and mission
Daily Worship & Biblical Reflection
Summer (Year 3 – three-week session)
Three weeklong intensive seminar courses
Case Studies
Summer Leadership Lectures
Project Thesis Workshop
Daily Worship & Biblical Reflection
COURSES OFFERED OVER A THREE-YEAR CYCLE:
Spirituality and Leadership
Learn to integrate your inner life as a leader with the external roles and demands of your position
Teaching the Bible across All Ages
Unite Biblical studies and pedagogical training in this course focused on how to present scripture and engage people of all ages in rich explorations and discussion of Christian religious texts. Attention is also given to sacred texts of other religious traditions.
Theology of Education
Explore the scriptural, historical, philosophical, and theological foundations of educational theory and practice.
Dynamics of Conflict and Change:
Gain experience during this practice-oriented course on changing organizational communication patterns. Focus on the roots of problematic interpersonal and systemic dynamics, with attention to varied ministerial and educational settings. Short case situations prepared by students allow for in-class practice of new skills for engaging conflict and facilitating open communication more effectively.
Governance, Administration, and a Theology of Leadership
Examine diverse models for leadership, governance and administration in schools, colleges, congregations, and other settings. Discuss matters of board function and purpose, internal communication, and shared or dispersed leadership.
Pastoral Care, Counseling and Referral
Participate in a focused discussion on how to develop reasonable, responsible and defensible systemic practices for schools, colleges, and churches in regard to student care, counseling and referral to external service providers.
Philosophy and History of Education in America
Explore major themes in the history and philosophy of American education. Investigate the role of religions, independent schools and colleges, and voluntary organizations in shaping different American perspectives on education and its aims.
Religious Diversity in Church-Related and Independent Educational Settings
Study the changes in the American religious scene concentrating on significant developments in Christian and non-Christian traditions. Consider the implications of these developments on campus life in independent schools and colleges.
Holistic Environments of Faith and Learning
Focus on the integration of faith and learning in worship, classroom teaching, and social outreach (e.g., service-learning). Examine, in a workshop setting, the developmental approaches to creating holistic environments that foster and strengthen habits in perception, thought, reflection, prayer, expression, and natural leadership. |
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Daily worship and bible reflectionEach day begins with praise, prayer, and focused meditation or small-group discussion of biblical texts.
Worship and Biblical Reflection
Daily worship and biblical reflection are an integral part of the DMin campus experience. Participants in both DMin programs come together for daily morning worship that is drawn from a variety of Christian traditions. Readings from scripture focus on God's continuing work of redemption and transformation, and our part in that great work. |
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Reading at homeSelf-directed reading at home, in scripture, theology, and social philosophy, focusing on themes of individual and social transformation.
Theology of Transformation Course
“Visions of Societal and Soulful Transformation” is a guided and self-directed readings course designed to immerse DMin students at home in biblical, theological, philosophical, and social / psychological images and ideals of the Good Society and the Good Person, from across time and different cultural and religious contexts. The course helps students begin to focus their theological reflection around questions of ultimate aims, ultimate outcomes, and the means by which we might move toward those aims and outcomes in concert with the Holy Spirit. |
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Self-selected trainingIdentify and choose training in a specific set of skills or capacities.
LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT TRAINING
During the course of the D.Min. program, you are expected to complete a focused leadership development training conference of your choosing. Choose a leadership development training conference that offers training in an area of leadership directly related to your particular ministry interests, goals, and needs. Training areas may include conflict resolution, community organizing and community development, marriage preparation and support, Christian education training, crisis intervention, board development, or other focused areas. Periodically, VTS will host an opportunity for D.Min. students and other leaders.
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Case studiesLearn to use this format to create disciplined reflection on your actions in ministry and leadership.
Case Study Workshops
Case Study Workshops are the heart of the Virginia Theological Seminary Doctor of Ministry programs. Case studies use an action-reflection approach that helps you examine your own practice of ministry in light of biblical, theological, organizational, behavioral, and developmental perspectives. You will prepare case studies at home, from real experiences in your last year of ministry and leadership that have taken you to the edge of your own competency or comfort. On campus, DMin colleagues and instructors reflect with you on each case, bringing multiple perspectives and insights to bear on these important situations.
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| Community of discourse Ongoing conversation with peers and instructors, informally and through telephone and videoconference sessions. |
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Project thesisPlan, execute, and evaluate an “experiment” in your ministry context that addresses a higher aim of Christian life, service, and leadership, culminating in the completion of your project thesis.
Project Thesis
Your project thesis is the culmination of your work in the VTS DMin program. Working with a committee of VTS faculty and DMin instructors, and with helpful insight and support from your DMin peers, you will develop a project – a sustained but focused act of ministry and leadership - that attempts to address a needed or desired development in your context of ministry. Shaped by insights from behavioral and theological disciplines, the project must address a larger concern about how to strengthen Christian ministry, witness, and faithful life, and how to engage effectively in the ongoing transformation of souls, communities, or societies. |
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| | | | | Doctor of Ministry in Ministry Development | Doctor of Ministry in Educational Leadership |
Doctor of Ministry Program
Virginia Theological Seminary
3737 Seminary Rd.
Alexandria, VA 22304
Phone: 703-461-1760
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