The Ministerial Assessment Process
When Requested
When a minister experiences considerable conflict or a difficult parting with a congregation or other institution, it has long been the practice of the UUA Ministry and Professional Leadership Staff Group (MPL) to ask that minister to participate in a process of assessment. What constitutes such a difficult parting is clear in some cases—a negotiated settlement or a firing—and more complicated in others. In general, the assessment process is requested when the stress on the minister, the lay leadership, or both has been high. Often, the assessment process can go forward while the minister is serving in an interim capacity and /or during search for a new called position. In cases where the minister's emotional state appears raw; when serious issues of ministerial ethics, effectiveness, or emotional health have arisen; or where repeated negotiations have occurred, the minister may be asked to consider her or himself to be on hold for settlement until the assessment process has been concluded.
Purpose
The assessment process serves to help both the minister and MPL to:
- Develop a more complete perspective on both the recent professional challenges and on the overall direction of a ministry
- Understand more clearly the causes for and the lessons of conflict or challenge
- Deal with any feelings of loss, anger, frustration, or hurt
- Identify appropriate opportunities for future service.
Assumptions
The assessment process does not presume that the minister was to blame for the event. Rather, it encourages the minister to identify his or her part in the situation, in order to better understand his or her ministry in light of it, and, together with MPL, to arrive at decisions about the minister's appropriate service in the future. Correspondingly, it is the task UUA District staff and the successor interim minister to encourage the congregation's lay leaders to examine their role in the conflict.
The Assessment Process
- The first step in the assessment process is for the minister to contact the Professional Development Director. This contact can be made even before the final details of departure have been worked out.
- She will review the situation from the minister's point of view, and may consult with District staff and, with the minister's permission, the UUMA Good Offices person and other colleagues able to add their own perspectives to what happened. The goal is to assist the minister in arriving at as full an understanding of what happened as possible, for the sake of the minister's deepest possible learning and best possible determination about the future direction for his or her ministry.
- As part of the initial assessment process the minister is usually asked to write a reflective essay, examining both what happened recently and, stepping back from that experience, taking a broader look at his or her ministry, to see if similar patterns have appeared under similar circumstances, to assess what has been learned, and to give some sense of what directions appear appropriate for his or her ministry now. The essay may be of any reasonable length. It may be submitted by mail, fax, or email to the Professional Development Director.
Review
When the essay is received, it is considered to be confidential and will be read only by the Ministerial Settlement Director, the Professional Development Director, and the Director of Ministry and Professional Leadership. The three of them will meet, review their impressions of the essay, and develop any recommendations they may wish to make to the minister for additional work--such as participation in a career assessment program, individual or group therapy, spiritual direction or other programs of continuing education, and/or clearance for settlement, perhaps with certain restrictions or cautions.
Timing
The assessment process takes time, usually three to four months, sometimes more. In part, the timing is related to the minister's ability and desire to move ahead. Taking time at this point for reflection and work is a good investment.
Costs
If work at a career center is recommended, the cost has been about $1,400. The MPL will pay 50% of that amount, which is usually billed directly to the attention of the Professional Development Director. The minister is responsible for any requested deposits and his or her share of the overall cost. Other financial support is available, if needed, for appropriate counseling, spiritual direction, or continuing education programs.
If the Minister Disagrees
A minister not in agreement with MPL's recommendations should discuss the matter with the Director of MPL. If dissatisfaction continues, the matter should be raised with the Subcommittee on Settlement of the Ministerial Fellowship Committee. The Settlement Director will not send to congregations in search the name or Ministerial Record of a minister on hold for settlement and will take to the Ministerial Fellowship Committee the name of a minister who pursues the search process while on hold.
Outcomes
The usual outcome of the assessment process for the minister is greater clarity about his or her ministerial skills, interests, and direction and a recommendation for settlement from the Ministerial Settlement Director.
UUA Office of Professional Development - 5700 S. Woodlawn Ave., Chicago, IL 60637 and 25 Beacon Street, Boston, MA 02108
Rev. Dr. Michelle W. Bentley, Professional Development Director, Chicago, IL mbentley@uua.org - VOICE: 773-643-6988 FAX: 773-643-6989
Angela Merkert, Professional Development Assistant, Boston, MA amerkert@uua.org - VOICE: 617-948-6437 FAX: 617-742-2875
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