1. Vision Team Proposal
June 2018

2. Purpose, Vision and Mission Statements
PURPOSE: (goal of the Vision Team)
To create one nimble and responsive judicatory, faithful in mission and responsible in stewardship
VISION:
Gathered in Christ – nurturing Spirit, awakening gifts, loving neighbor, and serving communities
MISSION:
To connect and equip faith communities in following Jesus Christ

4. LANGUAGE

5. VISION TEAM’S POINTS OF AGREEMENT AND SENSE OF DIRECTION
Shared Ministry
One Judicatory/Governance setting
Responsible stewardship
Vision document is not final 

6. Proposed Structure A single setting (judicatory)
A Leadership Board elected by the UCC faith community
Oversee 3 or 4 support centers, including their physical plants, finances, and staff
Assume the responsibilities of the current conference Board of Directors, and much of those of the governing bodies of the current associations
Include all executive and ministerial staff
Faithfully reflect the diversity of the UCC in this area
Include a leadership development team to identify persons for future service and assist in developing gifts of these persons for service

7. Anticipated Called Positions
Transitional Conference Minister – it’s not yet clear whether a CM position will continue long term or whether these duties will be handled in a different manner
General Minister in each support center
Responsible for the health and well-being of the congregations to which they relate.
Resource Committees on Ministry, Search and Call, and pastoral care
Function as a team with other General Ministers
Supported by Advisory Teams, as needed
Specialized Ministries as needed to support the vision
May be fulfilled by the TCM and GM’s
May be full-time, part-time, temporary, or volunteer
Possibilities include Faith Formation, Church Vitality, New Church Starts, and Stewardship and Generosity

8. Anticipated Appointed Positions
Administrative, financial, and support persons as needed
General Ministers would hire and supervise support staff as needed in their area, in accordance to a budget.
Remaining staff would be managed centrally but may be dispersed physically

9. Perceived Advantages
Focuses first on collaboration, then on how structure allows for collaboration
Reduces gaps and overlaps
Allows specialists to thrive as opposed to relying primarily on generalists
Responds to the goal of creating a unified purpose with ”regional applications”
Reduces administrative responsibilities for the General Ministers in the support centers
Offers more time for General Ministers to concentrate on building personal relationships and do pastoral work.

10. Best Practices We’ve identified these five focus areas
Church and Ministry
Social Witness
Faith Formation
Wider Church Relationships
Communications

11. Finance and Stewardship
An Annual Budget will be developed in collaboration with the Advisory Teams and staff and will be approved by the Leadership Board
A unified accounting and bookkeeping system will be implemented
One financial management staff will manage one payroll, one Federal ID number, consolidated accounting, and one annual audit
Donor Designated and Endowment funds will be honored according to donor parameters.
Generosity will be nurtured as a spiritual practice
Our goal is to retain a smaller percentage of OCWM so that more is forwarded to the national setting

12. Support Summary Support Centers distributed across the territory
General Ministers in each Support Center with a focus on Committee on Ministry, Search and Call and Pastoral Care, with standardized processes throughout the territory
Other ministries such as prophetic witness, faith formation, and church vitality will be shared across the territory.
Churches will be encouraged to collaborate with sister churches, especially around social justice and mission

13. Implementation
The Vision Team is committed to a new integrated structure in Ohio, Northern Kentucky and West Virginia
We also recognize a need to strengthen covenantal relationships and build trust as we collaborate in ministry, trusting in the guidance of the Holy Spirit
First Steps:
Identify areas where the associations can cooperate and find value. Possibilities include School of Ministry, Pastoral Excellence programs, Faith Formation initiatives, and/or Committee on Ministry policies and procedures
Continue planning a new structure and begin to live into a new structure

14. Next Steps
This will be managed by a representative Transition Team, with guidance and support from the Transitional Conference Minister
Steps:
Select a non-exclusionary name
Develop Best and Standard Practice Resource
Develop standard Finance and Stewardship practices
Develop a plan for organization and structure of the new setting, including the support centers, staffing, locations, and legal structure
Reports and Approvals – provide regular reports to the associations and conference and obtain approvals, as needed.

15. Summer of 2018 Circulate the ”first draft” proposal
Hold special informational meetings within each association
Collect and consider feedback from the associations
Modify “first draft” as needed
Provide an updated proposal in advance of the Annual Gathering on September 28-29
Friday sessions at the Annual Gathering will focus on the recommendations from the three ”working groups” of the Vision Team

16. Expectations Full implementation will take at least 2-3 years
Final structure may evolve as we learn from the work on Best Practices and shared financial and administrative processes