Job Overview

Overview

The Pathways Director is responsible for general administration of Pathways in the Alliance of Reformed Churches, including the management of staff.

Preface

The Alliance of Reformed Churches ("the Alliance") is a family of 188 churches – and growing. Alliance churches are friends and partners in Christ, seeking first the Kingdom of God with the presence and power of the Holy Spirit, pursuing unrelentingly innovative ways to engage a changing world with the Good News of Jesus Christ, while embracing the diversity of the human experience under obedience to Christ our King.

Pathways is the Alliance's ordination and licensing program. It is a new approach to credentialing, built upon a competency-based framework, a robust prior learning assessment, a two-tier ordination model, distributed supervision, and numerous options for progress. Pathways facilitates a highly accessible, highly accountable, and highly relational approach to ordination. Since its successful launch in 2023, well over 100 pastors have been ordained through Pathways already, with dozens more in process. The hope is to have all Alliance pastors and pastoral candidates credentialed or re-credentialed through Pathways.

The Alliance seeks a new Pathways Director to lead this effort, building on and improving upon the successes of its innovative ordination system.

Job Description

Responsibilities

1. General Administration

• Conduct general administration of candidates to ensure progress.
• Conduct all communication with applicants/candidates not delegated to other Pathways staff.
• Meet with Alliance stakeholders, including staff, network Ordination Team (OT) members, pastors, and lay leaders, as needed to sustain Pathways.
• Attend Alliance OT meetings and present candidates.
• Train Coaches in networks annually and/or as needed.
• Approve customization of competencies.
• Maintain digital resources for Pathways on Drive.
• Work with communications vendor to update Pathways website.
• Write quarterly update to all OT members.

2. Program Administration

• Apply Pathways protocols from the Alliance OT.
• Make recommendations for revision of Pathways protocols.
• Maintain and expand relationships with partner programs.
• Promote Pathways through recruiting, presentations, articles, and other forms of public relations.
• Work with Executive Director on the budget and expenses for Pathways.

3. Management

• Works with Application Specialist, providing training, communication, and encouragement as needed.
• Oversee Maximum Credit (prior learning assessment) mappers, interviewers, auditors, and Advisors providing training, encouragement, and correction as needed.
• Collaborate with Communications Assistant as needed.

4. Other

• Perform Maximum Credit mapping, interviewing, and audits and/or Advising in particularly difficult or sensitive situations, or temporarily in short-staffing.
• Launch Guide Teams when a network Coach is unable to do so.
• Participate as a member of any Design Team that is constituted.
• Work with the design consultant to troubleshoot advanced problems, refine the program, and innovate within Pathways.

Qualifications

1. Subscribes to the ecumenical creeds and affirms the reformed confessions of the Alliance of Reformed Churches. (Preferred: subscribes to both ecumenical creeds and the reformed confessions.)
2. Holds a bachelor's degree in theological studies, education, or in the humanities (Preferred: holds a master's degree in theological studies, education, or in the humanities – or can demonstrate the equivalent outcomes.)
3. Understands the basic philosophy and practices of competency-based education. (Preferred: has experience working in a CBE or CBTE program.)
4. Sympathizes with the role and broad discipleship needs of pastors. (Preferred: has significant experience as a pastor or ministry professional.)
5. Articulates or expresses understanding of a philosophy of ordination compatible with the Alliance of Reformed Churches.
6. Practices outstanding social skills, including kindness, communication, team orientation, active listening and question asking, and compassion.
7. Attends to administrative detail, able to handle a large quantity of cases through technological software (i.e., email, databases, shared drives).
8. Understands and deploys best practices for assessment at a foundational level. (Preferred: Understands and deploys best practices for assessment at an intermediate level.)
9. Expresses humility and curiosity in lifelong learning.

Hours

Typical hourly work is on average 30 hours a week. Flexibility, especially during travel times, is needed.

Working Relationships

The Pathways Director reports to the Executive Director. He or she communicates with the Pathways staff and members of the Alliance Ordination Team regularly.

During the initial training period, he or she defers to the design consultant in programmatic matters.