Purpose: The goal of the course is to teach students how to translate their seminary education into the day-to-day situations common to life in a religious organization. The course will introduce the range of skills and practices one needs to lead effectively. We will emphasize how these skills are grounded in theology, biblical studies, ethics, and church history. A major theme of the course will be that the skills it takes to be a good pastor, preacher and teacher are the very skills that make a good administrator.

Course Format: The class meets once a week for three hours. Attendance is mandatory; absences will hurt your grades. Indeed, students with more than two absences will not pass this class. Each class period will have three parts: a lecture, a discussion of a case-study or reading, and a period of skills development.

Weekly Assignments: You will be expected to complete the week's reading before class. You should take notes and reflect on the reading; simply reading the words is not enough. Each week you will write a 500-word (one single-spaced page) reflection paper on the week's reading. Focus on the Readings and the Web Resources; we will discuss the Case Study in class. (Click here to see a sample reflection paper)

It is important that you pay attention to your writing style on these papers. I am NOT looking for off-the-top-of-your-head reflections. Please think through what you have to say, then pick a theme for the paper, and then stick to that theme throughout the paper. People sometimes hear me refer to these assignments as "reflection papers" and think that it is enough to jot down random and disconnected thoughts prompted by the reading. You will want to write something more coherent than that. As you can see, you will probably have to write a rough draft of the paper in order to figure out what you want to say and then go back and re-write it so that the ideas flow properly. (As to grammar, see "Scott's Four Rules for Writing")

Please turn the paper in by Monday at 5AM (yes, AM, as in before dawn) on the day the class meets. There are two reasons for the reflection papers. First, it makes you a better learner because it provides an opportunity to reflect on the readings and to synthesize the material. Second, it makes me a better teacher because I will know from reading your reflections what issues matter most to class members and what concepts may need special attention. Please email papers to both Scott (scormode@cst.edu) and Becky Bane (rebekahart@aol.com)

Scott's Four Rules for Writing Papers:

1. Every sentence has one but only one main verb.
2. Every paragraph has one but only one main idea -- preferably summarized in the first sentence.
3. Every paper has one but only one main point.
4. Every paragraph supports the main idea of the paper.

Discussion Section: The class will be divided into three discussion sections, cleverly called Section A, Section B, and Section C. Each week one of the sections will meet with Becky Bane before class (from 5:30 to 6:15) to discuss the week's reading and any other concepts that need elaboration. This is NOT a closed section. Some of you may want to come to this discussion each week. But you are only REQUIRED to attend on the week that your section is scheduled.

Grading: 20% weekly assignments, 50% midterm, 30% final exam. Look at the attached guide to see how papers will be graded. I will say more about the exams as the time approaches.

Availability: My office hours this semester will be on Tuesdays from 3:30-5:00. If you cannot make this time, we can arrange an appointment. My office is in Craig 214. I can be reached at (909) 447-2532 or by email at: scott.cormode@cst.edu

Web Site: Additional readings (and the weekly calendar) will be available on the course web site at this address: www.christianleaders.org/MS360/syllabus.htm Or you can just go to www.christianleaders.org and click on the dove in the middle of the screen. You need to have access to the Internet in order to obtain some of the assigned readings. Some of you may want to use the Computer Lab in the library in order to obtain Internet access. Please note that you can also sign up for a free email account through the school.

Schedule and Assignments