The RVUUF Leadership Tripod (Board, Minister, and Committee on Fellowship Ministry) has turned its attention back to our journey toward clear and effective lay leadership and shared ministry. Before the pandemic and the fire, we were engaged in a multi-year project to study and implement ways to improve our governance. We’ve made a lot of progress in our understanding and have been practicing what we are learning. (click HERE to read the full post on the RVUUF Blog).

We think a congregational conversation is a good next step. We want to share with you how we are working together and engage you in a conversation about how decisions are made, and who is responsible, accountable, and empowered to get the work of the congregation done.

We have had great success with our Zoom break out coffee hour and our congregational meeting, and want to build on that by using Zoom to introduce some questions we can ponder together.

Our first conversation will be on Sunday, December 6th. We will start by exploring together the  model we have come up with to enhance governance and ministry:

RVUUF GOVERNANCE MODEL DIAGRAM
(click on the image to download a printable PDF)

The questions we would like to engage with together are:

1. What is the Leadership Tripod and how does it work?
2. Why are we using this model? What are our hopes for how we work together to accomplish our mission?

Please join us if at all possible to learn about this important topic and to contribute your ideas and wisdom to the conversation. You will receive and email on the morning of the meeting with details about how to connect. If you need help with Zoom technology, contact Steve Weyer.

The features of the model/diagram:
1) The Mission is at the heart of the structure, with a defined Strategy to accomplish that Mission.
2) The three legs of RVUUF’s tripodal Leadership structure are represented as intersecting circles of authority.
3) The Congregation represents the overarching identity of “who we are” and embraces the core Leadership structure that acts to implement the Mission of the Congregation.
4) Each Leadership function in the “tripod” has individual authority and responsibility for certain functions, as well as overlapping authority and responsibility with each of the other two Leadership functions in other areas:
Board – Governance (Policies) – the Policies define the limits of authority and responsibility for the various functions within the organization. The Board shares authority and responsibility for the various functions within the organization. The Board shares authority and responsibility with the Minister/Staff for organizational Management.
Minister/Staff – Ministry (Programs) – the Minister/Staff implement Programs of ministry that are consistent with the Mission of the organization. They also share authority and responsibility with CFM (Council on Fellowship Ministry) to ensure that the Programs are true to the Values of the Congregation.
CFM-Discernment (Values) – CFM acts to discern the Values and Priorities of the Congregation and works with both the Board and Minister/Staff to ensure that the Board’s Policies and the Minister’s Programs remain true to the Congregation’s Values and Priorities.