Board Formation: The Challenge of Mission-

focused Governance

Alice I. Hession

Director of SponsorshipXaverian Brothers Sponsored Schools

Models of Formation

Two approaches

Formational

Thematic

FormationalConcerned with the faith journey of individual

ThematicConcerned with the values a school holds and the process by which a Board member comes to accept and espouse those values

Institutional Needs

Catholic Identity Culture of Your School

School Legacy Goals and Values

Three perspectives on Faith Formation

Those curious about spirituality but with little religious experience; now they are in our culture—Never before

The faithful who still need life-giving experiences to reconnect with saying yes to God; “The New Evangelization” which is on-going adult faith formation.—Once more with feeling

Those who have all the words but not the Word, don’t get the heart of the Good News, need remediation. Often have been hurt by Christian communities—In need of healingNCEA – 2000 - Michael Horan, “Evangelizing the

School”

Questions for Reflection

What do we know about the faith journeys of your Board members? Have we ever asked? Are we even concerned about it?

What relevance is the personal faith journey to the role of a Board member in a Catholic school?

Governance from a mission perspective

Service Stewardship Fidelity

"Building Effective Boards for Religious Organizations"

Thomas P. Holland and David C. Hester

Why undertake Board formation?

"Governance must be formed in the "why" of the mission if it is to be an effective force in the culture of Catholic health care (Catholic education). The "why" of mission is the transcendent purpose, the greater good of God's love and God's healing presence that motivates and amplifies Catholic health care (education) culture. When trustees fail to understand the "why" of mission -- their institution's greater and more durable good -- lesser and more proximate goods will drive the engine of Catholic health care (education). Another way of saying this is that if health care is to survive as a ministry of the church, someone has to know some theology. "

Kenneth HormanSisters of Charity of Leavenworth Health System

"Ministry Boards exercise the same fiduciary responsibilities for finance, mission and strategy as the counterparts at publicly held companies or nonprofits. Our hospitals provide traditional board development activities that focus on what boards do and how they function. But Catholic health care is also a ministry. It mission touches on the transcendent, and this makes it different. This difference means that board members need more than the usual governance skills to be effective. In my own service as a board member, I have had to learn about cost-to-change ratios, Starks laws, and Medicare Disproportionate Share payments. Are words like "incarnation" , "church", "canon law" and "sponsorship" not equally important to those involved in Catholic health care governance?"

"The Promise and Challenge of Board Formation"

Rev. Charles E. Bouchard, O.P.

Governance as LeadershipChait, Ryan and Taylor

FiduciaryOversight, Accountability, Compliance

StrategicPlanning, Priority, External Influences

GenerativeInquiring, Creating New Meaning

Formation activities should contribute to generative Board thinking. Rather that merely "taking care" of their charge (fiduciary) or planning for the future (strategic) the best governance should also involve creativity. This is particularly important at a time when Catholic education, society and the Church are undergoing massive transformation. One of our most important discussions must be "How can we image a new way for the Church to be present in the world through Catholic education?"

Board Member Competencies

Articulate their own spiritualityArticulate how Catholic education is a

ministry of the Church and how it differs from other kinds of Church ministry

Use key theological words confidently in board discussions

Arrive at policy decisions that take explicit account of mission values

Dimensions of Board Formation

Understanding Faith and Ministry

Catholic Identity and Catholic Education

Board Leadership Roles and Responsibilities

The culture of the institution

"The Charism of Xaverian education"

INDIVIDUAL

FORMATION

ONGOING

BOARD

FORMATION

Understanding Faith and Ministry

Understanding the dynamics of how faith develops how and understanding a person’s faith commitment flows into service to others are necessary conditions for being able to guide a school to foster these actions in students, faculty and parents. To fulfill this responsibility, Board members need to understand their own faith perspectives and how their individual gifts and talents can be placed at the service of others in ministry.

Ronald Rolheiser, The Holy Longing

“Everyone has a spirituality, either a life-giving one or a destructive one… Spirituality is about being integrated or falling apart, about being within community or being lonely, about being in harmony with Mother Earth or being alienated from her. Irrespective of whether or not we let ourselves be consciously shaped by any explicit religious idea, we act in ways that leave us either healthy or unhealthy, loving or bitter. What shapes our actions is our spirituality.” …”It is about what we do with our spirits, our souls.”

Ronald Rolheiser, The Holy Longing

…“A healthy soul must do two things. It must put some fire in our veins; keep us energized, vibrant, full of hope… Second, a healthy soul has to keep us fixed together. It has to give us a sense of who we are, where we came from, where we are going, and what sense there is in all of this.”

Catholic Identity and Catholic Education

An awareness of the mission of the Catholic Church and the Church’s understanding of the elements of education is foundational for fostering Catholic identity in Catholic schools. While some Board members may not share a Catholic faith perspective, they need to understand and support the Catholic approach to education. Knowing the dimensions of Catholic Education is a significant responsibility of Board members.

Board Leadership Roles and Responsibilities

Board members need to be effective as mission focused leaders – being able to motivate others – administrators, faculty, staff, parents and students – in understanding and becoming committed to the Mission of the school. Board members also model a collaborative style of decision-making that fosters a team approach to education as they carry out their major responsibilities as a Board.

The Culture of your school

Diocesan or Religious Community Sponsored

Goals and ValuesHistoryKey PersonsKey StoriesMission Statement

The Xaverian Charism of education

Being committed to responding to the Mission, Vision, Calls, and Goals of Xaverian sponsored education is an essential quality of Board members. The ability of Board members to grow in the knowledge of the Mission is a significant factor for being successful as Board members. The Board has a crucial leadership role in integrating the Mission, Vision, Calls, Goals and Values of the Xaverian charism into the mission, policies, activities and management of a Xaverian Brothers Sponsored School.

INDIVIDUAL

FORMATION

ONGOING

BOARD

FORMATION

What kind of questions do you ask your potential Board Members? How can you be assured that they have an initial understanding of their role in mission-focused governance?

What particular elements have been the focus of your Board Formation efforts in the past few years? Why? What elements have not been included? Why?

Do you have an operating model, formational or thematic, of Board Formation for your school? What are the specific goals of your program? How would a model supplement and inform your Board decision-making processes?

You decide that it might be good to have a Board discussion of Pope Francis' new encyclical on the environment. How would you go about facilitating this discussion?

Questions for Reflection/Discussion

Challenges to Formation

DiversityTimeSymbol, Ritual and PrayerSustainability with Board turnover

Assessment

“The Catholic School”“To commit oneself to working in accordance with the aims of a Catholic school is to make a great act of faith. Only one who has this conviction and accepts Christ’s message, who has a love for and understands today’s young people, and who appreciates what people’s real problems and difficulties are, will be held to contribute with courage and even audacity to the progress of building up a Catholic school.”