Presented at the Pathways Coordination Event and Expo, June 18, 2024, Atlanta, GA, as originally posted on the ATS Engage forums.

In consultation with:

Rev. Dr. Kwasi Kena, Associate Professor of Ethnic and Multicultural Ministry, Indiana Wesleyan University

Darryl Stephens, Ph.D., M.Div., Director of Pennsylvania Academy of Ministry, Lancaster Theological Seminary

Synopsis

In a June 2024 Pathways gathering, Darryl Stevens and the Rev. Dr. Kwasi Kena co-facilitated a session, “Bivocational and Multivocational Ministries.” Participants discussed many technical challenges when educating multivocational ministers, including providing appropriate learning support; financial and vocational guidance; and innovative educational and curricular design. Tools included prior learning assessments, competency-based theological education, contextualized instruction, and micro-credentialing. However, it was noted that many aspects of the problem cannot be fixed through technical solutions. 

Questions raised.

The adaptive challenges to educating multivocational ministers are significant. Among the questions raised were: 

• Where are the places where theological schools, churches, and judicatories are co-designing instruction for multivocational ministry?
• How can theological schools integrate multivocational ministry as a legitimate model for our students when many judicatories are structured to devalue bivocational, part-time, or multivocational ministers and ministries? (The same question applies when many theological schools are structured to devalue bivocational, part-time, or multivocational contingent faculty and staff.)
• Are the best people to equip multivocational ministry and relevant educational design the full-time academics, who currently serve as faculty in theological schools? 
• How can ATS encourage and recognize the value of learning programs that do not fall under the accreditation guidelines for degree programs (e.g. micro-credentialing and lifelong learning) without creating a top-down compliance model that would stifle their innovation and development?