While financial control often seems like the key to influence, it’s storytelling that holds power. Boards of theological schools must pay close attention to the narratives shaping their institutions—especially in the boardroom.

If your board is not holding an executive session during every board meeting, maybe it should.

Governing boards can follow these steps to enhance their Wise Stewards journey for institutional change through one-on-one coaching, board self-assessment, peer learning, and immersion into governance habits for long-term effectiveness.

This is "the" guide for people governing theological schools. As the introduction says, "How well a theological school is governed is key to the institution’s overall effectiveness and its fidelity to its mission. In the midst of change and discontinuity, the governing board is the steward that nurtures the purpose and vision of a theological school across the span of time." Download the guide and get started!

Top 3 on-demand webinars, shared governance, and much more.

In Trust Center President Amy Kardash reflects understanding our shared mission.

Governance Initiative, Summer 2024 In Trust magazine, consulting, and much more.

The future of learning and libraries, the religious mosaic, new podcasts and much more.

In Trust Center President Amy Kardash reflects on finding better ways to engage an institution's board.

New educational paths, Wise Stewards initiative, handling change in leadership, and much more.

The charters for board committees serve several significant purposes in school governance. Key committees include the Executive, Finance, Governance, and Investment Committees. Creating effective charters requires clearly defining and specifying the roles they play within institutional governance.

Effective governance is paramount to the success and sustainability of any institution. Central to this governance structure are the roles and responsibilities of board officers, who serve as stewards of the institution’s mission, resources, and strategic direction. Recognizing the critical significance of these roles, the In Trust Center has drafted comprehensive officer descriptions tailored to guide institutional boards in fulfilling their duties effectively.

The In Trust Center offers a variety of initiatives to its members including the Governance Initiative, Pathways for Tomorrow, Resource Grants, and the Wise Stewards Initiative.

The diversity of board members’ viewpoints enables schools to effectively adapt and respond to evolving circumstances.

In Trust Center President Amy Kardash reflects on how the holiday season is a time to reflect and recharge.

There are ways to deal with the difficulties facing your school.

Board members are typically recruited for their leadership, business acumen, and networks. Dr. Rebekah Basinger, project director of the In Trust Center’s Wise Stewards Initiative, will discuss how strategic questioning and interrogation skills are essential for effective board stewardship.

Planning for board officers vacancies should start well in advance with an intentional, smooth, and carefully designed transition plan.

Presenter Donna Alexander, President & CEO of Advoxum Global Strategies, offers best practices for navigating conflict and crisis. She examines the crucial elements of defining conflict and crisis, identifying, and prioritizing affected stakeholders, utilizing effective communication strategies, and ultimately, executing a plan of action.

Presenter Donna Alexander, President & CEO of Advoxum Global Strategies, offers best practices for navigating conflict and crisis. She examines the crucial elements of defining conflict and crisis, identifying, and prioritizing affected stakeholders, utilizing effective communication strategies, and ultimately, executing a plan of action.

Dr. Rebekah Basinger addresses the opportunities and challenges that come with chairing the board of a theological school, which include how to design effective board meetings, enhance board member engagement, and develop the board for long-term effectiveness while giving attention to the board chair and president partnership and the critical importance of call in both roles.

With any organizational plan, certain pivotal individuals – both internal and external – hold significant influence over our goals. To ensure the success of a program, initiative, or on-going strategy, we must prioritize these “Audiences of One” differently from larger audiences. Learn how the “Stakeholder Management Plan” tracks the status of these relationships to help boost overall success.

The In Trust Center is pleased to announce a new webinar series focused on change management models. These webinars are presented by rpk GROUP, a national leader in helping institutions create sustainable business models that reflect both mission and market. This series includes two webinars. Webinar 1 provides a change management framework to include best practice for leading change initiatives and common pitfalls to avoid. This session will include a consideration of institutional readiness for change, especially around the use of a strategic finance lens.

In this session, we consider the policies, practices, and key performance indicators most helpful to supporting the essential partnership between the president and the governing board.

Join consultant Dr. Rebekah Basinger to gain an understanding of shared governance, including definitions, delineations of roles and responsibilities, and strategies for adapting governance practices to your school's new now.

This webinar will address how seminaries can own their destiny by being responsible and "finishing well," rather than closing in crisis.

Join the discussion about how to plan well in advance of an anticipated change.

Rebekah Basinger leads a discussion on board governance as part of the Wise Stewards Initiative's Governance Between the Times Seminar.

A congregational leader and strategist, the Rev. Tod Bolsinger, Ph.D., discusses the need for adaptive leadership in theological education. Bolsinger shares insights from his latest book series, including tackling the challenges of leading through change, handling internal resistance, and realigning missions in a post-pandemic world. Bolsinger discusses rethinking old models and learning from experimentation. He emphasizes that effective transformation isn’t about working harder but adapting wisely.

Rick Staisloff, a consultant with a long history in higher education, explores how theological institutions can thrive amid change by embracing strategic partnerships and shared services. He stresses the importance of aligning with student needs and maintaining a mission-driven approach while calling this a historic time that demands courage.

Can the work of governance - even board meetings - be holy? Award-winning writer and author Karen Stiller, herself a board member, thinks so. Her new book even addresses it.

Dr. Philip Dearborn, president of the Association for Biblical Higher Education in the United States and Canada, discusses the need for specialty accreditation and how it provides an assurance of an institution's commitment to its mission. Dearborn also examines the pressures on schools but also expresses a hope for the future of theological education.

The Rev. Dr. David McAllister-Wilson, president of Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington, D.C., has been at the school for more than 40 years. Reflecting on his time, he considers the future to be among the constituencies that he serves, and in this episode, he considers what the way forward looks like for theological education.

Dr. David Gyertson has seen a variety of leadership transitions both in his own career and in his work as a consultant coaching boards and leaders in transition. As a leadership coach, he provides insights into what boards should do and how they should handle leadership transitions.

In Trust Center President Amy Kardash and the Rev. Dr. Frank Yamada, executive director of the Association of Theological Schools, open a new series, "Inside Theological Education," discussing current trends and what schools can understand about the field from them.

There's a "trust gap" in the American workplace, according to Cory Scheer, Ed.D., the founder and CEO of TrustCentric. Scheer, a former pastor, academic administrator, and leader in business and nonprofits, studied trust as part of his doctoral work. The lessons can help theological schools learn how to improve performance and outcomes in their work.

The Rev. Dr. Steven Moore, CEO emeritus of the M. J. Murdock Trust, says leaders in theological education should consider how they focus on stewardship. Drawing on 40 years of leadership in nonprofit groups and theological and higher education, Moore outlines what good leaders need, how boards can frame the work, and how leaders can stay fresh.

Rev. Dr. Frank Yamada, ATS executive director, discusses what leadership turnover means for theological education, and the skills boards and leaders need to navigate these times.

For Dr. Karen Sawyer, the sense of calling has kept her at Missio Seminary for more than 30 years.

Fundraising expert Dr. Carla Maxwell Ray shares how boards can engage for – and be energized by – fundraising.