ELM: Leadership Formation

ELMLOGO.png

The Leadership Formation program is 1.5 years of human, spiritual, intellectual, and pastoral formation, for lay leaders in the parishes of the Archdiocese of Hartford, providing a ministerial foundation for:
  • Those who are entering a new ministry
  • Those who have ministerial experience, but need theological or pastoral development
  • Those who wish to participate in ongoing formation in ministry

Blocks.jpgProgram Requirements

Certificate of Completion
Costs
How to Apply
Whom to Contact
 

Ministerial Mentor

Each participant selects a volunteer ministerial mentor. A volunteer mentor is procured through one’s own research, or the OEEC coordinates the pairing based on ministerial interests, stage of life, and other such parameters.

A mentor should be someone who is currently ministering in, or has in the past ministered in, the participant’s own area of ministry; a mentor should also be prepared to engage consistently with the participant as adviser, guide, and conversation partner to assist in reflection and growth throughout the program.

Meetings with mentors are required throughout the 1.5 year process, as coordinated between the participant and mentor.

Back to Top

Courses

Six (6) core courses are required. Five (5) of those are offered online, through the Notre Dame STEP program. They are:

  • Core Course: Introduction to the Catholic Faith
  • Ecclesiology
  • Liturgy: A Guide for the Perplexed
  • Catholic Social Teaching
  • The Intercultural Church: Theological Foundations and Pastoral Practices

One (1) core course will be a live (in-person) class in the Archdiocese of Hartford:

  • Making Sense of the Bible in the Catholic Tradition

Two (2) elective courses will be required, of the participant’s choice. Notre Dame STEP courses, as well as those offered through the OEEC, will be eligible, provided they comply with the expectations of the participant’s ministerial track.

Back to Top

Formation: In-Person Gatherings

Formation Days are day-long gatherings of the cohort to provide in-person community-building, as well as formation on ministry-specific topics.

The themes for each occasion are:

  • Formation Day I: Discernment: Is This Where God is Calling Me?
  • Formation Day II: Workers, Not Master Builders: Starting and Sustaining A Ministry
  • Formation Day III: The Spirituality of Leadership
“Coffee And Conversation” is the monthly gathering offered to all members of the ELM Leadership Formation cohort to come together to discuss their courses, parish ministries, mentoring relationships, or air any questions they might have in an informal setting. These are offered once a month and are not mandatory, but encouraged.
Evenings of Reflection based on the liturgical season are part of the calendar, for the cohort to spend some evenings in prayer together. Those include dates during Lent and Advent.

Back to Top

Written Reflections

Reflections are written in collaboration with one’s ministerial mentor and pastor/supervisor. They are prepared with coursework, parish ministry experience, mentor conversations, and formation days in mind, and demonstrate the formation of the participant taking place.

They are submitted at three points throughout the program:

  • Post-Pentecost
  • Advent
  • Post-Easter

Back to Top

Certificate of Completion

Those who complete the ELM leadership formation program receive a certificate of completion from the Archbishop or his delegate. It is conferred at a ceremony which honors all of those who have participated in the ELM process, both in the Leadership Formation and Parish Accompaniment branches.

A key component of leadership is a commitment to ongoing formation, after formal formation has ended. The OEEC offers a variety of opportunities for ongoing formation in parish ministry.

Back to Top

Costs

The breakdown of cost includes but is not limited to:

  • Cost of courses
  • Cost of formation days
  • Cost of materials

Distribution of funds can be determined between the pastor and participant, although investment on the part of the parish is expected.

Back to Top

How to Apply

The required components of the application are:
  • A completed application form
  • A pastor recommendation, which includes the commitment of the pastor as supervisor (or a suitable replacement)
  • A selection of a ministerial mentor
  • A declaration of a ministerial focus
  • An in-person interview with the Archdiocesan Director of Faith Formation or her delegate
If you are interested in applying, contact Kelly Henderschedt. 

Back to Top

Point of Contact

Kelly Henderschedt
Archdiocesan Director of Faith Formation
Kelly.Henderschedt@aohct.org