Transitional Planning

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This page contains information about the transitional planning that Albany Presbytery is engaged in and what has been worked on thus far in 2015.

In January 2015 the Presbytery Council adopted the following document to guide our Transitional Process:  Council Doc on Transitional Process

January 2015 Stated Presbytery Meeting:  At our January meeting we broke into small groups and asked about the three goals of the Presbytery: Missional Living, Congregational Vitality and Healthy Relationships.  We asked for Feedback related to these goals.

March 2015 Stated Presbytery Meeting we broke into small groups and asked two questions:

What is God’s preferred future that we see in the biblical narrative?  Document from Feedback at Meeting

What is God’s preferred future for Albany Presbytery?  Document from Feedback at Meeting

At the April 2015 Council Meeting Council members were asked to work on a grid for a month before we met to describe what they felt our top three transitional tasks are, what their theological/biblical rationale for these tasks are, and what are the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats to these tasks now and into the future.  After creating the grid the Council engaged in a two-hour conversation on biblical/theological rationale, made a grid on the wall our of our response and created this document of our feedback.  A small group of Council has created a work plan for the next 18 months for the Presbytery out of all of the above planning and is bringing that to the May Council meeting for conversation.

At the June 2015 Silver Bay Presbytery Retreat we were challenged with the “big picture” ways of considering change for the Presbytery as we learned from the Rev. Jan Edmiston of Chicago Presbytery about 21st Century Church and the Rev. Dr. J Herbert Nelson of the Office of Public Witness about the prophetic challenges before us as the Church of Jesus Christ.

At the September 2015 Presbytery Meeting we heard a report from SMI and the Trustees about financial ideas for our future and a report from the Vision Team about the ministry landscape in which we find ourselves.  We also launched the new Presbytery website in September of 2015!

At the November 2015 Presbytery Meeting we broke into small groups to hear about the mission and ministries of our congregations and to reflect up on them. 

In November and December of 2015 we engaged the Landscape Survey with HolyCow! Consulting.  In January of 2016 we held feedback/interpretation sessions led by Dr. Keli Rugenstein of Samaritan Counseling Center about our Landscape results.  Over 70 members of Presbytery joined us for these three-hour interpretation sessions held in Albany, Broadalbin and Glens Falls.  An executive summary of our results can be found at Landscape Summary.

At the April 2016 Presbytery Meeting we broke into small groups to consider a draft mission statement for the Presbytery and hear feedback.  We also invited feedback on local, synod and denominational missions that the Presbytery supports.  The results of the small groups can be found here and the document that guided those conversations can be found here.

April/May Webinars

During April and May of 2016 we are inviting feedback and presenting information through three webinars.  All members of Presbytery are invited to join us and the webinars will be recorded and can be viewed after as well.  If you have any needs around accessing the webinars, please contact our Communications Manager, Kim Deal at the Presbytery Office.

Webinar #1:  Vision and Mission, April 26 from Noon to 1PM

Webinar #2, Staffing and Structure, May 3 from Noon-1PM

Webinar #3, Ministry for the Future, May 9 from Noon-1PM

We continued our transitional work at the 2016 Presbytery Retreat in June at the Silver Bay YMCA.

Resources from the Retreat:

Summer 2016

The Congregational Revitalization and Pastoral Leadership Teams have produced a report.  It is in the following parts:

The Structure Team has produced a proposed new Presbytery structure:

December 12, 2016
Conference Call for Feedback & Conversation • 2 Sessions
**SESSION I RECORDING AVAILABLE HERE**

**SESSION II RECORDING AVAILABLE HERE**

Staffing Needs & Options
Members of the Staffing Transition Team are seeking comments on part I of their report, on options for staffing patterns, that was presented to the Presbytery in November. They also hope to gather suggestions of functions and tasks for staff that a plan should include. A list of staffing needs identified so far will be sent to those who register for the conversation.

Supporting documents for this conversation:

Congregational Revitalization & Pastoral Leadership Plan
Tim Coombs will assume familiarity with the Renewal Plan as it was first presented.  He will be sharing and explaining the modifications that are being proposed by the team, which meets on Thursday, Dec. 8.

Supporting documents for this conversation:

Vision Team–A Vision Team of the Presbytery has been appointed by the Council to provide a “balcony view” of the transitional work that we are a engaged in, invite feedback, ask questions and come alongside the whole Presbytery in their work.  The members of this team are:  Ruling Elder Kaitlyn TeBordo Wood (Cohoes), Teaching Elder Linda Martin (Broadalbin), Teaching Elder Michael Plank (Hudson Falls, Unity CrossFit NWC) and Teaching Elder Jim Reisner (Westminster/Albany)

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