Course Descriptions
Field Education
Church Administration as Ministry
Ministry is relational. This is crucial in all areas of parish administration—budgets, pledge drives, fund-raisers, building campaigns, staff oversight, volunteer support, facilities, long-range planning. What is the pastor’s role? Where to prod and when to defer to lay leaders? When to hold a program or a committee together or let it fall apart? How to supervise staff and what to pay? We will consider ministering in “after pastor” congregations and the experiences of leaders of color in dominant-culture congregations. To consider personal balance and boundaries as professionals, we will interview ministers about their stresses and lessons. In class discussions and papers, we will reflect on articles, books, case studies, sermons.
Requirements include a few Moodle forum reflections and conversations, a reflection paper, a sermon, and a later-term project based on your goals and interests with an in-class presentation and accompanying paper.
Materials are intended for UU students but course is open to other students on an ordination track. Please contact the instructor; approval needed for all students.
This course meets the SKSM Threshold: 1) Life in Religious Community and Interfaith Engagement and MFC Comp: 5) Ad. [Faculty Consent required; 15 max enrollment]
Session
Spring 2020
Dates
2/3/20 – 5/22/20
Instructors
Course Type
Field Education
Location
Starr King Campus (Oakland, CA)
Days
M
Time
9:40am - 12:30pm
Course ID
FT-2820
Faculty Approval Required
Yes
Units
3
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Clinical Pastoral Education
This course is for Starr King students engaged in part-time or full-time Clinical Pastoral Education. Participate in ministry to persons in crisis and engage in individual and group reflection. Didactic sessions draw together theoretical material from theology, the behavioral sciences, and pastoral care. Students learn to integrate theological understanding and knowledge of behavioral science with pastoral functioning. Upon completion, a written evaluation from the program supervisor will be placed into the student’s permanent file. Discuss CPE with your advisor and then faculty. Final evaluation from CPE supervisor needs to be sent to faculty by the last day of the semester to receive credit. Students are responsible for applying for and securing a place in a CPE program. Please check the SKSM Student Handbook for more information.
CPE is taken for variable credit (between 1-10 credits).
Relates to SKSM Threshold 5 and MFC Competency 2.
Session
Spring 2020
Instructors
Course Type
Field Education
Location
No Location
Course ID
FE-4012
Faculty Approval Required
No
Units
1-10
Community Field Work
Field work describes an involvement in community work for up to 15 hours a week with the ongoing support of a mentor. Community Field Work includes work in gender, racial and economic justice, queer activism, disability advocacy, immigration issues, environmental responsibility, civil liberties protection, HIV response, youth at risk, peace building, participating in a fundraising campaign for a non for profit or grassroots organization, chaplaincy, teaching and more. Students should discuss the field work opportunity with their advisor before making arrangements with the professor. Student and community mentor will discuss and sign a learning agreement at the outset of the field work experience. Midterm and final student/mentor evaluations will also be required by midterm and the end of term. All forms are available on the SKSM website. Please see Student Handbook and Contextual Education Handbook for more information.
This course is taken for variable credit (between 0.5-5 credits).
Session
Spring 2020
Instructors
Course Type
Field Education
Location
Off-site
Course ID
FE 4062
Faculty Approval Required
Yes
Community Intern Reflection
This course is a peer group seminar for interns in community field sites. It offers spiritual reflection, linking the experience in the internship to the student’s broad educational and vocational goals (praxis). The class is designed for students to assess their personal progress, gather support from peers and the instructor, integrate their internship experience into their degree program, and deepen spiritual practices to sustain religious leadership in community ministry. Students gather multi-religious sources of wisdom, which serve as touchstones for group spiritual reflection. The course includes a frequent required live web-based video seminars as well as online discussion postings that orient the live sessions. Students must have consistent internet access to relevant technology. Evaluation is based on participation, depth of engagement with peers and resources, as well as written self-evaluations. Required for MDiv/ MASC students enrolled in credit for community internship during the same semester. Fulfills thresholds based on personal learning goals. Low residency with synchronous online Zoom meetings every other week. Simultaneous enrollment in community internship credits for the semester required. Full and complete approval of the internship agreement by the Director of Contextual Education, site supervisor and faculty advisor. Student must submit description of approved internship and copy of agreement to FE-4223 instructor prior to first session.
Session
Spring 2020
Instructors
Course Type
Field Education
Location
No Location
Days
Th
Time
3:30pm-5:00pm
Course ID
FE-4223
Faculty Approval Required
No
Units
2
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Community Internship
Community Internships involve engagement at a field site from 16 to 40 hours a week, under weekly supervision at the site and the support of the SKSM Community Intern Reflection class. Community Internships include a variety of settings, such as supervised placements in a non-profit service agency or grassroots organization, hospice work, chaplaincy, teaching and more. They can also entail creating new projects such as starting a new organization or planning a conference. Those who register for this course should also register for Community Intern Integrative Reflection Spring. Students should discuss the internship with their advisor before making arrangements with the professor. Student and supervisor will discuss and sign a learning agreement at the outset of the internship. Midterm and final student/supervisor evaluations are also required. All forms are available on the SKSM Website. Please see Student Handbook and Contextual Education Handbook for more information.
This course is taken for variable credit (between 5-10 credits)
Relevance for specific SKSM thresholds and MFC competencies varies according to the nature of a student’s field experience.
Relevance for specific SKSM thresholds and MFC competencies varies according to the nature of a student’s field experience.
Session
Spring 2020
Instructors
Course Type
Field Education
Location
Off-site
Course ID
FE 4221
Faculty Approval Required
Yes
Units
5-10
Congregational Field Work
Fieldwork is an opportunity to put into action the theory learned in the classroom. Working in a congregation gives the student a chance to develop their unique pastoral voice while navigating complexities of a congregation’s history, culture, systems and ethos. Fieldwork placements may include: teaching a religious education class for children or adults, working with a youth group, serving on a pastoral care team, participating in a stewardship campaign and more. Evaluation is based on Zoom conversations with professor, midterm and final evaluations. This course is for M.Div. students. Depending on the focus of the Field Work, your project may relate to Starr King thresholds 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 8 and MFC requirements 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
This course is taken for variable credit between 0.5-5.
Session
Spring 2020
Instructors
Course Type
Field Education
Location
Off-site
Course ID
FE 4052
Faculty Approval Required
Yes
Units
0.5-5
Parish Intern Reflection
The Congregational Intern Reflection course is paired with the on-site experience of Congregational Internship. This course is for M.Div students. The Intern Ministers meet twice a month by Zoom to discuss progress on Learning Goals, development of pastoral/prophetic/preaching voices, and integrating theory with skills. Students are expected to attend the January 2020 Congregational Intern Minister gathering at Starr King. This class is for MDiv students. Evaluation will be based on the Zoom conversations and the content of the mid-term and final evaluations.
During the Internship experience, there are opportunities for all 8 Starr King Threshold Areas to be explored, as well as each of the UU Ministerial Fellowship Committee Competency Areas.
Session
Spring 2020
Instructors
Course Type
Field Education
Location
No Location
Course ID
FE 4213
Faculty Approval Required
Yes
Parish Internship
This is a 10 month full-time (one year, 10 credits/semester) or part-time (two years, 5 credits/semester) ministry experience in a teaching congregation, under the supervision of a Minister in Final Fellowship (for UU students), working with an intern committee, and a professor at the school. For non-UU students, check with your denominational body to see if there are additional requirements for the congregational internship experience. This course is for M.Div students. Evaluation is based on the Zoom conversations, mid-term and final evaluations. The Intern Ministers meet twice a month by Zoom to discuss progress on Learning Goals. UU students will use the UUA Internship Evaluation forms. During the Internship experience, there are opportunities for all 8 Starr King Threshold Areas to be explored, as well as the UU Ministerial Fellowship Committee Competency Areas. This is taken for variable credit (between 5-10 credits).
Session
Spring 2020
Instructors
Course Type
Field Education
Location
No Location
Course ID
FE-4211
Faculty Approval Required
Yes
Units
5-10
Immersion
Forced Migration & Social Justice
Every year thousands of people are displaced from their place of origin by forced situations such as climate disruption, war, starvation, political persecution, or discrimination due to their sexual orientation. This course aims to explore the complex situations that forced im/migrants face and the particularities of their situations. Specifically, it looks at how religious leaders and activists can accompany and care for these im/migrants and support their agency and resilience.
The course includes an immersion journey to Tijuana (March 25-29) in which we will, as a class, interact with forced om/migrants who can tell us their stories and give us tools to seek social justice and peace.
Relates to SKSM Thresholds 1, 2, 5, 6, 7 & 8. and MFC Comps 2, 3, 4 & 7.
Intended Audience: MA, Mdiv, MASC, Ph.D. with additional coursework
Evaluation method: 1 reflection paper, weekly class participation in a discussion forum, individual presentation on a final project
Limit: 12 participants
Session
Spring 2020
Instructors
Course Type
Immersion, Online
Location
No Location
Course ID
RSHR-8417
Faculty Approval Required
No
Units
3
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Reviving Pilgrimage: Decolonizing Religious Travel to the Holy Land
What does it mean, as a religious leader, to visit the Holy Land in these times? Is pilgrimage possible in the midst of occupation and colonization? How is bearing witness to injustice a political tool in liberation movements, and what more is required of us? How does travel to the Holy Land require of us responsivity to the moral and political crisis on the ground? How can witness be a tool in the fight against ongoing systemic injustice without tokenizing individuals or exploiting suffering? How can we challenge the white/western saviour complex in the way we travel? How can we move from charity to solidarity? How can we move from religious tourism to pilgrimage? How do we, as people of faith, put faith into action?
Reviving Pilgrimage: Decolonizing Religious Tourism to the Holy Land is a semester-long online synchronous course, involving eight preparatory classes on Zoom, a 10-day trip to Israel/Palestine over Reading Week, and six Zoom reflection & action sessions following return from the trip. The trip is a required part of the course.
The intended audience for this course is all those training to be religious leaders in communities of practice, across areas of specialty and degree programs. This course relates to SKSM Thresholds #1,#2, #5, #6 and #7. This course relates to UU MFC Competencies #4 and #7.
Session
Spring 2020
Instructors
Course Type
Immersion, Online
Location
No Location
Days
F
Time
9:40am - 12:30pm
Course ID
IRRS 1300
Faculty Approval Required
Yes
Course Size
6 – 20
Units
3-4.5
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Intensive
ChI Chaplaincy Electives
For joint-program students participating in Chaplaincy Institute (ChI) courses as part of the Chaplaincy Program Certificate. Students enrolling in ChI electives earn credit based on the total number of courses completed in a term. The following electives are offered in Spring 2020: Arts for Awakening (Feb. 21-22; 1 unit), Science & Spirit (Apr. 17-19; 1 unit), Spiritual But Not Religious (Apr. 23-24; 1 unit), and Community and Congregational Ministry (May 14-16; 1 unit). Some additional coursework will be conducted online. ChI electives are only for students who have been admitted to the SKSM-ChI joint program and are not available to other SKSM students or to students from other GTU schools. This course does not count toward residency requirements. Relevance for SKSM thresholds and MFC competencies varies by elective.
Session
Spring 2020
Instructors
Course Type
Intensive
Location
Off-site
Course ID
SPFT 1120
Faculty Approval Required
No
Units
1-4
ChI Ministry Basics 1
For joint-program students participating in Chaplaincy Institute (ChI) modules as part of the Interfaith Studies Certificate. In Ministry Basics 1, areas of focus in classes include: Types of Ministries defined (prison; corporate; military; university; community; congregational/ceremonial), an Introduction to Expressive Arts in Ministry, Spiritual Interventions & Blessings, Witnessing Depression, Suicide and Dark Night of the Soul and an Introduction to the Professional Field of Spiritual Care. The ChI curriculum incorporates lecture, dyad/small group work, various art modalities, and site visits to deepen our many ways of learning and integrating new awareness.
This course is only for students who have been admitted to the SKSM-ChI joint program and is not available to other SKSM students or to students from other GTU schools. This course does not count -toward residency requirements. Meets Feb.18-20 + additional online coursework. Relevant for SKSM thresholds 1, 5, and 8; MFC competencies 2 and 3.
Session
Spring 2020
Dates
2/18/20 – 2/20/20
Instructors
Course Type
Intensive
Location
Off-site
Days
M / T / W
Course ID
SPFT 1100
Faculty Approval Required
No
Units
1.5
ChI Ministry Basics 2
For joint-program students participating in Chaplaincy Institute (ChI) modules as part of the Interfaith Studies Certificate.In Ministry Basics 2, areas of focus in classes include: Guided Imagery and Blessings, Spiritual Assessment, Genograms/Family Systems/Grief Ritual, Public Speaking, and The Ministry of Prayer and Presence. The ChI curriculum incorporates lecture, dyad/small group work, various art modalities, and site visits to deepen our many ways of learning and integrating new awareness.
This course is only for students who have been admitted to the SKSM-ChI joint program and is not available to other SKSM students or to students from other GTU schools. This course does not count toward residency requirements. Meets Apr. 20-22 + additional online coursework. Relevant for SKSM threshold1, 3, and 6; MFC competency 3.
Session
Spring 2020
Dates
4/20/20 – 4/22/20
Instructors
Course Type
Intensive
Location
Off-site
Days
M / T / W
Course ID
SPFT 1101
Faculty Approval Required
No
ChI Theological Literacy
For joint-program students participating in Chaplaincy Institute (ChI) courses as part of the Chaplaincy Program Certificate. Theology literally means “words about the Divine.” In Theological Literacy, students will explore the concepts that attempt to describe the Divine, as well as how we understand the universe and ourselves in relation to the Divine. Our approach to ministry is always directed by our theology. In this course, students will receive an interfaith orientation to theological concepts across the World Religions, to better discern, define and describe one’s own understanding of theological questions related to morality and end-of-life speculation. The ChI curriculum incorporates lecture, dyad/small group work, various art modalities, and site visits to deepen our many ways of learning and integrating new awareness. This course is only for students who have been admitted to the SKSM-ChI joint program and is not available to other SKSM students or to students from other GTU schools. This course does not count toward residency requirements. Meets May 11-13 + additional online coursework. Relevant for SKSM thresholds 1 and 6, MFC competency 3.
Session
Spring 2020
Dates
5/11/20 – 5/13/20
Instructors
Course Type
Intensive
Location
Off-site
Days
M / T / W
Course ID
HRST 1101
Faculty Approval Required
No
Online
Dynamic Youth Ministry
This lively and interactive course grounds participants in philosophical, psychological, programmatic, ethical and theological aspects of youth ministry. Geared toward Unitarian Universalists, but open to all religious or secular affiliations, this course seeks to embody a vision of youth ministry that is a vibrant, robust, and flexible part of every congregation and community. Topics of instruction include leadership and spiritual development, professional support for youth advisors, denominational polity, adolescent life issues, building inter-generational community, and a critical analysis of different models of youth ministry and programming. A foundational course recommended for all religious leaders, both new and old to youth ministry.
Students must contact the professor for permission prior to enrolling in the course.
Relates to Thresholds- 1,5,6 &7 and MFC Comps- 1,2,3 &6
Session
Spring 2020
Instructors
Course Type
Online
Location
Online
Course ID
EDFT 8462
Faculty Approval Required
Yes
Course Size
6 – 15
Units
3
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Evidence-Based Spiritual Care
From the “Bedside to the Lab Bench.” Is ministry an art or a science? How do we explain our goals and outcomes as spiritual caregivers? What happens when our duties to serve human need face the challenges of the biomedical system? What do emerging technologies mean for how we understand oppression and the care of communities? Scientific literature recognizes that religion/spirituality is an integral dimension of well-being and makes a difference in the lives of individuals and communities. However, the measurement of religion/spirituality continues to invite public and scientific debate and meanwhile, scientific advancements raise questions about theology and justice. This course provides a foundation in the growing fields of spiritual care research and the biopolitics of science meeting religion. Students will learn to understand the evidence, develop the experiments and investigate the ethical and social implications of their ministry and caring practice. The course includes a significant “laboratory” component, in which students take their spiritual caregiving from the bedside to the lab bench to: test new interventions in spiritual care; create measurement tools to understand their practice of ministry and leadership; and respond to the effects of new scientific technologies on marginalized communities. Prerequisites: A pastoral care/counseling course or prior CPE preferred. Online, asynchronous, with possible synchronous meetings. Low residency. Relates to Threshold 5, MFC Competencies 2 and 7.
Session
Spring 2020
Instructors
Course Type
Online
Location
Online
Course ID
RS-8300
Faculty Approval Required
No
Course Size
6 – 30
Units
3
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Forced Migration & Social Justice
Every year thousands of people are displaced from their place of origin by forced situations such as climate disruption, war, starvation, political persecution, or discrimination due to their sexual orientation. This course aims to explore the complex situations that forced im/migrants face and the particularities of their situations. Specifically, it looks at how religious leaders and activists can accompany and care for these im/migrants and support their agency and resilience.
The course includes an immersion journey to Tijuana (March 25-29) in which we will, as a class, interact with forced om/migrants who can tell us their stories and give us tools to seek social justice and peace.
Relates to SKSM Thresholds 1, 2, 5, 6, 7 & 8. and MFC Comps 2, 3, 4 & 7.
Intended Audience: MA, Mdiv, MASC, Ph.D. with additional coursework
Evaluation method: 1 reflection paper, weekly class participation in a discussion forum, individual presentation on a final project
Limit: 12 participants
Session
Spring 2020
Instructors
Course Type
Immersion, Online
Location
No Location
Course ID
RSHR-8417
Faculty Approval Required
No
Units
3
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Intro to Systems Thinking
This is an introductory course in systems thinking, a leadership model that recognizes that people, structures, and processes interact within organizational systems to foster (or restrict) organizational (and individual) wellbeing. Wherever your ministry takes you: serving a congregation; working as a chaplain; supervising volunteers in a voter registration drive; living in a cooperative or homeless encampment, knowledge about systems thinking offers tools to respond appropriately to the needs of the system in which you find yourself.
Our study of congregations and other systems (likely the medical-industrial and educational systems) will be rooted in a multi-cultural, anti-oppressive understanding of the intersectionality of systems and identities, power and privilege. Our work will also take us into less-charted territory to explore systems thinking in relation to social media and non-hierarchical (rhizomatic) organizational systems.
Meets Thresholds: Life in Religious Community and Prophetic Witness
Meets MFC Comps: Social Justice in the Public Square and Administration
Session
Spring 2020
Instructors
Course Type
Online
Location
Online
Course ID
RS 8400
Faculty Approval Required
Yes
Course Size
6 – 24
Units
3
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Post-Modern Theologies & Critical Theory
Postmodernism has been reported to be both a threat to religion as well as its savior. Simultaneously resisting metanarratives and ‘absolute’ truth, postmodernity also proved to be a fertile and rich period for theology and philosophy. Some have wondered how this could be possible – can there be dialogue between postmodernism and theology? This online course will explore postmodern thinkers generously to find points of connection between postmodern philosophy and theology. Students will engage thinkers such as Michel Foucault, Emmanuel Levinas, and Jacques Derrida side-by-side with liberation, feminist, and post-colonial theologians to explore topics such as identity and the ‘self’, deconstruction, alterity, and power. As an asynchronous course, students will be expected to engage in weekly reflections and online discussion forums. A final paper of 12-15 pages is required. Students will have access to recorded lectures as well as other online resources. This course is intended for MDiv, MA/MTS, and other Masters level students.
Relates to SKSM Thresholds – 4, 6, &7 and MFC Comp 4.
Session
Spring 2020
Instructors
Course Type
Online
Location
Online
Course ID
RS-8200
Faculty Approval Required
No
Units
3
Reviving Pilgrimage: Decolonizing Religious Travel to the Holy Land
What does it mean, as a religious leader, to visit the Holy Land in these times? Is pilgrimage possible in the midst of occupation and colonization? How is bearing witness to injustice a political tool in liberation movements, and what more is required of us? How does travel to the Holy Land require of us responsivity to the moral and political crisis on the ground? How can witness be a tool in the fight against ongoing systemic injustice without tokenizing individuals or exploiting suffering? How can we challenge the white/western saviour complex in the way we travel? How can we move from charity to solidarity? How can we move from religious tourism to pilgrimage? How do we, as people of faith, put faith into action?
Reviving Pilgrimage: Decolonizing Religious Tourism to the Holy Land is a semester-long online synchronous course, involving eight preparatory classes on Zoom, a 10-day trip to Israel/Palestine over Reading Week, and six Zoom reflection & action sessions following return from the trip. The trip is a required part of the course.
The intended audience for this course is all those training to be religious leaders in communities of practice, across areas of specialty and degree programs. This course relates to SKSM Thresholds #1,#2, #5, #6 and #7. This course relates to UU MFC Competencies #4 and #7.
Session
Spring 2020
Instructors
Course Type
Immersion, Online
Location
No Location
Days
F
Time
9:40am - 12:30pm
Course ID
IRRS 1300
Faculty Approval Required
Yes
Course Size
6 – 20
Units
3-4.5
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Spiritual Practices for These Times
“This is not a time to live without a practice. It is a time when all of us will need the most faithful, self-generated enthusiasm (enthusiasm: to be filled with god) in order to survive in human fashion. Whether we reach this inner state of recognized divinity through prayer, meditation, dancing, swimming, walking, feeding the hungry or enriching the impoverished is immaterial. We will be doubly bereft without some kind of practice that connects us, in a caring way, to what begins to feel like a dissolving world.” — Alice Walker
In this course, students will explore, develop and deepen their spiritual practice and support their peers in doing the same. The class will be experiential, multi-religious and counter oppressive. It will draw on some of the wisdom and practices of world religions including earth based traditions, as well as on art, poetry, and deep ecology. Evaluation will be based on reflections, spiritual practice exercises, a project, and how students helped create a vibrant and caring learning community.
Relates to Thresholds: Spiritual Practice & Care of the Soul; Embodied Wisdom & Beauty.
Relates to MFC Comp 3: Encourages Spiritual Development for Self and Others.
Session
Spring 2020
Instructors
Course Type
Online
Location
Online
Course ID
SPFT 8400
Faculty Approval Required
No
Course Size
6 – 20
Units
3
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Writing for Religious Leaders
Whether working for justice, serving communities or guiding organizations, religious leader should be able to write for a variety of audiences. Theological school is a perfect place for thinking about hw we put our ideas and interpretations into words. Writing as religious leaders requires thoughtful articulation of our own ideas as well as the ability to clearly explain multiple perspectives on a variety of critical issues. This is an online course geared toward students who wish to improve their critical thinking skills and writing habits for graduate-level academic work and religious leadership. It is recommended for students early in their degree program, but open to all. Students will engage texts from a range of substantive topics and explore various writing assignments, which are common in their education at the GTU. Each day of the intensive week includes discussion of readings for comprehension and interpretation, dedicated writing time, peer-editing sessions and skill-focused activities. First day of intensive will feature a research skill-building seminar from a GTU research librarian. Upon registering and in preparation for the start of the term, students will be asked to read and write a brief essay on an assigned topic. Prerequisites: None. Relates to Threshold 3.
Session
Spring 2020
Dates
2/3/19 – 5/8/20
Instructors
Course Type
Online
Location
No Location
Course ID
RAFT-8100
Faculty Approval Required
No
Units
1.5
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Residential
No courses found
Residential Hybrid
ECO Leadership Practicum
CO Leadership Practicum: creating just and sustainable communities
The rationale for this course is to cultivate a leadership learning community and network of individuals that can lead groups in educating to counter oppressions and creating just and sustainable communities (ECO). We will explore best practices for meeting management, community structures, and workshop/study-group facilitation that encourage equity, engagement, and consent. Each participant will design, deliver, and refine a learning experience that integrates ECO approaches to creating just and sustainable communities.
This course is synchronous, interactive, and informed by transformative facilitation, liberating structures, and group equity praxis. Students will be expected to complete readings, reflections, discussions, and peer coaching sessions that support their practicum development. Participants that have not completed Leadership Along the Way will have additional pre-work to complete in advance of week 2.
Relates to SKSM Thresholds 1, 2, 6, & 7, and MFC Comps 3, 4, 5, & 7.
Prerequisite: ECO Core Intensive
Recommended pre-course: Leadership Along the Way
Session
Spring 2020
Dates
2/4/20 – 5/5/20
Instructors
Course Type
Residential Hybrid
Location
Starr King Campus (Oakland, CA)
Days
T
Time
2:10 pm - 5 pm
Course ID
RSED 8400
Faculty Approval Required
No
Course Size
6 – 12
Units
3
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Indigenous Bodies
This lecture combined with seminar style course is an in-depth embodied, somatic, theatrical, spect-act-rical, trauma-informed, academic, and “Praxi-demic” (experiential/experimental) journey into and through the history, present, presence and potential future for a global majority that is a globally marginalized population; struggling to maintain identity and cultural traditions within the context of the growth and expansion of modernity. Evaluation methods will include research papers, reflection papers, and class presentations and is open to MDiv, MA/MASC/MTS, DMin, PhD/ThD or any combination thereof.
Applies to SKSM Thresholds: 1) Life in Religious Community and Interfaith Engagement, 2) Prophetic Witness and Work, 4) History of Dissenting Traditions and the Thea/ological Quest, 6) Thea/ology in Culture and Context, 7) Educating for Wholeness and Liberation, & 8) Embodied Wisdom and Beauty and Ministerial Fellowship Competencies (MFC): 2) Pastoral Care and Presence, 3) Spiritual Development for Self and Others, 4) Social Justice in the Public Square, 6) Serves the larger UU Faith, & 7) Leads the faith into the future.
[Faculty Consent required; 25 max enrollment]
Session
Spring 2020
Dates
2/3/20 – 5/7/20
Instructors
Course Type
Residential Hybrid
Location
Starr King Campus (Oakland, CA)
Days
M
Time
6:10-9:00pm
Course ID
FTCE-1200
Faculty Approval Required
Yes
Units
3
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Interreligious Dialogue
This course will present a framework for the practice of interreligious dialogue, in a collaborative and pluralist environment. It will draw upon contemporary texts and guest lectures representing a diversity of faith traditions to provide an integrative context for building bridges between and among religious boundaries. Students will be encouraged to share their interreligious experiences to foster discussion about ways in which to engage in interfaith work among and between different traditions and understand interreligious dialogue from a variety of perspectives.
Course Format and Evaluation: seminar, with final presentation and research paper or project on a specific topic or theme. Intended audience: all degree programs.
Relates to Thresholds: I, II, IV, VI, VII, VIII. Relates to MFC: Social Justice in the Public Square, Leads the Faith into the Future.
Session
Spring 2020
Dates
2/3/20 – 5/4/20
Instructors
Course Type
Residential Hybrid
Location
Starr King Campus (Oakland, CA)
Days
M
Time
2:10pm - 5:00pm
Course ID
IR 4000
Faculty Approval Required
No
Units
3
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Introduction to Liberal Religious Education
This course provides a broad introduction to the theory and practice of liberal religious education, with an emphasis on Unitarian Universalist congregations. Topics include an overview of the history and philosophy of Unitarian Universalist religious education, teaching methods and learning processes, theories of human development, the congregation as an educating community, current approaches and innovations in religious education for all ages, colleagial relationships and professional standards for religious educators, and curriculum resources. Coursework includes a field placement (approximately three times a month) in a local congregation’s religious education ministry, weekly journalling, periodic
written assignments, responsibility for leading class openings and discussions, and a final project of significance to the student’s future ministry. Relates to Thresholds 7,1 and MFC competencies 3,5,7. High-residency, limited hybrid participation allowed. Hybrid participation counts as
low residency.
Session
Spring 2020
Dates
2/6/20 – 5/7/20
Instructors
Course Type
Residential Hybrid
Location
Starr King Campus (Oakland, CA)
Days
Th
Time
9:40am-12:30pm
Course ID
ED 4212
Faculty Approval Required
No
Units
3
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Latinx Theyologies: Latin American Liberation Beyond the Thea/ological
This introductory course will engage Mujerista and Latina Feminist Thea/ologies as we interrogate their epistemologies, social narratives, and methodologies. We will explore the works of leading Latina Theologians within the context of Latin American and Latinx Liberation Theology. Our learning journey will include the writings of Mujerista Theologian Ada María Isasi-Diaz, Latin American Feminist Theologian María Pilar Aquino, Feminist Eco- Theologian Ivonne Gebara, and Feminist Theologian Marcella Althaus-Reed. We will apply an intersectional lens to our analysis of readings and class discussions to engage questions of philosophical, political, and gender diversity with respect to Latina Feminist and Mujerista Thea/ ologies. Our work will focus on interrogating both Mujerista and Latina Feminist Thea/ologies through an intersectional lens that includes a survey of liberatory perspectives and lived experiences beyond gender binaries.
Grades will be determined by active class participation and three 5 page reflection papers.
Relates to SKSM thresholds 4, 6,7 & 8, and MFC Comps 3, 4, 6 & 7
Session
Spring 2020
Instructors
Course Type
Residential Hybrid
Location
No Location
Days
Th
Time
2:10pm - 5:00pm
Course ID
RSHR-1599
Faculty Approval Required
No
Units
3
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Muslims in America
This course will present an overview of the history of Islam and Muslims in the United States, from the presence of African Muslims in the antebellum era to the multi-ethnic contemporary milieu. Specific focus will be given to the African American and immigrant populations that have helped shape this history, as well as the various contemporary communities and organizations that are active in the U.S. public square. Course format and evaluation: seminar, with final presentation and research paper or project on a specific topic or theme. Intro to Islam or equivalent strongly recommended. Intended audience: all degree programs.
Relates to Thresholds: I, II, IV, VI, VII, VIII. Relates to MFC: Social Justice in the Public Square, Leads the Faith into the Future.
Session
Spring 2020
Dates
2/6/20 – 5/7/20
Instructors
Course Type
Residential Hybrid
Location
Starr King Campus (Oakland, CA)
Days
Th
Time
9:40am - 12:30pm
Course ID
HRRS-4841
Faculty Approval Required
No
Units
3
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Thesis/Final Project
MASC Project
For SKSM Master of Arts in Social Change (MASC) students only. MASC students can split this course over two semesters or sign up for it during their last semester. This final project can take a variety of forms and should be representative of the student’s learning and creative work in the MASC degree. Projects include research thesis, public presentations, designing and implementing educational curricula, organizing local/national conferences and special events, multimedia art-work, writing a book and more. The thesis topic, proposal and final draft need to be discussed and developed with the faculty and a second faculty member (usually the student’s advisor). The project can have a public presentation at SKSM. A total of 3 MASC Project credits are required for graduation in the MASC degree. – Fulfills Threshold # 2.
This project is taken for variable credit between 0.5-3 credits.
Session
Spring 2020
Instructors
Course Type
Thesis/Final Project
Location
No Location
Course ID
MA 5300
Faculty Approval Required
Yes
Units
0.5-3