(Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary in Berkeley, CA)

On April 11, the Advisory Board for the PLTS Dean, Rev. Dr. Ray Pickett, met on Zoom for their biannual meeting. The Board is made up of representatives from each of the synods in Regions 1 and 2 of the ELCA (the western part of the US), as well as four at-large members from across the country, nominated by ELCA churchwide council. Some members are rostered (pastor or deacon) and some are regular church members. Our purpose is to help advise Rev. Dr. Pickett as the seminary charts a path forward into the future. (PLTS is one of seven seminaries of the ELCA, and is a partner with California Lutheran University, one of 28 colleges of the ELCA.)

At this meeting, our devotion centered around our own experience of the church. How do we feel connected, acknowledged, and seen? How do we connect with God? What is meaningful? A resounding sense of community was a common response, as well as a desire for depth, relevancy, and inclusivity. We wondered how faith is made tangible in worship. We articulated an importance for seminary students to experience these things, in seminary or elsewhere, in order to share them as church leaders. 

PLTS has recently announced plans to move fully online and suspend their residential seminary programs. The growth in Distance Learning is happening across all seven ELCA seminaries, and across theological education regardless of denomination. It is a move that is not primarily financial, but is a response to the reality that fewer and fewer students are choosing an in-person experience for their theological education, for a variety of reasons. It is a move that is better for students and faculty. And it requires creativity to reimagine the values of community and spiritual formation and how to facilitate them for seminary students who are not in the same location. 

Many Distance (or Distributed) Learning programs are incorporating an in-person element. But not all DL programs are the same. Most seminaries are offering a hybrid situation, where online students are joining what is happening in-person. PLTS and LSTC (Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago) are both offering asynchronous learning, which is where learning happens at the student's own pace and time. However, there is required regular writing, reflection, and correspondence between the students and professors. In some ways, this adds depth that wasn't always present in in-person learning. There are also in-person retreats or classes twice per year. 

For the past several years, PLTS has been reimagining what a seminary is and who it is for. In addition to preparing pastors to serve congregations, they have created an M.A. in Spirituality and Social Change for deacons and anyone interested in the intersection of faith and social transformation. In an effort to provide practical and relevant theological education, the seminary has recently developed certificate programs for clergy and lay leaders in ministry contexts. These include certificates in Racial Justice and Faith, and Climate Justice and Faith, in English and Spanish. Teaching the values of community organizing have also been very important. 

The Board continues to support Rev. Dr. Pickett as theological education as a whole tries to anticipate and prepare for a future by being proactive and not reactive.

This summary is submitted by Rev. Kirsten Sauey Hofmann, pastor at Lord of Life Lutheran Church in Kennewick, WA, who serves as the representative from Northwest Intermountain Synod.