On March 31, a signing ceremony will take place in the Camden Diocesan Center to formalize the partnership between the Diocese of Camden’s Office of Lifelong Faith Formation and the Villanova School of Business in providing a church management degree program for parish leaders and managers.
The 30-credit master of science degree in church management, part of the diocese’s Lay Ministry Formation Program, will teach business skills and professional ethics to pastors, parish business managers, diocesan department heads, and those managing church-related social service ministries.
Bishop Joseph A. Galante of Camden called the upcoming partnership “a very exciting time for us in the Diocese of Camden as we form the partnership with Villanova University. This master’s degree in church administration will be of inestimable benefit to laity and clergy as they serve our parishes and institutions.”
Calling the program a “faith-focused business curriculum,” Charles Zech, director of the Center for the Study of Church Management at the Villanova School of Business, noted that the program is “uniquely positioned to provide the very best in faith-based managerial education, enabling church leaders to apply sound business approaches” to pastoral issues and decision making.
Courses include “Civil Law and Church Law for Church Administrators,” “Stewardship and Development,” “Human Resource Management in a Ministry Setting,” and “Pastoral Strategic Planning.”
Applications are being accepted for the May cohort. All courses are offered online and can be completed in two years of part-time study. The only travel requirement is a one-week residency at the Villanova School of Business, which is
part of Villanova University in Pennsylvania.
Candidates accepted into the program pay one-third of the discounted tuition cost; parishes and the diocese pay the remaining cost of tuition.
The upcoming partnership with the Villanova School of Business is the lastest addition to the offerings of the diocese’s Lay Ministry Formation Program.
Lay Ministry Formation has partnered with numerous institutions of higher learning to offer college and university certificate and degree courses in 15 areas for parish leaders and staff members who serve in various pastoral ministries.
For more information about this program and other Lay Ministry Formation programs, call Linda K. Robinson at 856-583-6116, or go to www.camdendiocese.org and click on “Lay Ministry Formation Program.”
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