Director of Religious Education

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Position Title: Director of Religious Education

Employee: Parish

Status: Full Time, 12 Months

Direct Report: Pastor

Level: Executive, Supervision, Staff

Revised:

Compensation Review:

Job Description

Job Summary:

The Director of Religious Education administers (designs, develops, directs and evaluates) the total parish religious educational formational program and provides leadership to assist the parish community in building a solid foundation for child and adult spirituality, Christian living ministry and outreach.

Actions required to advance a Catholic Culture:

• Nurture and challenge the God-given potential and gifts in others so they translate their own potential into action through missionary discipleship.
• See Christ in all who are served and treat each person with respect and honor with positive regard and appreciation for all individuals.
• Actively nurture the life and growth of each individual with a desire to cultivate their own ability to inspire discipleship in others. Cultivate leaders and teams in their personal journey of discipleship actions.

Required Knowledge, Skills, & Abilities:

Knowledge

• Must be a practicing Catholic, a member in good standing of a Catholic parish within the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, and be single, ordained, a professed religious or in a sacramental marriage and have a strong faith commitment, dedicated to Gospel values and living a life of prayer and service.
• Master's degree in theology or related area.
• 2 years of religious education experience in a parish.
• 2 years of supervisory experience required.
• Position requires an understanding of catechetical processes as they pertain to youth, young adults and adults.

Skills & Abilities

• Must possess strong oral and written communication skills.
• Leadership and administrative skills, decision-making skills, program development skills, and interpersonal skills.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office software, the internet, and all basic office equipment.
• Must have the ability to plan, organize, and meet deadlines.
• Must be able to communicate effectively with staff, parish and school community as well as establish and maintain effective relationships.
• Must have ability to implement age appropriate instructional materials and methods of teaching.
• Must be able to handle multiple projects and priorities as required.

Duties and Responsibilities:

Promote a Christian atmosphere in the religious education program by:

• Modeling a Catholic Christian life-style for catechists & students
• Providing leadership in the appreciation of life and the celebration of liturgies.
• Promoting opportunities for the spiritual development of catechists and students.

Administers the religious education program by:

• Visioning and establishing goals, objectives and strategies.
• Recruiting, hiring, orienting and releasing catechetical personnel.
• Providing in-services to catechists in theology, scripture, faith formation and teaching methodologies and strategies.
• Supervising, affirming and evaluating catechetical personnel.
• Developing and implementing policies and guidelines.
• Assisting in the preparation and monitoring of the religious education budget.
• Supervising and scheduling facilities.

Plans, develops and promotes quality catechesis for grades 1-8, sacrament programs, youth ministry and adult formation by:

• Identifying program needs.
• Researching, selecting, developing and evaluating appropriate curricula.
• Evaluating and procuring necessary resource materials.
• Establishing procedures for effective catechesis based on program policies.
• Overseeing liturgical and service dimensions of the program.
• Providing appropriate environments for educational and spiritual growth.
• Provides access and inclusion for children with special learning needs.
• Coordinates the initiation process for unbaptized children and/or children baptized validly in another ecclesial community

Promotes a Catholic environment where people can experience the Gospel message by:

• Encouraging the parents' role as primary educators of their children.
• Assessing student growth and communicating progress to parents/guardians.
• Developing discipline procedures based on policies that are consistent with justice and charity.

Promotes and maintains strong catechetical relationships by:

• Participating as a member of the Pastoral Team.
• Serving as an ex-officio member of the Parish School Board and Parish Pastoral Committee.
• Serving as a religious education resource and consultant to school, parish groups and committees.
• Providing opportunities for dialogue and communication with students, parents and parishioners.

Establishes Public Relations/Communications within the program, parish and community by:

• Communicating through social media, bulletins, telephone and personal conferences, and catechist meetings.
• Informing Pastoral Team of catechetical needs, trends and issues.
• Corresponding regularly with parents and students.
• Scheduling events with school, parish and community calendars.

Maintains personal competency to minister to the parish by:

• Fulfilling all required certification and renewals.
• Participating in Archdiocesan sponsored events such as the Catechist Convocation, Fall & Spring Professional Days and Retreats.
• Belonging to the Archdiocesan Association of Parish Directors, Coordinators, Administrators of Religious Education (PDCARE)
• Actively participating as a member of professional organizations.
• Embrace opportunities for personal spiritual formation.

Assists in the general ministry of the parish by:

• Performing duties and responsibilities as assigned by the pastor.
• Cooperating with other team members.

Saint Helena Parish in Blue Bell, PA, is seeking to hire a new Director of Religious Education. The successful candidate will be a faith-filled individual , who has a zeal for forming youth in the Truth of the Gospel, engages a collaborative style of leadership and demonstrates excellent organizational skills. Additionally, the candidate will have knowledge of contemporary trends in catechesis and effective teaching strategies. A Masters in Theology or related area, previous experience in religious education and supervisory experience required. Interested candidates should submit their resume along with references to Reverend Joseph W. Bongard jbongard@sainthelenachurch.org.