Academic Life ~ SCOM Protocols 2007-2008

SCOM Protocols 2007-2008

Protocols for 2007-08 Grants
Made by the Seminary Consultation on Mission (SCOM)

Overview

SCOM's Purpose
The Seminary Consultation on Mission (SCOM) is a collaborative venture, formed under the auspices of the Council of Episcopal Seminary Deans, Inc., to strengthen the educational resources for national and international mission in the accredited seminaries of the Episcopal Church.  The Consultation is funded largely through a trust funded by Venture in Mission (VIM), the church-wide capital campaign of the 1970s-80s.  The purpose of the fund is to develop and deepen a global perspective in seminary life and curricula and thereby help renew and extend effective commitment to mission, both foreign and domestic, throughout the Church.  The income from the fund will be used to assist projects that fulfill that purpose. 

Call for Proposals
On behalf of the Council of Seminary Deans, SCOM invites proposals for grants for projects planned for the period January 1, 2007 through August 31, 2008.  This 20-month window gives applicants opportunity for advance planning.  Successful proposals will be for projects that carry out the purposes of the VIM Trust Fund, as described above, through involving students and/or faculty in cross-cultural experiences that enhance learning and preparation for ministry.

Eligibility
Eligibility to initiate a project is open to individual students and groups of students who will return to seminary after completion of the project and to faculty members of accredited seminaries of the Episcopal Church.  The aim of the grants is not only to facilitate cross-cultural learning, but also to ensure that such experiences are planned and carried out in ways that have an effect on seminary life and education.  Faculty applications are considered first on the grounds that the faculty have longer tenure in the institution and can have a greater effect on its life and education.  Members of the SCOM Grants Committee are not eligible to receive grants themselves while serving on the committee.  Interested applicants should consult their seminary's faculty SCOM representatives about possible projects and the application process. 
 
Funding Level
SCOM hopes to fund projects at a substantial level in proportion to the need, preferably at or greater than 50% of the total cost, depending on grant funds.  SCOM prefers not to make grants that signify mainly symbolic support.  At the same time, applicants are expected to search for other funds to combine with SCOM funds.  No single grant will exceed $5,000, and all proposals will be reviewed for budget as well as program.  Grants are not to be used to replace salary or scholarship aid.

Application Process

Basic Procedure
Individual or group applicants must submit to the SCOM Grants Committee a proposal outlining the project in reasonable detail, describing the impact it will have on the life and curriculum of the sponsoring seminary, and setting forth the budget for the project, including all other sources of funding.  The proposal must be accompanied by a letter of endorsement from the dean and faculty of the sponsoring seminary indicating their support for the intended impact on the seminary. 

Group applications must include both an overall description of the project submitted by the group leader and an individual application from each participant.  The Grants Committee wants to know what each participant brings to the project, what each participant anticipates in the experience, and how each participant plans to share from the experience. 

In cases where two institutions are applying either for a single grant or for parallel grants that are essentially one grant, the application must have the support of both institutions and a letter of endorsement from the dean and faculty of both institutions.

The Chair of the SCOM Grants Committee is The Very Rev. Dr. Robert S. Munday, Dean and President, Nashotah House, 2777 Mission Road, Nashotah, Wisconsin 53058. Telephone: (262) 646-6500.  Questions about SCOM grants may be directed to him by telephone or at rsmunday@nashotah.edu. 

Grant application should be sent to Martin Tsien, Administrative Assistant, Office for Ministry Development, The Episcopal Church Center, 815 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10017.  Phone: (212) 716-6166 Fax: (212) 682-5594.  E-mail: mtsien@episcopalchurch.org 

Application received in the Office of Ministry Development by the deadline will be forwarded to the Grants Committee.   Please do not send grant applications directly to Dean Munday or another member of the Grants Committee. 

Deadline
Applications for grants to be used between  January 1, 2007 and August 31, 2008 must be received by Martin Tsien at the above address no later than Wednesday, November 1, 2006.  The Grants Committee will make its decision by December 1, 2006.  Late applications are not accepted.

Guidelines for Applications
There is no application form.  The proposal should set forth the elements outlined below:

  1. Describe the geographical, cultural, linguistic and ecclesial character of the place where you hope to go.
  2. Cite the local and/or institutional setting where you will be located, including (as applicable) names of instructors, supervisors and/or co-workers with whom you have communicated in planning the experience, and the person(s) to whom you will be accountable in the setting.
  3. Describe the actual activities that you anticipate undertaking and the expected duration of the experience.
  4. List the learning outcomes you hope to fulfill through the project.
  5. Describe the type of engagement with the local church that you expect to have during the experience.
  6. List the ways in which you plan to share the experience with your seminary and the impact that you hope your sharing will have on the seminary's life and/or curriculum.
  7. Detail your projected budget, showing expenses such as travel, visas, accommodations, meals, materials, etc.; and showing funding sources other than SCOM that you have approached or plan to approach (e.g., parish, diocese, foundations, individuals). 

We need a brief paragraph about each element that will introduce us to your project and inform us that you have anticipated these elements of your project.  We do not need an in-depth analysis of each element.

Factors Considered by the SCOM Grants Committee 

  1. Cross-cultural engagement is a requirement of a SCOM grant.  This criterion is relative to the applicant: there must be significant engagement with a culture other than one's own.  Geographically, SCOM's focus is guided by the "foreign" aspect of the work of the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society, which includes all areas outside the USA.  SCOM grants will not be made for journeys that are primarily historical or archaeological.  A strong case must be made for the cross-cultural nature of a proposal for work in Britain or western Europe in order for it to be approved. 
  2. A SCOM grant should further the theological education and ministerial preparation of grantees.  A SCOM experience should be a learning experience, not primarily a project through which one shares one's expertise.  Applications should highlight the learning outcomes anticipated through the experience.  "What I hope to learn" is a more important theme in the application than "What I plan to do."  Put another way, because this is a program related to theological education, learning about mission has a higher priority than simply doing mission, essential as that is.
  3. Learning and engagement with the local church are key elements.  Grants for language study may be made, but only if clear involvement with the local church is planned.  Similarly, grants may be made in connection with an invitation to lecture, teach or lead a workshop, but only if the applicant articulates clearly what s/he will learn and what other activities will promote such learning.
  4. Duration of a project is preferably three weeks or more.  Grants may be made for shorter projects, but only if the applicant articulates clearly why a longer period is not available and how learning will take place during a shorter period.  Applicants interested in well-established programs which offer important experiences that are shorter than three weeks are encouraged to apply.
  5. SCOM expects applicants to seek funds from multiple sources.  The application should express a commitment to seek funding from other sources and list specific agencies from which funding will be sought, e.g., parish, diocesan mission committee, bishop. mission society, Episcopal Church Center agency.  
  6. Some preference is given to new applicants over repeat grant recipients.  Yet SCOM also has an interest in assisting faculty to develop stable cross-cultural placements for students over time.
  7. The Grants Committee seeks balance and inclusiveness in grant awards among:
     -- men and women applicants;
     -- racial and ethnic groups represented among the applicants;
     -- faculty applicants;
     -- the seminaries from which applications are received.
  8. Grants are not made to bring international students to the seminaries.  It is the responsibility of institutions to fund international students from their own budgets.
  9. SCOM grants are not usually made for the purpose of earning significant credits toward a degree granted by an institution other than the student's own Episcopal seminary.

Administration

Grants Committee Process
The Council of Episcopal Seminary Deans appoints a four-member Grants Committee to include one dean, who serves as a chair of the committee, and three SCOM representatives.  The chair ensures that the committee confers for consideration of proposals either in person or by conference call.  Members of the Grants Committee are not eligible to vote on applications from their own schools.  The committee decides on awards and communicates its decisions to the applicants and their deans. The Grants Committee may choose to make no award in any given year.

The Council of Episcopal Seminary Deans is responsible for publicizing the grants, and questions may be directed to the dean who chairs the Grants Committee. Changes in policy and emphasis each year shall be initiated by SCOM and approved by the Council of Episcopal Seminary Deans.  The costs of publicity and the work of the Grants Committee are borne by the Council of Episcopal Seminary Deans, the income from the VIM Trust Fund being used solely for projects designed in accord with that fund's purpose.

Funds Disbursement
A list of successful applicants and the amount of each grant will be furnished to the Office of Ministry Development.  Applicants will then have the period from January 1, 2007 through August 31, 2008 to request disbursement of their grants.  Grant recipients are responsible for initiating disbursement of their grants by making a written request (paper or electronic) to Martin Tsien at the Office of Ministry Development (at the above address), who will consult the Chair of the Grants Committee and authorize payment from the VIM Trust Fund, which is held at the Episcopal Church Center.  Disbursement is made to the sponsoring seminary, which then disburses the funds to the grantee.  The grantee's initial request should be made in a timely way for projected expenses, especially for the purchase of air tickets at favorable prices.   

Reporting
Project Report:  A grant recipient must submit reports within two months of completion of the funded project. The report must include a narrative of the project itself and the effect of the experience on her/his seminary.  Reports should be submitted to the Office of Ministry Development, with a copy to the sponsoring dean, and an additional copy to the seminary's SCOM representative.  The Office of Ministry Development will forward the project report to the members of the SCOM Grants Committee.  The seminary's SCOM representative is responsible for taking the report to the next SCOM meeting for discussion.
 
Financial Report:  A financial accounting, with supporting documentation on how the grant funds were expended, is required and is due two months after the completion of the project.  This report must be submitted to the Office of Ministry Development for submission to the Treasurer of the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society, with a copy to the sponsoring dean and the seminary’s SCOM representative.  The Office of Ministry Development will distribute the financial report to the members of the SCOM Grants Committee and the Treasurer of the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society.  Unused funds must be returned to the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society with the financial report.  No new grants will be made to a seminary until outstanding reports on previous grant projects from that seminary have been received by the Office of Ministry Development and the Chair and members of the SCOM Grants Committee.

Checklists

Applicants: Checklist for Application
_____Proposal
_____Budget
_____Letter of endorsement by dean and faculty

Applicants: Checklist for Reports
_____Note date project was completed.
_____Note report due date is two months from project completion date.
_____Send project report to your dean with copy to your SCOM representative.
_____Send financial report to treasurer of DFMS with copy to your dean.
_____Return unused funds to treasurer of DFMS with financial report.

Deans: Checklist for Proposals
_____Present proposals for faculty endorsement of the project's effect on your seminary.
_____Send an endorsement for each applicant to Martin Tsien at the Office of Ministry Development (at the above address) before November 1, 2006, so that they can be distributed to the Grants Committee along with the applications.

Deans and SCOM Reps: Checklist for Reports
_____Dean receives a copy of project reports and financial reports.
_____SCOM Rep receives a copy of project report and financial report and takes them to the next SCOM meeting for discussion.

Office of Ministry Development: Checklist for Proposals
_____After November 1, send proposals and Deans’ endorsements to members of SCOM Grants Committee.
_____After December 1, receive list of grants to be awarded and distribute letters to successful and unsuccessful applicants.
_____Receive requests from applicants for disbursement of funds and, after consulting with Chair of Grants Committee, request Treasurer of the DFMS (VIM Trust Fund) to release funds to the applicant’s seminary.

Office of Ministry Development: Checklist for Reports
_____Receive narrative and financial reports on completed projects and distribute them to members of SCOM Grants Committee.
_____Send financial reports and any unused funds that are returned to Treasurer of DFMS.