"To nurture men and women-lay and clergy-for transformational leadership in the church and the wider human community in partnership with the church's institutions of higher education and with its congregations, regions and general ministries.

Undergraduate Education

CD-ROM Recruitment Publication
We continue to distribute "Discover Disciples Colleges and Universities" ("Discover 2.0") at every opportunity, and we continue to hear appreciation and praise for this interactive CD-ROM presentation of the Disciples-related colleges and universities. We have about 5000 copies remaining from the original 30,000, and are examining options for creating an updated version of this product in cooperation with the colleges and universities.

Congregational College Fairs
This fall we have helped facilitate congregationally sponsored Disciples college f airs, one in the Louisville, Kentucky, area and one in Kansas City. Experience with these two events (one went very well and one did not) has led us to commit to developing a "how your congregation can organize a Disciples college fair" document for distribution to congregations via the DHE web site and other means.

DHE Web Site
We are very pleased with the continuing developing of the DHE web sites and we keep looking for ways to increase its attractiveness and effectiveness. In addition to the DHE web site, we also maintain www.disciplesscholarships.org, which presents information on all available scholarship programs, and a web site for the student Ecumenical Partnership (STEP) Team. A web site for HEMA (Higher Education Ministries Arena), an ecumenical coordinating body, is also connected to our site and managed by DHE staff.

Leadership Fellows Program
We chose ten additional fellows for the DHE Leadership Fellows Program. Two of those ten ultimately chose not to participate. We are very pleased that two of the eight new fellows are ethnic minority Disciples. Allowing for three graduations, we now have 26 fellows in the program. We are very pleased that two of the eight new fellows are ethnic minority Disciples.

In our efforts to broaden the applicant base for the Leadership Fellows Program in 2002 we

1. Wrote to every pastor of Disciples African American, Hispanic and Asian congregations with information about the program and a request for names and addresses of potential fellows.
   
2. Wrote with the same request to approximately 50 selected church leaders, including DHE board members.
   
3. Wrote personal letters to each potential fellow identified by these pastors/leaders, with application forms and a special invitation to apply.
   

In 2002-2003, in addition to the efforts above, we will also work to obtain coverage of the Leadership Fellows Program in the newsletters and other publications of the National Convocation, Hispanic Commission and NAPAD and continue to consult with the executives of those organizations for assistance and advice on recruiting ethnic minority students to the program.

Phillips University Legacy Foundation
The Phillips University Legacy Scholars Program named 11 recipients in April. Their Scholars and representatives of the Phillips University Legacy Foundation participated in the Leadership Fellows Conference in St. Louis November 15-17. We have also processed three rounds of applications for the Phillips University Legacy Foundation's Faculty and Staff Development Program.

Transylvania University Symposium on the Theological Exploration of Vocation"
DHE co-sponsored with Transylvania University its Lilly Endowment-funded project on "Theological Exploration of Vocation" helped plan and lead the first of three symposium this past summer in Milwaukee. Response was extremely positive and we are actively involved in planning for the second symposium, involving college chaplains, campus minister, church relations directors and students on June 19-21, 2003 in Lexington, Kentucky.

Leadership Changes
Dr. Beverly Hogan has been named president of Tougaloo College. Dr. Ed Strong has announced his retirement as president of Culver-Stockton College effective December 31, 2003. Dr. Mick Ferrari, chancellor of Texas Christian University has announced his retirement at the end of the current academic year. Searches are underway at Culver-Stockton and TCU and well as at Barton College where president Jim Hemby's previously announced retirement takes effect this summer.

Theological Education

Disciples Seminarians Conference
Ninety-six Disciples ministerial students gathered at the Scarritt-Bennett Center in Nashville October 31-November 3, 2002 for the biennial Disciples Seminarians Conference. DHE partners with all the other general ministries in this unique opportunity for Disciples theological students to meet each other and current church leaders and to be introduced to current structures and issues within this church we all serve.

Ethnic Minority Ministries Endowment
We have committed DHE's Ethnic Minority Ministries Endowment in 2001-2002 as follows: $10,000 to the FTE Doctoral Fellows Program and Dissertation Fellows Program for African Americans, earmarked for qualifying Disciples fellows; $5,000 to the Domingo Rodriguez Scholarship Fund of the Pastoral Commission for Hispanic ministries and $5,000 to the Hispanic Summer Program; $10,000 for start-up support for Brite Divinity School's addition of a Korean Studies faculty position

Leadership Changes
President Leo Perdue of Brite Divinity School resigned his administrative position to return to the faculty this past summer. D. Duane Cummins, former president of Bethany College is serving as acting president.

Ministries in Higher Education

Student Ecumenical Partnership Team (STEP)
STEP is currently working on leadership responsibilities for CELEBRATE which will take place in Albuquerque, New Mexico, December 28, 2002 - January 1, 2003. The STEP Team is creating and leading the DOC/UCC denominational times each day during the event and the Sunday morning worship.

Council for Ecumenical Student Christian Ministries (CESCM)
CESCM is the US affiliate of the World Student Christian Federation and provides opportunities for student fellowship and leadership training. The North American Region of the World Student Christian Federation was reformed at a meeting between the Student Christian Movement of Canada and the Council for Ecumenical Student Christian Ministry in May 2002.

Higher Education Ministries Arena (HEMA)
The Higher Education Ministries Arena web page has almost been completed and is utilized widely throughout the campus ministry networks. The Directory of Ministries in Higher Education web site is nearing completion and is expected to be up and running by the end of the year. The Directory will allow users to locate campus ministries and campus ministers on many different campuses throughout the country

A New Leadership Initiative
The Oreon E. Scott Foundation has awarded a grant of $10,000 to fund the planning and initial meeting of a gathering we provisionally call the Disciples Leadership Roundtable. We want to bring together a variety of gifted Disciples institutional leaders and an equal number of potential future leaders. We imagine a conversation among these men and women around how the church can establish formal and informal mechanisms to recruit, nurture and mentor its future leaders, and we will ensure that this conversation will include the full diversity within the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).

Other Partnerships

Higher Education Sunday/Leadership Harvest
We invited congregations to submit creative approaches to leader development with young people with the promise of grants for future projects to six congregations in three size categories. We will publish descriptions of the best strategies and activities throughout the church at the conclusion of this year's contest.

Research on Education for Non-Ordained Pastoral Leaders
We have worked with the regions to gather information on educational opportunities and programs for licensed ministers and other non-ordained pastoral leaders. We are also working with the group, including representatives of the Missouri School of Religion and the Northeast Area of the Mid-American region, which is planning for a church wide summit meeting on Licensed Ministry May 29-30, 2003, at Barton College.

Ethnic Minority Communities
We have begun to form ongoing liaison groups with the National Convocation of the Christian Church, with the Hispanic Convention and with North American Asian Pacific Disciples, with initial meetings at the gatherings of these organizations this past summer.