Title: ELCA Publishing House Board Members Frustrated by DCM Actions
ELCA NEWS SERVICE
April 26, 2001
ELCA PUBLISHING HOUSE BOARD MEMBERS FRUSTRATED BY DCM ACTIONS
01-101-JB
PHOENIX (ELCA) -- Members of the board of trustees of Augsburg
Fortress, the publishing house of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in
America (ELCA), expressed frustration at two resolutions directed at
the publishing house by the board of the ELCA Division for
Congregational Ministries (DCM). The trustees did not take any
formal action in response, and members seemed eager to avoid further
conflict with the division and its board.
The board of trustees for the Minneapolis-based publisher met
here April 19-21.
At its Feb. 16-18 meeting in Chicago, the DCM board authorized
DCM's executive directors to "investigate alternative means" of
publishing resources for congregations. DCM's board said the current
publishing partnership between Augsburg Fortress and DCM had become
"inefficient and ineffective." In a separate resolution, the board asked
the ELCA Church Council to review the relationship between Augsburg
Fortress and the ELCA churchwide organization, especially the current
partnership with DCM.
Prior to the Augsburg Fortress board meeting, the only public
response to the DCM board action was a statement from the Rev. Marvin
L. Roloff, president and chief executive officer of Augsburg
Fortress. In that statement, he said the company was "deeply
concerned" by DCM's actions.
Earlier this month the ELCA Church Council approved the DCM
board's request to review the publishing relationship, which is
specified in the ELCA constitution.
In his report to the board of trustees, Roloff said the
publishing house is moving ahead with the council-mandated review.
The review will begin with a series of interviews with key
staff from Augsburg Fortress and units of the ELCA churchwide
organization, said the Rev. Robert N. Bacher, ELCA Office of the
Presiding Bishop, advisor to the trustees. Those interviews will
attempt to determine what is causing criticism of Augsburg Fortress,
he said. A task force will be appointed to consider the issues
raised and offer recommendations, Bacher added.
Fred J. Korge, Augsburg Fortress board member, Houston, asked
Roloff if he had learned what DCM board members meant by "inefficient
and ineffective." "What's their beef?" he asked.
In his discussions with DCM staff since the DCM board meeting,
Roloff said there were broad issues, some dealing with "issues of
communication," but that he could not discern exactly what was
causing the discontent.
DCM's lack of specifics "bugs ... me," Korge said. He said the
resolution was "not nice."
The Rev. Richard F. Bansemer, board member, Salem, Va., said he
was bothered by the lack of specific information. The resolution
"felt like an ambush," he said.
The Rev. Gregory C. Moser, board member, Chicago, said DCM
should identify the problems clearly. "If you pass a resolution like
this, it's incumbent upon you to delineate the problem," he said.
"It feels like I'm 'shadow boxing.'" Moser also commended Roloff for
expressing "grace" in his public response following the DCM board
meeting.
Though the Augsburg Fortress board did not respond formally to
the DCM board resolutions, one member asked Roloff to get more
specific information. "When everything is very vague, it leads one
to speculate," said Dr. Janice M. Bowman, Thousand Oaks, Calif. Such
speculation can be more dangerous than the facts, she said.
It may be difficult to learn what the specific issues are, said
Dr. Mary E. Hughes, board member, Columbus, Ohio. Because Augsburg
Fortress has been on shaky financial ground for some time and because
it is working through a significant reorganization, the resolutions
may have resulted from general frustration, she suggested.
James Myers, board member, Kailua, Hawaii, previously served as
a DCM board member. He said the problem is probably "about
perception on both ends." Myers added he wasn't very surprised by
the DCM resolutions and said that board had been close to such action
before.
Other Augsburg Fortress board members suggested representatives
of both boards meet to listen and build relationships. Members of
either board or staff were not present for the other's board meeting
this spring.
Another suggestion was that the Augsburg Fortress board meet
more often at the ELCA's churchwide offices in Chicago, as a sign of
partnership. The board of trustees normally meets in Minneapolis or
at the location of one of the publisher's field operations. It met
here to demonstrate support for a new publishing agreement Augsburg
Fortress has through Community Church of Joy, an ELCA congregation
near Phoenix in Glendale, Ariz.
Bruce Keil, vice president, operations, Augsburg Fortress, said
the call for a periodic review may be good for the company. Keil said
he would support a review that could result in new publishing ideas.
Following the meeting, Roloff said he will move "with a new
sense of urgency" to identify the issues causing discontent in the
churchwide organization with Augsburg Fortress and work to try to
resolve the issues jointly. The publisher will also participate
fully in the review, said Richard E. Lodmill, board chair, Seattle.
In other business, the board of trustees:
+ adopted an amendment to its business ethics policy. The
amendment specifically prohibits discrimination against individuals
because of their sexual orientation. It conforms Augsburg Fortress'
policy with ELCA policy and most state laws.
+ learned that the Rev. Roy A. Harrisville III will join the
company Aug. 1, as vice president for its academic and professional
business group. Harrisville is presently academic dean at Trinity
Lutheran College, Issaquah, Wash. He will replace the Rev. Harold W.
Rast, who had been serving as interim vice president of the business
group and has since returned to Pennsylvania.
+ elected Timothy I. Maudlin, Eden Prairie, Minn., as board
chair, replacing Lodmill, whose six-year board membership concludes
in August. The board elected Hughes as vice chair, replacing
Maudlin. It elected Karen Albers-Sigler, Bloomsburg, Pa., as
secretary. Albers-Sigler replaced Julie K. Aageson, Moorhead, Minn.,
who resigned from the board of trustees. Aageson, who recently
joined the churchwide staff in a part-time position as coordinator
for the ELCA's resource centers, was no longer eligible to serve
because of the church's policy that precludes staff from serving on
churchwide boards. Aageson's term would have concluded in August.
For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or [log in to unmask]
http://listserv.elca.org/archives/elcanews.html
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