“Everything that happens in the witnessing community, be it faithful or unfaithful, is part of the educational process of Christian nurture of its members.”

MISSION, VISION, AND VALUES

The Center for Excellence in Christian Education is a nexus for interconnectivity that engenders substantive and collaborative work that enlivens educational leadership, practices, and research across ministries in diverse contexts. The Center inhabits the intersection of the academy and the congregation, scholars and practitioners, theory and practice as it cultivates and curates relevant and dynamic resources for forming an engaging faith in a changing Church and complex world.

It provides space, opportunity, and support for creativity and innovation in educational leadership in congregations, church professionals, and all people of faith as it integrates theory and practice. A core commitment of the Center is to nurture dynamic and relevant faith that sustains faithful living throughout the lifespan. Such faith shapes the ways we understand and engage the world and requires the development of new educational theories, approaches, and resources, which in turn reorient perspectives from describing the landscape to leading in the midst of complexity and into an exhilarating time of thriving.

UPSem AND THE LEGACY OF PSCE

In its own words,

“In response to God’s love in Jesus Christ for this complex world, the Presbyterian School of Christian Education seeks to enrich and advance the educational ministry of the church. The work of the church demands much of its leaders, calling for superior natural and spiritual qualifications and specialized training. Christian workers must be prepared to engage in many different kinds of service. Its core values included:

• integrating theory and practice
• seeking to deepen faith while sharpening reason
• being flexible and innovative in responding to the leading of the Spirit in changing times
• the importance of being genuinely ecumenical, interracial, and international

Established in 1914 as the Assembly’s Training School, in 1959 the name was changed to the Presbyterian School of Christian Education to reflect the growth of the School’s curriculum that included graduate degree programs, continuing education courses, and facilities for developing and testing improved approaches to education and the church.” [ 1 ]

With the federation of PSCE and Union Theological Seminary, Union Presbyterian Seminary carries forth the commitment to integrate excellence in Christian Education into theological education

[ 1 ] Historical documents from PSCE archives