{"id":27220,"date":"2020-02-24T14:55:14","date_gmt":"2020-02-24T19:55:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.easternmennonite.org\/?p=27220"},"modified":"2021-09-01T15:02:57","modified_gmt":"2021-09-01T19:02:57","slug":"mennonite-educators-conference-inspires-anabaptist-mennonite-educators-with-hope","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.easternmennonite.org\/es\/2020\/02\/mennonite-educators-conference-inspires-anabaptist-mennonite-educators-with-hope\/","title":{"rendered":"Mennonite Educators Conference Inspires Hope"},"content":{"rendered":"

More than 30 Eastern Mennonite School K-12 administrators, faculty and staff participated in the Mennonite School\u2019s Council biennial conference February 7 and 8. In addition to the formal input, the time away provided time for EMS staff to relax and reflect together. Following is a report by Camille Dager of Mennonite Education Agency.<\/em><\/p>\n

MENNONITE EDUCATION AGENCY \u2013 The 2020 Mennonite Educators Conference (MEC) delivered a powerful message of positivity and empowerment while helping educators grapple with big picture questions, such as \u201cHow are we preparing future leaders?\u201d \u201cWhat do Mennonite schools offer?\u201d and \u201cWhat more can we do?\u201d More than 350 Anabaptist-Mennonite educators from the United States and Canada participated in this year\u2019s event, held Feb. 6-8 at the National Conference Center, Leesburg, Virginia.<\/p>\n

The conference is a biennial professional development and networking event, hosted by Mennonite Education Agency<\/a> (MEA) and the Mennonite Schools Council<\/a> (MSC), a network of 25 Mennonite schools serving students from early childhood through grade 12.<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s conference, \u201cUnleashing Curiosity, Igniting Hope,\u201d featured inspirational keynote speakers, storytelling in the form of brief PechaKucha (Japanese for \u201cchit chat\u201d) presentations, participant-driven learning camps and a first-of-its-kind research study on the unique beliefs and practices that make a difference in MSC schools.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe intersection of faith and education makes MSC schools different,\u201d said Peter Wiens, Ph.D., assistant professor of teacher education at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and co-author of the \u201cSurvey of Mennonite Schools Council Educators<\/a>.\u201d He and fellow researcher, Paul J. Yoder, assistant professor of teacher education, Eastern Mennonite University, presented findings from their 2019 survey on teaching practices and pre-service training of nearly 400 teachers at 25 MSC schools. The survey focused on faith integration, pre-service training, instructional practices and personal beliefs.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the places where we found hope was in faith integration,\u201d said Yoder. \u201cTeachers in Mennonite schools have high self-efficacy in communicating faith, despite today\u2019s changing educational landscape.\u201d Almost 99% of teachers felt that they had \u201ca great deal\u201d or \u201cquite a bit\u201d of influence to \u201cshow students they are loved and valued by God.\u201d<\/p>\n

Educators also expressed confidence in their abilities to teach and model peacebuilding, to help students grow in their understanding of stewardship for the natural environment, to grow in relationship with Jesus, to understand biblical discernment and to create a classroom where it is emotionally safe to raise questions and care for each other.<\/p>\n

Keynote speaker Kristin Anderson, founder and CEO of The Brilliance Project<\/a> for sustainable professional learning for educators, underscored the importance of these factors by pointing to research that shows that teachers matter more to student achievement than any other aspect of schooling. She offered teachers a road map through and around professional obstacles and educational roadblocks.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we collectively realize that all of our learning goals are possible, it ignites hope in all those involved in the education process,\u201d said Anderson.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is an incredible power in the upward cycle of learning success when all those involved in the education process are striving to be the best version of themselves,\u201d she continued. Her plan for \u201cUnleashing Your Personal Power\u201d includes being vulnerable, having a learner mindset, surrounding oneself with encouragers and taking small steps toward the overall larger goal.<\/p>\n

\u201cKristin gave us big ideas and concrete ways to get started \u2013 with research to back it up,\u201d said Lisa Otto, a high school math teacher at Central Christian School, Kidron, Ohio.<\/p>\n

\u201cI appreciated how Kristin motivated everyone in the room to, not only tap into their own personal power for the good of education, but to also remember that we are not alone,\u201d said Karla Rupp, instructor at Freeman Academy, Freeman, South Dakota. \u201cGod is alongside us all in the entire process.\u201d<\/p>\n

Keynote speaker Rachel Swartzendruber Miller<\/a>, Ph.D., vice president of advancement at Hesston (Kansas) College, encouraged the educators to embrace their influence and successes and become \u201cbrand ambassadors, recruiters and \u2018owners\u2019 of our wonderful institutions.\u201d She urged educators to fully realize what Mennonite schools offer. In addition to advantages such as small class size, strong academics, varied programming and a broad exposure to the arts, Swartzendruber Miller emphasized the unique aspects of an Anabaptist Mennonite education:<\/p>\n

\u2022 Christ-centered community
\n\u2022 Discipleship
\n\u2022 A Gospel ethic of love<\/p>\n

\u201cWe must all be Mennonite education brand owners,\u201d said Swartzendruber Miller. \u201cShare your stories! Do what you do but do it more publicly.\u201d<\/p>\n

PechaKucha presentations<\/strong><\/p>\n

EMS was one of four schools that shared PechaKucha presentations. See the EMS presentation<\/a>. Presenters were Heidi Byler (third grade), Lynette Mast (kindergarten), Erika Gascho (fifth grade) and Maria Archer (K-8 principal). The elementary team at EMS has built a culture over their 15-year history where dignity for all, and peace with creation and each other, is systemic and evident throughout.<\/p>\n

Others were shared by faculty from Lancaster (Pennsylvania) Mennonite School; Dock Mennonite Academy, Lansdale, Pennsylvania, and Bethany Christian Schools, Goshen, Indiana. Each shared stories that showed how their schools were modeling AnabaptistMennonite faith values such as hope, kindness, empathy and community.<\/p>\n

\u201cHope is best lived out through community,\u201d said PechaKucha presenter Todd Bowman of Lancaster Mennonite School. \u201cAs communities, our schools are uniquely poised to live hope.\u201d<\/p>\n

Taking advantage of their own unique opportunity to meet in community, the educators gathered in participant-led learning camps to discuss a wide range of topics, including teaching practices, classroom management strategies, subject matter discussions, student self-efficacy, anti-racism, selfcare and other uniquely Anabaptist Mennonite topics, such as restorative practices, creation care, faith formation and integration, chapel planning and the Encounter Bible curriculum.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s always good to know that there are others who are excited by the same topics,\u201d said Curt Stutzman of Eastern Mennonite School.<\/p>\n

Lindsay Carson, principal of Lancaster Mennonite School\u2019s New Danville Campus, said \u201cThe conference provides an opportunity for us to see the bigger picture and to know that we are not doing this alone.\u201d
\nDuring the conference, leaders from MEA and MSC celebrated Elaine Moyer<\/a>, senior director of MEA and agency liaison with MSC, who is retiring as of February 28, 2020. Moyer is a trailblazer in Mennonite education with more than 45 years of service, including 11 years with MEA.<\/p>\n

\u201cElaine has always had an entrepreneur missional vision for Mennonite education,\u201d said Richard Thomas, MEA Board Chair. \u201cThis showed in the programs that she helped to create, such as the Encounter Faith Formation Curriculum, developed through MSC. She has been a key to the success of MSC and will be greatly missed.\u201d
\nMoyer thanked the educators for their dedication and hard work and challenged the group, saying, \u201cWhat can we do to extend this vision \u2013 and the love of Jesus?\u201d<\/p>\n

In his closing remarks, Conrad Swartzentruber, executive committee chair of MSC and superintendent of Dock Mennonite Academy, encouraged the educators in this vision, saying \u201cYou are the ones who pour your lives into these students, planting seeds that you may never see sprout, yet with the hope that, because of our Christ-centered focus, one day these seeds will grow.\u201d<\/p>\n

The conference ended with a time of praise and worship. The National Conference Center echoed with the chorus of songwriter Chris Rice\u2019s song, \u201cThere is a Candle\u201d:<\/p>\n

Carry your candle, run to the darkness
\nSeek out the hopeless, confused and torn
\nHold out your candle for all to see it
\nTake your candle, and go light your world
\nTake your candle, and go light your world<\/em><\/p>\n

In partnership with the church, Mennonite Schools Council (MSC) advances Christ-centered Early Childhood-12 education by networking schools and equipping them to implement the vision of Anabaptist\/Mennonite education. MSC boldly opens doors for Christ-centered Anabaptist\/Mennonite education by innovatively networking and resourcing schools.<\/p>\n

Mennonite Education Agency (MEA), headquartered in Elkhart, Indiana, serves Anabaptist educational institutions by providing resources, programing and support to schools, administrators and teachers. As an agency of Mennonite Church USA, MEA ties church and school together in a complementary way to ensure students receive a quality Anabaptist Mennonite education. mennoniteeducation.org<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

More than 30 Eastern Mennonite School K-12 administrators, faculty and staff participated in the Mennonite School\u2019s Council biennial conference February 7 and 8. In addition to the formal input, the time away provided time for EMS staff to relax and reflect together. Following is a report by Camille Dager of Mennonite Education Agency. MENNONITE EDUCATION\u2026<\/p>","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":27222,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[80],"tags":[68,132],"class_list":["post-27220","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-faculty","tag-staff"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.easternmennonite.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27220","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.easternmennonite.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.easternmennonite.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.easternmennonite.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.easternmennonite.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27220"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.easternmennonite.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27220\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.easternmennonite.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/27222"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.easternmennonite.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27220"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.easternmennonite.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27220"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.easternmennonite.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27220"}],"curies":[{"name":"gracias","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}