Greetings and Happy 2019,
Each year the Board identifies goals for the upcoming year. The goals are meant to be consistent with the Board’s regular responsibilities as articulated in the bylaws and policies and consistent with the Church’s 5-year goals which you can see here. This year the Board recognized that some of its goals may require more than a year to address and thus we adopted “1-3” year goals. Our 1-3 year goals were adopted in the fall and may be found on the Church’s website and may also be viewed on a poster that you’ll see hanging in Fuller Hall.
It’s mid-way though our church year and I’d like to update you on our progress:
Goal 1. Continued to work on issues of Power, Privilege and White Supremacy Culture by
a. Educating ourselves on the issues.
b. Examining the ways in which Power, Privilege and White Supremacy Culture affect our Church, including our Board work.
c. Taking steps to improve our practices.
d. Form a plan to educate congregation on white supremacy culture
Since 2017, the Board has supported a Privilege Examination Team committee charged with addressing these important and sometime difficult issues. The Board as a whole this year began devoting more time at its meetings as a time and place to practice dismantling white supremacy culture and the intersection of paternalism while creating enriching ways of being with each other. Using the Workbook on Social Change by Jones & Olson, we’ve adopted specific areas for improvement and use our ‘process observer’ to help us keep this focus.
Our Board has learned a lot from this work and we are committed to sharing our learning and experience in the hope of moving the congregation forward. To that end, we will be hosting May 5 – “Pursuing Racial Justice with Love: A screening of and conversation about the 2018 General Assembly’s Ware Lecture, featuring Brittany Packnett”. She offers a powerful, humbling and inspiring call for UUs to commit to the daily work of racial justice from a deeply spiritual center of love. Check the new Program Guide for details.
Goal 2. Support ET to have an AFD and other income streams that meets the church’s budgeted expenses by the 2020-2021 church year
The Finance Committee has been exploring ways the board can be pro-active in achieving this goal.
A key aspect of bridging the gap between our needs and available income is through education. We’ll be devoting our next forum to this topic, currently scheduled for February 24th, 2019. The focus of the forum will be to increase understanding of the church’s financial requirements and discuss ways that the church can attain revenues that match those needs over the next 2 years.
Goal 3. Governance committee to review and possibly recommend changes to the bylaws as they relate to Ministerial Relations Committee, size of Board, and Nominating Committee
The Governance Committee will be discussing by-law changes in late winter. This multi-year goal examining by-law changes will take thorough congregational review and agreement.
Goal 4. Ensure that current possibilities for development on the current campus receive thoughtful consideration and appropriate Board review
At our December meeting, the Board authorized an application for First Unitarian to become one of 5 religious sites the City of Portland will support to explore the development of affordable housing on site. This is a one-time opportunity that can fund the planning, architectural and engineering analysis that must be done before we shift into decision-making mode.
Rev. Sinkford has convened a Development Exploration Task Force whose work is to investigate and present alternatives for development to the Board. There are many wishes: new office space, parking, a new sanctuary and housing development.
By mid-February, we will hear if First Unitarian has been selected by the City to fund the exploration process. The Board has requested that the task force report back its findings by early spring.
Goal 5. Create a Senior Minister Transition Team to educate the Board, create a timeline, and an education plan
As noted in my September letter and by Rev. Bill Sinkford from the pulpit, it is time to start planning for a transition of our Sr. Minister that may occur over the next 2-3 years. This year the Board has:
- Gathered material on ministerial transitions from the UUA and others with experience in the process
- Met for an afternoon working session to discuss our tasks and next steps
- Created a timeline for work to be done by the board
If that sounds like a lot, it is! I am very appreciative of our Board. We are fortunate that we work well together and with our ET. The result is that we are making good progress on matters of importance to the Church.
As always, if you have questions or comments, you can email us at board@firstunitarianportland.org.
I look forward to seeing you all in church . . .
In Gratitude,
Kathy Ludlow
Moderator First Unitarian Board of Trustees