History
The College of Bishops evolved over a period of years with several important organizations contributing to its birth, evolution and current success. This timeline outlines the journey.
1970's
The Rt Rev’d David Richards, former Office of Pastoral Development Director, introduced “Bishop to Bishop” mentoring program.
1993
The College for Bishops was formed at General
Theological Seminary, offering three courses annually for new bishops. This initiative was funded with grants from The
Church Pension Fund, The Episcopal Church Foundation, General
Theological Seminary and The Lilly Foundation.
1998
A fourth annual course for new bishops was added at General Theological Seminary and the College began offering courses to all bishops in various locations.
1999
The Episcopal Bishops and Spouses Wellbeing Survey (co-sponsored by the
College for Bishops) was conducted to address key areas of wellness and
health.
2001
A three-year research project was launched to identify and develop the resources and educational needs of
bishops in the early years of their new positions.
2003
Program offerings were expanded to include:
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The New Bishops' and Spouses' Conference
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Annual Core Courses
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Annual Short Courses
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Semi Annual CREDO For Bishops
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Annual Conference on Orderly Transitions
2004
The
Episcopal Identity Project, a collaborative research initiative
sponsored by the College for Bishops and CREDO Institute, Inc. began to study the Church’s
identity.
2005
The
first “class” of newly-elected bishops entered into the three-year
Living Our Vows Program, a formational resource consisting of peer
coaching and five-day residency components.
2006
The College for Bishops became a collaborative partner with CREDO
Institute, Inc. and received essential funding for the development of
programs and administration.
The
College for Bishops took on responsibility for coordinating and supporting all continuing education sessions for the House of Bishops.
2007
The newly-formed Advisory Committee and Board of
Directors met in New York City to begin new directions, structure and
leadership for the College.
The
College for Bishops website was restructured and included a
password-protected Bishops’ Area to make documents and
resources easily available to the House of Bishops.
The
90-Day Companion Program was launched in a pilot phase, assigning active bishops as companions to
newly-elected bishops to assist with transition issues.
The
Episcopal Transitions and Elections Project and Emotional Health and
Wellness of Bishops and Bishop Spouses Study were initiated to begin
researching and reviewing the Episcopal election process and the
well-being of bishops and their spouses.
2008
All programs continued to be refined and improved to better serve bishops at all stages of their careers.
A
password-protected area for the Community of the Spouses of Bishops was
made available on the College for Bishops website to provide general
information, a calendar of events, photos, etc. pertinent to the
spouse community.
Emphasis
continued on the following collaborative research initiatives: Bishop
Spouse Project; Episcopal Transitions and Elections Project; Episcopal
Identity Project; Clergy/Family Wellness Study.
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