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Special
Needs and Settings
Disabilities
Outdoor Ministries
Public Education and Literacy
Click title for full information about the NCC Committee on Disabilities.


Secrets of the
Kingdom: The Parables of Jesus. The 2012 Outdoor Ministry Curriculum.
The Committee on
Outdoor Ministry of the NCC’s Education and Leadership Ministries Commission, in
partnership with Chalice Press, has prepared the 2012 curriculum for campers:
Secrets of the Kingdom, on the parables of Jesus. The curriculum, which can
be downloaded and printed, is available from:
● Brethren Press (
http://www.brethrenpress.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=1794)
● Chalice Press
http://www.chalicepress.com/Camp-and-Outdoor-Ministries-C174.aspx
● The Pilgrim Press (https://secure3.convio.net/ucc/site/Ecommerce/1663286533?VIEW_PRODUCT=true&product_id=40381&store_id=1401
)
●
United Methodist Publishing House
(
http://www.cokesbury.com/forms/ProductDetail.aspx?pid=1014868)
Storytelling is as ancient as human communication. From writing on the walls of
caves to oral tradition to written words to campfires and dinner tables—stories
are how we pass on the meaning and beauty of our history.
Stories make us laugh or cry. They make us more aware. They help us understand.
They illuminate any shadowy spots in our lives. Jesus used stories to teach his
disciples—and us—about what it means to live in his kingdom.
The stories are called parables. In Secrets of the Kingdom, campers look to the
Master Storyteller, Jesus himself, to discover six different parables and their
meanings for our lives today.
Download FREE Sampler
Click here for the 2007 Staff Training Devotions
Click
here for information on the 2011 Outdoor Ministry Curriculum
Click here
for information on the 2010 Outdoor Ministry Curriculum
Click here for information on the 2009 Outdoor Ministry Curriculum
Click here for information on the 2008 Outdoor Ministry Curriculum
Click here for information on the 2007 Outdoor Ministry Curriculum
Click here for
information on the 2006 Outdoor Ministry Curriculum
Click here for
the 2006 Staff Training Devotions
Click here for the 2006 Outdoor Ministry Annual Report
Click here for the committee's 2005 annual report.
Click
here for information on the 2005 Outdoor Ministry Curriculum
Click
here for 2004 resources for leaders in Outdoor Ministries
Click
here for information about the 2004 "Join the Party!" Outdoor Ministries
resource
Click for Writer Information, New Earth: Christian Resources for the Outdoors
Click here to download the "Committee on Outdoor Ministries Theological Mission
Statement" brochure
(Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader, click logo to download.)


Formerly known as
the Basic Education and Literacy Working Group, the committee's major focus is
now public education and the need for the churches to recover their history of
support for public schools and the children and teachers in them. The committee
seeks to reinforce the importance of the separation of church and state, both
for the churches and the schools. It works to strengthen support for
public education in our faith communities and to encourage active, appropriate
involvement in public schools by congregations.
RESOURCES
Four
short
video conversations bring the voices of Dr. John Jackson
and Dr. Diane Ravitch to explore serious concerns raised in the
Pastoral Letter by
the National Council of Churches Governing Board
about today’s federal public education policy. The
videos seek to stimulate conversation and action on the need for quality
education for all children.

We encourage you to download and use this 40-day study
guide,
Journey to Opportunity, Journey to Learn: A Reflection
on Public Education in God’s World Today,
for personal devotion and/or as the basis for group study, in a faithful
reflection group, an adult education class, a social action committee, a
commission on Christian education, a women’s group, or an intergenerational
church school class.
►A
Pastoral Letter on Federal Policy in Public Education: An Ecumenical Call
for Justice
►Department
of Education response to the pastoral letter
►Opportunity
Gaps in Public Education Must be Closed
►Opportunity
to Learn in Public Education: An Alternative Vision
̶
Bulletin insert
►The
Committee on Public Education and Literacy has issued "Ten
Moral Concerns" in the No Child Left Behind Act. (See the press release
here.)

►
May 2008: The Committee on Public Education and Literacy provides a
study guide
for congregations to discuss Linda Perlstein's
TESTED, a shocking new book that
exposes problems with federal test-and-punish philosophy of education.
►
Questions to Consider About Charter Schools
► The Committee on
Public Education and Literacy Resources has released a new brochure on the
teaching of evolution in science classes in public schools. Download it
here.
►
A litany for education and schools
REPORTS
►March
13, 2009, Conference frames agenda for Transforming
No Child Left Behind
►
Click here for the report of the March 9, 2007, 'Fixing No Child Left
Behind'
MISSION
Formerly known
as the Basic Education and Literacy Working Group, the committee's major
focus is now public education and the need for the churches to recover their
history of support for public schools and the children and teachers in them.
The committee seeks to reinforce the importance of the separation of church
and state, both for the churches and the schools. It works to
strengthen support for public education in our faith communities and to
encourage active, appropriate involvement in public schools by
congregations.
Affirming that
each child is made in God's image, we believe that each child deserves the
best education available. This is achieved, we are convinced, through
quality public schools. The Committee's primary focus is supporting quality
public education. At a time when public education is under
attack from a variety of sources for a variety of reasons, our mission is to
call the member communions of the National Council of Churches and our
nation as well to remember first and foremost our children, all our
children.
We believe our
children deserve the opportunity to explore and develop their God-given
abilities. Public education provides the best opportunity for most
children. While we recognize the role of private schools in the
educational enterprise, we strongly believe the focus of our efforts needs
to be placed on public schools. People of faith can play an
important role in support of public education and in the life of local
schools. We believe this role must be informed by the constitutional
understanding of the separation of church and state, an understanding that
protects the integrity of both our schools and our faith communities.
Guided by the Policy Statement
"The Churches and the Public Schools at the close of the Twentieth Century",
we work in a variety of capacities.
-
Sharing
information:
At our
meetings representatives from denominations and other private and public
entities gather to share information and strategies related to support of
public education.
-
Collaborating
with partners:
We collaborate with partners from the church and government. Currently we
are collaborating with several agencies on a pilot project in Pennsylvania,
"Quality Public Education for all our Children." We hope this pilot
project will provide a model for church-school partnership that can be used
in other states. The Committee has a close working relationship with the
U.S. Dept. of Education and anticipates co-sponsoring a national conference
for those who are working to establish faith community-public school
partnerships.
-
Developing and
sharing resources with member denominations:
The Committee
has produced annual "Honor education Sunday" resources. We share these
resources with member denominations. One goal for the future is to learn
what new resources can be developed to help congregations understand public
education issues and work appropriately with neighborhood schools.
-
Encouraging
Dialogue:
An important
role of this committee is to encourage conversation, dialogue and new
strategies in support of public education within the NCC and our
constituencies. In 1999, we held two dialogues on the proposed NCC
statement on public education. At the NCC's 50th Anniversary General
Assembly, we sponsored a day-long forum:
Public Education at the Edge of a New Millennium.
► See the General
Assembly resolution,
The Churches and Public School,
adopted November 5, 2003, in Jackson, Miss.

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