ELCA Publishing House Board Members Frustrated by DCM Actions

PHOENIX (ELCA) -- Members of the board of trustees of Augsburg Fortress, the publishing house of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), expressed frustration at two resolutions directed at the publishing house by the board of the ELCA Division for Congregational Ministries (DCM). The trustees did not take any formal action in response, and members seemed eager to avoid further conflict with the division and its board.
The board of trustees for the Minneapolis-based publisher met here April 19-21.
At its Feb. 16-18 meeting in Chicago, the DCM board authorized DCM's executive directors to "investigate alternative means" of publishing resources for congregations. DCM's board said the current publishing partnership between Augsburg Fortress and DCM had become "inefficient and ineffective." In a separate resolution, the board asked the ELCA Church Council to review the relationship between Augsburg Fortress and the ELCA churchwide organization, especially the current partnership with DCM.
Prior to the Augsburg Fortress board meeting, the only public response to the DCM board action was a statement from the Rev. Marvin L. Roloff, president and chief executive officer of Augsburg Fortress. In that statement, he said the company was "deeply concerned" by DCM's actions.
Earlier this month the ELCA Church Council approved the DCM board's request to review the publishing relationship, which is specified in the ELCA constitution.
In his report to the board of trustees, Roloff said the publishing house is moving ahead with the council-mandated review.
The review will begin with a series of interviews with key staff from Augsburg Fortress and units of the ELCA churchwide organization, said the Rev. Robert N. Bacher, ELCA Office of the Presiding Bishop, advisor to the trustees. Those interviews will attempt to determine what is causing criticism of Augsburg Fortress, he said. A task force will be appointed to consider the issues raised and offer recommendations, Bacher added.
Fred J. Korge, Augsburg Fortress board member, Houston, asked Roloff if he had learned what DCM board members meant by "inefficient and ineffective." "What's their beef?" he asked.
In his discussions with DCM staff since the DCM board meeting, Roloff said there were broad issues, some dealing with "issues of communication," but that he could not discern exactly what was causing the discontent.
DCM's lack of specifics "bugs ... me," Korge said. He said the resolution was "not nice."
The Rev. Richard F. Bansemer, board member, Salem, Va., said he was bothered by the lack of specific information. The resolution "felt like an ambush," he said.
The Rev. Gregory C. Moser, board member, Chicago, said DCM should identify the problems clearly. "If you pass a resolution like this, it's incumbent upon you to delineate the problem," he said. "It feels like I'm 'shadow boxing.'" Moser also commended Roloff for expressing "grace" in his public response following the DCM board meeting.
Though the Augsburg Fortress board did not respond formally to the DCM board resolutions, one member asked Roloff to get more specific information. "When everything is very vague, it leads one to speculate," said Dr. Janice M. Bowman, Thousand Oaks, Calif. Such speculation can be more dangerous than the facts, she said.
It may be difficult to learn what the specific issues are, said Dr. Mary E. Hughes, board member, Columbus, Ohio. Because Augsburg Fortress has been on shaky financial ground for some time and because it is working through a significant reorganization, the resolutions may have resulted from general frustration, she suggested.
James Myers, board member, Kailua, Hawaii, previously served as a DCM board member. He said the problem is probably "about perception on both ends." Myers added he wasn't very surprised by the DCM resolutions and said that board had been close to such action before.
Other Augsburg Fortress board members suggested representatives of both boards meet to listen and build relationships. Members of either board or staff were not present for the other's board meeting this spring.
Another suggestion was that the Augsburg Fortress board meet more often at the ELCA's churchwide offices in Chicago, as a sign of partnership. The board of trustees normally meets in Minneapolis or at the location of one of the publisher's field operations. It met here to demonstrate support for a new publishing agreement Augsburg Fortress has through Community Church of Joy, an ELCA congregation near Phoenix in Glendale, Ariz.
Bruce Keil, vice president, operations, Augsburg Fortress, said the call for a periodic review may be good for the company. Keil said he would support a review that could result in new publishing ideas.
Following the meeting, Roloff said he will move "with a new sense of urgency" to identify the issues causing discontent in the churchwide organization with Augsburg Fortress and work to try to resolve the issues jointly. The publisher will also participate fully in the review, said Richard E. Lodmill, board chair, Seattle.
In other business, the board of trustees:
+ adopted an amendment to its business ethics policy. The amendment specifically prohibits discrimination against individuals because of their sexual orientation. It conforms Augsburg Fortress' policy with ELCA policy and most state laws.
+ learned that the Rev. Roy A. Harrisville III will join the company Aug. 1, as vice president for its academic and professional business group. Harrisville is presently academic dean at Trinity Lutheran College, Issaquah, Wash. He will replace the Rev. Harold W. Rast, who had been serving as interim vice president of the business group and has since returned to Pennsylvania.
+ elected Timothy I. Maudlin, Eden Prairie, Minn., as board chair, replacing Lodmill, whose six-year board membership concludes in August. The board elected Hughes as vice chair, replacing Maudlin. It elected Karen Albers-Sigler, Bloomsburg, Pa., as secretary. Albers-Sigler replaced Julie K. Aageson, Moorhead, Minn., who resigned from the board of trustees. Aageson, who recently joined the churchwide staff in a part-time position as coordinator for the ELCA's resource centers, was no longer eligible to serve because of the church's policy that precludes staff from serving on churchwide boards. Aageson's term would have concluded in August.

For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or NEWS@ELCA.ORG
http://listserv.elca.org/archives/elcanews.html