BS, Kent State University, 2008, College of Arts and Sciences / Department of History

During the uneasy years predating the American Civil War, self-proclaimed prophets and messengers of God traveled the frontier proclaiming their interpretations of truth as revealed through Protestant Christianity. As they attempted to convert the nation, they conceived American utopias which, constructed within a sacred history of Christianity, played an important role in redefining the religion in North America. As part of the process of establishing these utopias, individuals interested in the conversion of society utilized and revised the “New Haven” theology of Yale College, from which would emerge a reconstructed concept of “sanctification” in Oberlin, Ohio. These individuals would use this theology to form the basis for their attempts to reform society, applying religious meaning to social action. In Lorain County, Ohio, we can observe these changes in religious thought and practice as numerous “religious virtuosi” carried out social action which they considered to be bound to a sacred history. In tandem with social action would come ecclesiastical conflict, tearing the New England Plan of Union asunder. This thesis is interested in how reformers' attempts to create heaven on earth would result in conflict highlighted by a series of events which would ultimately change the religious landscape of the county as it contributed to and reflected the changing face of religion in America.

Committee: David Odell-Scott PhD (Advisor); Guy E. Wells PhD (Advisor); Leonne Hudson PhD (Committee Member); Leslie Heaphy PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: American History; History; Religious History

Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in Organizational Leadership , Franklin University, 2024, International Institute for Innovative Instruction

This research sought to define pastoral leaders' leadership characteristics in congregational settings that create collaborative and distributive ministry leadership through team engagement. The purpose of this research was to examine leadership characteristics resulting in collaboration and distributive ministry leadership with team engagement. The research aimed to help pastoral leaders with the responsibilities of 21st-century congregational ministry and lessen the experiences of burnout. Study participants were pastoral leaders and at least two council members from congregations affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) in the Southern Ohio Synod (SOS). The mixed methods concurrent QUAN-qual study utilized the Leadership Practices Inventory and the Shared Professional Leadership Inventory to measure various leadership characteristics and team engagement in the quantitative strand. The qualitative strand used three open-ended questions to assess further the presence of team engagement and pastoral leaders' leadership characteristics. The research question encompassed several components, including the leadership characteristics of pastoral leaders and the relationship between specific leadership characteristics of Transformational, Servant, and Shared leadership models and team engagement. The study findings found relationships between several leadership behaviors and team engagement in congregations. The research into leadership characteristics and team engagement assisted in the development of a best practices profile and training outline for congregational pastoral leaders to share and distribute ministry responsibilities with members to reduce feelings of burnout.

Committee: Tracy Greene (Committee Chair); Meghan Raehll (Committee Member); Tonia Young-Babb (Committee Member) Subjects: Clergy; Education; Educational Leadership; Higher Education; Management; Organization Theory; Organizational Behavior; Religious Congregations; Religious Education

Doctor of Education, Ashland University, 2024, College of Education

This study describes two Midwest congregations and how their lead pastor budgets and promotes giving according to an ecclesiological understanding of identity, mission, and ministry. Data was collected through an interview with each lead pastor, an interview with two leadership board members, interviews with three congregants, and participant observation at each congregation. The findings show that these two congregations use their congregational finances differently and they develop unique, opposing cultures of money based at least partially on the differing ecclesiologies of their leaders. When a leader's ecclesiology, use of congregational finances, and the congregational culture of money are complementary, congregation members trust their money is being used for good. When there are conflicts within these three areas, it can lead to confusion and congregational finances not being used to their full potential.

Committee: Judy Alston Dr. (Advisor) Subjects: Clergy; Finance; Religious Congregations

Doctor of Ministry, Methodist Theological School in Ohio, 2023, Practical Studies

This thesis explores the question, "How can an established congregation engage with Bowen Family Systems Theory to reveal hidden emotional processes that impact missional adaptive change?" The research took place in the context of a mid-sized Presbyterian Church (USA) congregation founded in 1851.The project utilized a Participatory Action Research (PAR) model with elders from the congregation serving as a research team along with the congregation's pastor as lead researcher. Four rounds of PAR research identified 1) a missional adaptive challenge for the congregation, 2) features of the congregation's emotional system in times of change, 3) features of the elders' nuclear family emotional systems in times of change, and 4) a systems informed missional experiment called "Laundry Love Day." This experiment incorporated what was learned about the emotional systems of the congregation and elders in order to more successfully address the missional adaptive challenge. Research was adapted midway to accommodate the COVID-19 pandemic. The project successfully demonstrated the potential benefits and difficulties of incorporating Bowen Family Systems Theory in missional adaptive change efforts. This research opens the door to further studies exploring the confluence of Bowen theory and missiology.

Committee: Dr. Emlyn Ott (Advisor); Dr. Paul Kim (Advisor) Subjects: Organizational Behavior; Religion; Religious Congregations; Theology

Ph.D., Antioch University, 2020, Leadership and Change

Christian churches in the United States are notoriously resistant to change, whether in regard to leadership, worship style, church governance, positions on social issues, or myriad other aspects of congregational life. Yet the ability to navigate change successfully is vitally important to churches' continued survival and renewed relevance. A particular body of literature, consisting of both scholarly and practitioner-oriented works, has attempted to address the necessity and the challenges of change in a church context. However, the literature is largely silent when it comes to the perspectives of those who are most impacted by congregational change: namely, the congregants themselves. Therefore, this study sought to address both a problem in practice and a gap in the literature by exploring congregants' experiences of change in their churches. The study utilized interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA), a qualitative methodology dedicated to exploring, in detail, significant lived experiences. Data were collected using semistructured, in-person, one-on-one interviews with eleven participants who had recently experienced change in their churches. These congregants represented six Protestant denominations, three geographic regions of the United States, and churches that had faced a wide variety of changes. Data were analyzed, first individually and then collectively, to identify the themes that emerged from the participants' experiences. The five major themes characterizing the majority of the participants' experiences were the centrality of faith, the presence of conflict or discord, a predominance of negative emotions, an aspect of learning, and a sense of resolution. These findings were then interpreted through the lenses of Christian theology and adult development theory—specifically, the constructive developmental theory of Robert Kegan and the faith development theory of James Fowler. By providing a much needed “perspective from the pew,” this study contr (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Jon Wergin PhD (Committee Chair); Donna Ladkin PhD (Committee Member); Matthew Lyons PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Clergy; Organizational Behavior; Religion; Religious Congregations

MA, University of Cincinnati, 2010, Arts and Sciences : Anthropology

The aim of this thesis is to explore local understandings of congregations with regards to who they view themselves to be and how they perceive their role as organizational civic engagement actors. Using semi-structured interviews conducted with clergy from eighteen religious congregations, this research examines shared and divergent perceptions of organizational civic engagement identity for a set of congregations within a five-neighborhood area known as Uptown Cincinnati. Analysis of the interviews reveals five emergent dimensions of organizational civic engagement identity: (1) demographic composition of church attendees; (2) history of the congregation as an organizational civic engagement actor in Uptown; (3) theological understanding of organizational self and organizational mission as a civic engagement actor; (4) perceived role in the community as a community citizen; and (5) the civic engagement practices in which the congregation engages. Based on alignment within those dimensions, four primary models of organizational civic engagement identity emerged: Social Activist, Institutional Presence, Community Relationships, and Individual Empowerment. These models of organizational civic engagement identity help to advance discussions on the role of local religious congregations as civic actors.

Committee: Clement Jeffrey Jacobson PhD (Committee Chair); Jeremy Koster PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Cultural Anthropology

Master of Arts, Miami University, 2007, Theatre

A survey of costume design texts currently available to designers revealed that the research-based, scholarly design methods that experienced designers use have not been theorized or written down. Therefore, this thesis seeks to begin to theorize one potential scholarly method of costume design – studying the body to be costumed to understand why it is then clothed as it is – using the tools of theatre semiotics, cultural, anthropological, and historiographical studies, and traditional elements of costume design. Through the apparatus of designing and building costumes for The Conversion of Ka'ahumanu by Victoria Nalani Kneubuhl, the method is explored as a way to design an intercultural play: a script that makes the meeting of cultures its main plot, and whose cultures may not be readily known by, and different from, those of the audience. The thesis concludes with implications for further research and goals of the author for the continuation of work.

Committee: Ann Armstrong (Advisor) Subjects: