Our interpretation of our role in Lilly's Theological Teaching Initiative sets some parameters for our work:

I. Teaching is a vocation.
We see improvement in teaching as an important way to enhance the quality and satisfaction of one's vocational choice. "Teaching is not just an act, it is an investment of a life."--Craig Dykstra

II. The focus is always teaching and learning in theology and religion within institutional settings.

1. Good teaching enhances the lives of students and teachers and strengthens the academic disciplines in theology and religion


2. A focus on everyone's daily work of teaching and learning transcends boundaries of diverse disciplines, rank, and position, and other academic divisions to create a safe space for intense, fruitful discussion.


3. Teaching and learning are always mutually related and interdependent.


4. Workshops and colloquies honor the goals of those involved, focusing on participants' own teaching practices, contexts and experiences.


5. Teaching is integrally connected to the public interpretive role of the department, seminary or theological school "to enrich the life of a culturally and religiously diverse society" (ATS Accreditation Standards 3.2.3.4).

III. Fundamental to our approach is the commitment to honor teachers, helping them to learn from each other in a collegial atmosphere.

1. When faculty members talk together about their craft, they discover richness in teaching knowledge and experience that already exists among them. The role of the staff is to be workshop leaders, facilitators, and advisors rather than experts or visiting lecturers.

2. Staff and convener draw on the wisdom of the participants and encourage accessing the resources of improvement in teaching already present in their institutions in areas such as instructional design, learning theory, use of media and instructional technology.

3. Staff and conveners help participants identify their individual and corporate strengths, claim their identity as teachers, and develop the ability to perform ongoing reflection on practice.

4. There are many perspectives on teaching and learning, each having its particular strengths and weaknesses. This variety expands the range of faculty conversations and the options for effecting individual and institutional change.

IV. Teaching benefits from increased awareness, intentionally, and commitment to student learning

1. Teaching is a craft developed over a lifetime of critically reflective practice

2. Wabash Center programs seek to stimulate theological reflection on the foundations, personal commitments, and presuppositions of teaching and learning.

3. Because appreciation of the fundamental values that define the nature of an institution is key to understanding the dynamics of teaching and learning, we affirm the value of tradition and the importance of context in thinking about pedagogy.

4. Sustained conversation about teaching and learning is indispensable for transforming the culture of teaching practice in a school or department.

5. New and emergent technologies have significant consequences for teaching religion but remain a tool for the benefit of learning not an end in themselves.