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Position Description:
The Administrative Director of Youth Faith Formation is a salaried position that is 25-30 hours per week. The Administrative Director, in partnership with the Formation Director, oversees the religious formation of children in the parish and supports parish family life informed by our identity and values as a Jesuit parish in the City of St. Louis.
Core Values of our Program:
Our primary goal is to help our students fall in love with God and then nurture their responses to that love in bringing about God’s kingdom. There are two spiritual components within our program that support our students in building that relationship.
- We use many elements of Ignatian Spirituality with an emphasis on God's love for us and on service to others informed by Catholic Social Teaching.
- Within the framework of Ignatian spirituality we offer a classic Religious Education model and the Catechesis of the Good Shephard, a Montessori-based formation program.
We also aspire to help students recognize, celebrate, and engage with the racial and ethnic diversity of our region and our religious leaders, past and present.
Primary Duties and Responsibilities:
1. Lead and manage administrative aspects of the Religious Education program at the College Church, including recruitment and retention of families and children, recruitment and retention of catechists, staffing, curriculum design and development, training, and ongoing teacher support and formation. (Approximately 50% of Position)
This includes:
- Sunday Religious Education classes for children from second grade through eighth grade;
- Catechesis of the Good Shephard for children Pre-K through 6th grade (this position provides support only for CGS);
- Management of registrations and communication with Youth Faith Families;
- Children’s Liturgy of the Word during the 10:30 a.m. Sunday Liturgy (currently not operating due to Covid);
- Children’s Nursery during the 10:30 a.m. Sunday Liturgy (currently not operating due to Covid);
- Youth Ministry program for Eighth Grade and High School students;
2. In collaboration with the Pastor and the Formation Director, oversee all sacramental preparation and special liturgies for the College Church Youth Faith Program (Approximately 20% of Position)
This includes:
- Sacramental preparation including liturgies and celebrations for First Reconciliation, First Communion, and Confirmation;
- RCIC instruction for children.
3 . Plan to manage,e and help staff all Service opportunities for students and families to live out Gospel values (Approximately 15% of position).
4.Develop and support the Youth Faith Commission (Approximately 10% of Position).
Primary objectives of the Youth Faith Commission:
- Build community among youth faith families;
- Promote greater involvement of children and families in the life of the parish;
- Listen to the needs and desires of youth faith families;
- Act as ambassadors for the Youth Faith Formation Program.
Critical Skills and Expertise:
- A willingness to apply Ignatian spirituality within Youth Faith programming. A willingness to become familiar with Catechesis of the Good Shephard. An eagerness to deliver Catholic Religious Education within the context of the St. Francis Xavier College Church environment;
- Demonstrated outstanding project and program management skills in a complex environment;
- Experience with recruiting, training, and managing teams with a particular focus on managing teams of volunteers;
- Outstanding communication and relationship-building skills. Working closely with St. Louis University and Aquinas Institute of Theology will be very important;
- Highly self-directed; excellent problem-solving skills; creative, flexible, dynamic;
- Experience with and a love of working with and on behalf of children.
Required Experience and Education:
- A minimum of 3-5years of demonstrated project or program management experience in a parish, religious, educational; non-profit, or for-profit setting;
- Bachelor’s Degree required.