Each summer, students pursuing the Doctor of Ministry at Winebrenner Seminary gather for what is affectionately known as ‘Doctor Camp.’ This four-day short course provides an opportunity for students to gather together in a retreat setting. While the location and content of the course vary, the value to students remains consistent. In an otherwise online program, Doctor Camp provides a meaningful opportunity for students to be together, away from the competing needs of their day-to-day lives and ministries, to spend time with God and with each other, while also functioning as a Community of Learning.
A Community of Learning is a phrase developed by the Association of Theological Schools (ATS) in the late 2010s to describe the essential principles for online theological education. They define it as “a community of learning whereby faculty and students have significant opportunities for interaction, peer learning, development of pastoral skills, supervised experience of ministry and growth in personal, spiritual formation.”
In recent weeks, Dr. Sleasman has reflected on “themes that have emerged through conversations with Gen Z participants. Their reflections have centered on belonging, community, spiritual formation, and the importance of creating spaces where you adults can encounter both God and one another.”
Doctor Camp is a component of the DMin curriculum designed to create precisely the kinds of spaces that students across a range of age groups tell us they value, while also affirming the importance of educational models that provide flexibility, access, and affordability. Students who routinely “see” each other online benefit from the informal conversations that take place over meals, while walking, around the campfire, as well as the content that focuses on personal and spiritual formation.
This year, we participated in The Witness Project, a national initiative that seeks to identify, cultivate, and share stories that reveal how Christian faith is lived out in real life. During our time together, we considered the value of story in our ministry contexts and the ways stories can be cultivated as resources for personal and spiritual formation for ourselves and others. Our time culminated in the sharing of personal stories that were sources of encouragement and hope for the gathered community.
Doctor Camp remains an essential part of the DMin curriculum, providing a formative and relational touchpoint. If you know a Winebrenner DMin student, be sure to ask them about their experiences at Doctor Camp. If you’d like to know more about the Doctor of Ministry at Winebrenner, please reach out!
- Dr. Kathryn Helleman, Director, Doctor of Ministry