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The
Illinois Disciples Foundation Self-Profile: Welcome: The Self Study Committee of the Illinois Disciples Foundation Board of Directors welcomes the members of the Consultative Team to our community. We look forward to your assistance in our search for self-definition moving into the 21st century. We are presenting you with a document that we hope will provide a sense of our own current view of the Foundation and its work. The work of your team should help us to come to a clearer self-perception, to change what may need changing, to maintain and develop those areas of work that seem to fit with a peace and justice campus ministry. Who is the Self Study Committee? This Committee was finally established in late 1997 upon the IDF Board's realization that retirement of our Campus Minister and Executive Director, Reverend Jim Holiman, was imminent. The purpose of this self-study process is for the IDF to be involved in the process of evaluating, re-evaluating, and envisioning. The Committee is to evaluate the historic role of the IDF as a peace with justice campus ministry. It is also to re-evaluate, with a critical perspective, the struggles and victories of our campus ministry. We hope to envision what is necessary to continue our peace with justice campus ministry into the 21st Century. This process should lead us into the development of a resistance theology unique to our context and situation in Champaign-Urbana, the nation, and the world. Members of the Self Study Committee: Joe Miller, Moderator of Board, University employee, Faculty Advisor to the IDF program Progressive Resource/action Cooperative (PRC), and National Co-Coordinator, Vietnam Veterans Against the War, Inc. Jeff Machota, First Vice Moderator, community member, Co-Coordinator of the PRC Claudia Lennhoff, Second Vice Moderator, doctoral candidate at the U of I, organizer with Champaign County Health Care Consumers (CCHCC), and founding member of the Alliance for Welfare with Justice (AWJ),an IDF program Clyde Smith, Treasurer longtime Board member, retired teacher, and Elder in the University Place Christian Church Dean Bucalos, Board Member, Pastor, First Christian Church (Canton, IL) Martin Nieto, Board Member, University employee and founding member of AWJ Michael Stewart, Board Member, union organizer, University alum, and member of the PRC Jim Holiman, Campus Minister/Executive Director, has been with IDF since 1963, scheduled to retire in 2000
Brief History of IDF: This foundation was envisioned in 1905 and chartered in 1916. There are many stories in the rich and vibrant history of the IDF. We refer you to Jim Holiman's series, "The History of the IDF," in our newsletter The Voice for more details of this history. This will soon be compiled in book form. Throughout its history, IDF's campus ministry has always been at the forefront of many peace with justice struggles. Involvement in the civil rights movement, campaigns against the Vietnam war, and the fight for the Equal Rights Amendment were among the many issues addressed through this campus ministry. As the 1980s wore on, IDF came to one of its many defining moments when it decided to become a public sanctuary for political refugees from Central America. The Foundation board, staff, and constituents were involved in leading this struggle locally, regionally, and nationally. This brought us into contact with ecumenical movements for justice worldwide. The action also brought the IDF into conflict with University Place Christian Church (UPCC) and more conservative elements inside that congregation. This period ultimately saw the end of UPCC's administrative support for the Foundation. As we entered the 1990s, the numbers of IDF staff grew to meet the challenge of running every aspect of our operation. Increased staff and an increase in the number of programs have led to many lively moments in the Foundation. A further defining moment in the Foundation's story was the movement against the Gulf War (1990-1991), a movement centered in the Foundation and led by one of its programs, the Progressive Resource/Action Cooperative (PRC). Once again, the IDF was at the forefront of a movement for social justice that mobilized thousands of local participants. Following the antiwar mobilization of 1990-91, the IDF Board became revitalized with new activists, more truly representing the activist, peace with justice nature of the IDF's constituents. The current activist Board has continued to grow, along with the many programs of the IDF, as we move into a new century. Many more stories of struggle for a just and peaceful world are being lived every day as the story of the IDF begins this new chapter. Higher Education: Contrary to popular mythology, the institution of higher education is not an autonomous agent for significant social change. It neither forms nor informs the large social formation. Actually, just the opposite is the case. The larger social formation, having constructed itself in a certain way, then establishes the educational system to fit those priorities which guide the society. With this understanding, we must acknowledge the fact that the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) and the other major state-supported institutions of higher education will serve the interests of US corporate capitalism and its way of life. On the one hand, UIUC performs a wide variety of public services, ranging from advanced research, with its claim to "objectivity," to specialized training for engineers, chemists, medical professionals, lawyers, teachers, communications, computer sciences, life sciences, and the liberal arts---all of which are important to corporate America's ideological, political, and economic interests. The University's Board of Trustees, its highest governing body, is appointed by the Governor of Illinois and answerable only to that office in all matters. On the other hand, UIUC can and does engage in certain repressive techniques toward faculty and students who dissent from the institutional "law and order." These may range from negative evaluations, failure to achieve tenure, loss of scholarship or research funds, discriminatory treatment, withdrawal of services, professional isolation, to disciplinary actions which include possible expulsion or firing. If a student or a faculty person wishes to get ahead in his/her career, they then quickly learn to go along with "the way things are," concentrate all energies upon the narrow task at hand, and avoid the appearance of listening to views which dissent from those who control access to professional advancement. In the face of all this, some within institutions like UIUC remain willing to work for social transformation. An awareness of the need for self liberation is essential to a correct understanding of liberation from injustice and for a more just and fair world. The so-called "non-poor" can and do become aware of themselves as not completely fulfilled human beings because they are living in an alienating, unjust social disorder. Thus, the following questions may be posed for the work of the Illinois Disciples Foundation into the next century. What the Christian faith does and says about itself will demonstrate IDF's relationship to this goal of the people who are struggling for emancipation of others and of themselves. In light of this faith, then, what is the meaning of a peace with justice campus ministry at the UIUC? What does this option mean for higher education in the Champaign-Urbana community? What does it mean for the poorest of the poor in Champaign County? What is the significance of social transformation in this time and this place? Where and how do we go from here? Some inkling of IDF's "answers" to these questions may be found in the work of programs such as the Progressive Resource/action Cooperative (PRC), which began as the Peace Resource Center around 1982. Over the nearly twenty years of this program, PRC student and community activists have engaged the campus and the larger community on a whole range of social justice issues, including racism, sexism, classism, the "national security state," and war. The PRC constantly challenges the notion of UIUC being an "ivory tower," separate from the "outside world." Other IDF programs, such as the Student Environmental Action Coalition (SEAC), have carried out similar efforts over the years. We in IDF feel rather confident that efforts to "engage" UIUC students and faculty in peace and social justice campaigns help maintain the Foundation's traditional role in Champaign-Urbana. Community: We are located in the City of Champaign, in Champaign County, Illinois. Champaign County is in East Central Illinois, about two hours south of Chicago. The twin cities of Champaign-Urbana are the home of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), the flagship university in the State's university system. This is largely a rural agricultural area, with most people residing and working in small towns. Agribusiness dominates the area's use of farm lands and there are very few small family farmers left. The twin cities of Champaign-Urbana comprise the largest metropolitan area in a multi-county area. The poverty rate in this county is higher than the state average, and there is a large concentration of elderly poor. The population is predominantly white, although there is a fairly large population of Latino migrant workers, and the cities of Champaign-Urbana (compared to other towns in the county) have a large minority population of African Americans. Race and class divisions are very pronounced, and in Champaign-Urbana, this is evidenced by the geographic segregation of different populations. The form of government is a County Board, one of the largest in the state. There are nine districts, with three representatives each. The County Board is largely dominated by wealthy farm interests and is politically and fiscally very conservative. The Champaign Homeless Task Force has concluded that the local housing market requires an income level higher than the minimum wage. Housing costs in Champaign-Urbana are high due to the student rental market which skews all rental costs in the area. The cost of existing affordable housing places a financial burden on those working at entry-level service jobs, which are the most common jobs available in Champaign County and in Champaign-Urbana. In Champaign-Urbana, the worker to jobs ratio is nearly 3 to 1, and most of those low-skilled, low-paying jobs are in the service industry generated by dozens of retail chains, super stores, and restaurants that line North Prospect Avenue in Champaign. UIUC is the area's single largest employer and occupies miles of land across both cities. Within the University, as in many corporations, there are two tiers of employees - the professionals (such as professors, researchers, and administrators) and the support staff (such as clerical, janitorial, food and service workers). Most of the professionals come to Champaign-Urbana from outside the area, whereas most of the support staff are people born and raised in the surrounding areas. Many local people are employed by the University, but a strong sentiment of the "town and gown" division persists as an expression of two coexisting, but very separate communities of people and resources with very different investments in "the community." Many local community members and community organizations believe that the University does very little to contribute or give back all that it takes from the community. Further, the University is commonly viewed as being stingy with the wealth of resources and knowledge it has to offer to the community. Many community members know that UIUC is constantly receiving huge grants for research and seemingly always expanding its campus territory and buildings, but this expansion and wealth has virtually no direct positive impact on the community at large. The University's impact is largely felt through the displacement of neighborhoods and small businesses which are removed to make way for the growing University. Further, the University's social sciences departments commonly receive large grants to study social problems, but rarely study, or address, the local social problems experienced in the community, much less contribute tangible resources even when the needs and the possible solutions are clear. The support staff who work for the University are very aware of its resources, and the withholding of such resources from the larger community. Most of the support staff are underpaid, ununionized, and must suffer the hardships of seasonal employment (many are prohibited from seeking welfare assistance in off-seasons, as a condition of their employment, so they must seek temporary 6 week jobs, etc. during the University's off-season in order to make ends meet). The University claims to be connected to the community primarily through its placement of undergraduates in community-based internships at various social service agencies or community organizations. However, from the community's perspective, many of the students are uncommitted to the work because they are not committed to, or knowledgeable of, the local community and its needs. Further, many students prove to be unreliable help because of the demands upon their schedules and lives, and the structure of the University's grading and semester system is such that students frequently only "intern" for one semester. The University views student help to community organizations as an exchange of resources, but many community organizations feel that the turn-over rate of student interns is too quick to be helpful. In fact, this places a burden upon the community organizations to teach the students and give them valuable experiences, while getting little real help in return and expending already scarce resources in the process. This dynamic creates even more tension in the "town and gown" division, and students do not feel like they are part of the community outside of the University, and they are not required to explore the community nor understand why the local community may resent the University and its members. Students also rarely come to understand the burden that the University places on the community and the resources it uses, and therefore students very rarely understand how they are part of a system which depletes the community of resources in order that they may gain their educational experience. The IDF functions as bridge to the larger community which allows students to become involved in the life and work of the larger Champaign-Urbana community. Through its programs, such as the Alliance for Welfare with Justice (AWJ), the IDF maintains connections with local organizations that work to address the social justice issues affecting significant portions of the Champaign County population. It also nurtures and continues long-standing relationships with community organizations such as the Champaign County Health Care Consumers, the Human Services Council, homeless shelters, other social service organizations, and social justice organizations. Since the IDF has these good-standing relationships that are decades old, individual members working through the IDF have some credibility and assumed commitment when working with such community groups. Participation in IDF programs allows students to put into practice some of the ideas they merely learn about in the University, ideas related to the political, economic, and social functioning of communities. Students work with organizations that encourage local government and corporations, including the University of Illinois, to follow policies and practices that promote social justice, such as increasing the availability of affordable housing for low-income families, eliminating the use of racist logos and mascots, and making health care accessible and affordable to low-income families. The IDF community includes students, permanent local community members, and larger communities, not bound by geographic constraints, who are committed to social justice work nationally and internationally. The IDF, largely through its program work, is a place where divisions are bridged and communities are strengthened through work and commitment to social justice. Local Congregations and Support Structures: In general, local pastors seem to reflect a confusion of understanding about campus ministry and the active role played by the IDF in this area. While they may have had some experience of campus ministry, usually during their own years as a college student, they have no recent first-hand experience. This lack of direct involvement seems to be reflected in a "traditionalist agenda" of defending/conserving the religious faith and order structures which transmit values important for the socialization of the US corporate transnational security state. This is also seems to be reflected by their somewhat "suspicious" attitude toward IDF and its activist programs. The "traditionalist agenda" may be read in two-ways: 1) It is a liberal affirmation of an adaptive strategy for a pluralistic environment, requiring managerial skills of an administrator/pastor working a pragmatic model of a congregation/ corporation; and 2) It is a suggestion that IDF and UPCC could be reunited or co-joined for ministry on the UIUC campus. The issue of the IDF relationship with East Prairie Cluster congregations raises many central questions. In recent conversations, some clerics have said things like:
* "I understand that IDF is a prophetic ministry; but there must also
be a priestly ministry. How does IDF's peace with justice ministry change
lives? That's the important point here." It seems clear from such comments that the current relationship between IDF and the congregations of the East Prairie Cluster is rather thin. If IDF is to entertain realistic hopes of general Disciple support, then we must find ways to engage these local congregations in an ongoing dialogue and develop programs that will reach the communities in which they are located. IDF is a recipient of Basic Mission Finance (BMF) moneys to which all congregations contribute funds through the pledged and loose offerings of church members in Illinois-Wisconsin. BMF moneys have been declining for several decades (actually, since 1957). IDF's share of BMF is $10,000, which CCIW channels through IUMHE, though that is assured only through 1999. Some suggestions have been made by area clerics with regard to raising the level of awareness about IDF's financial need, such as preaching in local congregations about IDF's work and its need. Or, perhaps a special appeal to pastors who have received a higher education. It would seem that chaos and collapse play a major role in the general society today. Some of society's major defining (or ideological) structures, including institutions of higher education and churches, are not able to provide credible explanations for the material conditions of our current reality. It is also clear that the commitment to the traditional pastoral paradigm of ministry is under question, and social alienation is surfacing among Disciple clergy. With this in mind, the Foundation, as led by Reverend Jim Holiman, has tried to provide a place where deeper understanding of this reality and the role of our peace with justice ministry might be obtained. The IDF program Uprising is that "place." Only in the last few years have we seen greater interest and participation in this program by Foundation Board members, staff, people from other programs, and people from the general community. Through the study and discussion that takes place in Uprising many have come away with a much clearer understanding, perhaps even "credible explanations," of the history of IDF, the history of the Jesus movement and its development into Christianity, and IDF's mission in helping to change "the material conditions of our current reality." This has allowed for a deeper commitment to peace with justice as reflected in other IDF programs and activities, as well as our affiliation with the Disciples Justice Action Network (DJAN). Conclusion: Ultimately, the work of your Team should help the Illinois Disciples Foundation to better understand how our efforts are perceived and/or experienced by the campus, the immediate community, and the surrounding area. Beyond this, we expect to gain knowledge from you as to how the Foundation and its programs might better perform our peace with justice ministry. As pointed out earlier, this, after all, is why we have entered into the self-study process. The IDF is a living and lively organization because we draw people into activity that oftentimes changes their lives and the lives of those around them, even lives of people we may not see. As we look toward Jim Holiman's retirement with some sadness and the IDF's entry into the new century with no small degree of apprehension, we celebrate the fact that we are part of the long Disciple history of struggles for real social justice. Even further, we have developed over recent years a real confidence in our ability to maintain our role in these struggles. The Illinois Disciples Foundation is a place for doers, and the spirit of the folks who participate in our programs reflects that reality. We expect to maintain and further this spirit of doing, of action. This then seems to be our kairos, our "time of opportunity demanding a response: God offers us a new set of possibilities and we have to accept or decline."(Robert McAfee Brown, Kairos, 1990, p.3) Through our openness to this self-study process, we in the Illinois Disciples Foundation "accept." |
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