Duke University Chapel Strategic Plan: 2019–2024

Bridging Faith & Learning

Strategic Plan DUKE UNIVERSITY CHAPEL

2019-2024

CONTENTS

Introduction....................................... 2-7

5-7

Vision and Mission

Strategic Areas of Service.......... 8-25

11-13

Student Engagement

15-17

Christian Worship

19-21

Sacred Music and the Arts

23-25

Community Engagement

Living Our Values Together.... 26-27 Measuring Our Success............. 28-29 Duke WILL Strategic Framework................. 30-31

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Introduction Faith has a voice here. We hear it in the singing of the Chapel choirs. We learn from it in the sermons offered by some of the finest preachers in America and the world. We find it in the prayer vigils on the Chapel quad and marvel in it during the ringing of the carillon every evening at five o’clock.

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Listening to the voices of faith, to the cares and concerns of the people we serve, and to the whispers of God in our hearts, the Chapel has crafted a new Strategic Plan to carry us through the next five years. We think of this plan as another faithful voice, calling us forward in hope and compassion, encouraging us to boldly live the good news of God in Jesus Christ in this place and time.

For more than a year, the leadership of Duke Chapel listened to our local and national communities. We conducted surveys and focus groups with staff, volunteers, and audiences.

We engaged our national advisory board and university leadership to arrive at this plan.

We start with our new guiding Vision and Mission. Next we address the four Strategic Areas of Service. Then we invite you to join us in living the values that will define our daily operations and serve as guideposts for walking the path God has for us. Lastly, we share how we will evaluate our progress, keep you informed, and align with Duke's priorities.

Our commitment to serve with gratitude and joy is at the heart of this new Strategic Plan.

And we will, with God’s help.

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INTRODUCTION

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Vision and Mission

VISION

To respond to God’s all-inclusive love at Duke, in Durham, and in the world.

MISSION

Rooted in the love of God in Jesus Christ, Duke Chapel bridges faith and learning by nurturing and embodying the intellectual, ethical, and spiritual life.

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INTRODUCTION

AS WE SING ON ALL SAINTS SUNDAY:

… one was a doctor, and one was a queen, and one was a shepherdess on the green: they were all of them saints of God, and I mean, God helping, to be one too. … one was a soldier, and one was a priest, and one was slain by a fierce wild beast: and there’s not any reason, no, not the least, why I shouldn’t be one too.

UNITED METHODIST HYMNAL #712 Hymn Text by Lesbia Scott (1898-1986)

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Vision and Mission

We do not presume to know all the saints of God, but in this Strategic Plan we strive to bless every human being with love, kindness, a true commitment to our deep historical roots of faith on the campus, and the bright future of becoming the people God calls us to be.

As I said on Pentecost Sunday this year, "we aren’t what we used to be, but we aren’t yet what we ought to be." We are still becoming the people God intended us to be. May this plan carry us a few steps closer to the all-inclusive love of God in Jesus Christ.

THE REV. DR. LUKE A. POWERY Dean of Duke University Chapel

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Strategic Areas of Service With God’s help, we will focus on four Strategic Areas of Service:

Student Engagement Christian Worship Sacred Music and the Arts Community Engagement

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INEXORABLY LINKED, THESE FOUR AREAS CREATE OPPORTUNITIES TO BRIDGE FAITH AND LEARNING FOR ALL OF GOD’S PEOPLE. Our plan and our prayers, outlined in the following pages, include students coming from all the major religious traditions alive on this campus and students who profess no faith during this critical time in their lives. We also embrace an ecumenical outlook in our practices and in our leadership. To that end, the plan challenges every member of the Chapel staff to welcome diverse human voices and perspectives into all aspects of our work. This means that we place students and community as essential partners in all of our activities. We will, with God’s help, engage them in imagining and implementing the 2019-2024 Strategic Plan.

Our Strategic Plan seeks to serve every human being, each one worthy of our care and concern, and part of our beloved human community. By launching this five-year plan in the weeks following All Saints Sunday, 2019, we celebrate those saints who are known to us and those who are still unknown or unrecognized.

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STRATEGIC AREAS OF SERVICE

Student Engagement THE HEART OF EVERY UNIVERSITY IS ITS STUDENTS. At Duke, our students are an increasingly diverse population from all over the world working for an education that prepares them to be leaders in a global community.

At the Chapel, we believe we are called to be with them at every step of their Duke experience. We also believe that every student is created in the image of God and reflects the goodness of God. This encourages us to seek and find a message of hope for them and with them. They are our primary focus and community. The founders of the university imagined we would serve each of them, bridging their faith and learning through individual formation, communal worship, acts of service on campus and in the broader world, and caring support, regardless of their beliefs.

OUR STRATEGIES

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STRATEGIC AREAS OF SERVICE

How will we demonstrate our commitment to engaging students of all faiths and none?

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Student Engagement

STRATEGY 1

STRATEGY 3

Enliven Student Ministry with a focus on

Develop and invest new resources for Religious

“Framing Your Faith.” Working individually, in

Life at Duke, ensuring that the future of these

small groups and special programs, we will create

multi-faith, denominational, and para-church

a new vision for Chapel Scholars and Dean’s

organizations remains vibrant and active for the

Scholars that nurtures the intellectual, ethical, and

next generation. An annual Interfaith Lecture will

spiritual lives of students. Chapel Scholars will

offer students of all faiths and none the chance to

continue to build community among students and

learn from leaders working at the intersections of

our ministry staff, while Dean's Scholars will focus

cross-cultural and interreligious understanding.

on purpose and meaning for students in their final undergraduate year.

STRATEGY 4 Create new opportunities for student

STRATEGY 2

internships and work-study positions in every

Create programming that engages the most

department of the Chapel to prepare students for

challenging questions facing our students

leadership and work in and around religious and

through the wisdom of sacred texts, living

nonprofit organizations in the future.

thought-leaders, and meaningful service.

Specifically, we envision a pilot program for

STRATEGY 5

Chaplains-in-Residence at Duke, continuing to invest in Eruditio et Religio, the Chapel’s Living

Invest in our staff positions to ensure that both

Learning Community, and increasing our

our staff and the students they serve have the

partnerships with Duke’s Office of Student Affairs.

tools and the skills they need to become global

A new Dean’s Lecture Series will also generate

leaders in churches and universities during and

opportunities for students to learn from visionary

after their time at Duke.

leaders responding to the world around us.

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STRATEGIC AREAS OF SERVICE

Christian Worship FOR ALMOST 90 YEARS, THE CHAPEL HAS CONVENED SERVICES OF WORSHIP ON SUNDAY MORNINGS. This time is precious for many reasons. When we are together in one place, we remember God, and we recall what truly matters. Together we learn a little more about the mysteries of God’s interventions in human history, the blessings of a shared prayer time, and the importance of community in building a meaningful life. James B. Duke wanted the Chapel to be known as the “great towering church.” And it is. But, as we said in our previous Strategic Plan, “the Chapel community also wants to be known as a great loving church.” Our Christian worship is hallmarked by love: God’s all-inclusive love for us, our love for God, and our love for one another. With God's help, we will continue to gather together because we know that the love of God matters for the life of the world.

OUR STRATEGIES

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STRATEGIC AREAS OF SERVICE

How will we demonstrate our commitment to a vibrant ecumenical Christian presence on Duke’s campus and beyond?

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Christian Worship

STRATEGY 1

STRATEGY 3

Expand our outreach to the undergraduate

Establish a biennial residency program to

students who live, learn, and love on campus.

encourage us to examine our time-honored

Students will be welcomed into active leadership

traditions through the lens of emerging best

roles as readers, servers, and singers. We will

practices across Protestant denominations.

also welcome their feedback on our services

This could include theologians and liturgists,

and sermons in a Student Worship Advisory

but also poets, musicians, and artists reimagining

Group. Finally, partnering with the Congregation

worship with us.

at Duke Chapel ensures that students will build community-based relationships during their

STRATEGY 4

time at Duke.

Create an online pedagogical web portal for the digital archive of Duke Chapel Recordings to

STRATEGY 2

enrich the teaching of preaching not only at Duke

Enliven our preaching with new voices

Divinity School but at seminaries and universities

from emerging leaders in the global Christian

worldwide. The portal will also offer new insights

community. Our own and guest clergy, as well

for current ministers preparing for their weekly

as the annual student preacher, will continue

sermons and hold accessible insights for non-

to use our pulpit to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus—

academic users.

reminding us to love God and our neighbors with faith-filled service, generosity, and

STRATEGY 5

human kindness.

Invest in our online services through recording and broadcasting equipment upgrades and staffing dedicated to this growing area of our service.

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STRATEGIC AREAS OF SERVICE

Sacred Music and the Arts OF ALL THE PROGRAM OFFERINGS AT THE CHAPEL, THE RICH TRADITION OF SACRED MUSIC IN WORSHIP SHAPES OUR MEMORIES AS WE IMAGINE OUR FUTURE. The Chapel Choir, Vespers Ensemble, and the relatively new Evensong Singers bless our weekly worship services with choral music from all times and places, inspiring hearts to faithfulness. The four organs entrusted to our care lead our corporate singing and enrich our common life of faith. Concert offerings like Handel’s Messiah and the growing Bach Cantata Series help us build new audiences while securing the Chapel’s reputation as a trusted location for sacred music in performance.

But there is still room to expand and grow. The addition of Jazz Vespers in 2014 was a first step toward broadening our music and worship offerings. Summer choral camps and the Organ Scholars program have challenged us to consider how we might become a center for sacred music education. Similarly, art installations in the sanctuary give us a chance to explore how visual communications enhance our appreciation of faith. The C. Eric Lincoln Arts Fellowship offered to one undergraduate artist each year complements the presentation of works by community-based artists and fine art from private and public collections.

OUR STRATEGIES

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STRATEGIC AREAS OF SERVICE

STRATEGY 1

How will we demonstrate our commitment to the deep traditions of sacred music at Duke Chapel and to an emerging program of visual and other performing arts?

Fill the world with beautiful choral music.

Under the leadership of our Director of Chapel Music, we will continue to offer well-crafted choral music in our weekly worship services, on festival days like Christmas and Easter, and in concerts such as Messiah at Advent and the annual Spring Oratorio. We will expand our repertoire to include a broader range of music from around the world, intentionally including works composed by women and people from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds. We will also commit to a regular pattern of commissioning new choral works, enlarging the canon of sacred music for the benefit of the church and the world.

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Sacred Music and the Arts STRATEGY 2

STRATEGY 4

Deepen our exposure to and engagement with

Establish the Chapel as a center for music

the Church’s hymnody. Hymnody is sometimes

education. The Chapel will critically examine

referred to as “practical theology.” The hymns

opportunities to broaden our teaching and

we sing in worship bind us together as one body,

learning to sustain the current generation and

shape our individual and corporate memory,

develop future generations of organists, singers,

and influence our thinking about who God is and

and musicians working in sacred music. We will

what God has done. Over the next five years,

strengthen existing partnerships with like-minded

we will embark on a careful consideration of the

organizations and increase our own programmatic

body of hymns we utilize in worship, curating

offerings to include workshops, symposia, and

that repertoire to include more global, twentieth-

summer camps for high school students, university

century, and twenty-first-century hymnody. Using

students, emerging professionals, and parish

the Waldo Beech Hymnody Fund and other donor

church musicians.

and endowment funding, we will launch a feasibility study for a new interdenominational hymnal

STRATEGY 5

supplement to enrich the worship life of the Chapel

Take our sacred music to the world. Engaging

and other ecumenical churches.

the talent of our staff and their connections in the world of sacred music, we will launch a “Music

STRATEGY 3

from Duke Chapel” publication series, making

Set the Psalms in dialogue. Over the next five

the new choral and liturgical music premiered at

years, the Chapel will focus on an exploration of

the Chapel available for use in the wider church.

the Psalms through the aesthetic intersection of

We will establish and fund a regular schedule of

musicians, artists, dancers, and theologians in a

educational travel for our choirs, including national

living faith community. We will create, pilot, and

and international touring and participation in

disseminate resources for churches to use as

competitions. We will curate a series of online

they engage with the Psalms to commemorate

recordings of our performances to reach

moments of loss and times of jubilation in

communities and musicians around the globe.

their communities.

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STRATEGIC AREAS OF SERVICE

Community Engagement THE CHAPEL STANDS AS A LIVING WITNESS IN DURHAM AND BEYOND. We see the burdens our community carries in affordable housing, education, and mass incarceration, as well as other areas. Our goal is to be present in this community and offer both comfort where we can and advocacy as we are able. Through faithful witness to the all-inclusive love of God, we join the important work of respecting the dignity of every human being, encouraging everyone to be reconciled to God and one another.

For many years, the Chapel has been a partner in the work of the Religious Coalition for a Nonviolent Durham, Habitat for Humanity, and other nonprofit organizations doing good work in our local communities. In partnership with the university's Office of Durham and Community Affairs, we will more fully engage with those who work for peace and justice.

In our community engagement, we see our commitment to students enriched by “real world” experiences.

By integrating these two areas—student and community engagement—under the leadership of the Assistant Dean of the Chapel, we extend mercy, embrace diversity, and stay close to God’s work in the world. Community Engagement asks us how we will live in the world and put our values to work for the common good. Community Engagement reminds us that God is at work in our city, every day.

OUR STRATEGIES

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STRATEGIC AREAS OF SERVICE

How will we demonstrate our commitment to the Durham community through faithful witness on issues related to affordable housing, mass incarceration, gun violence, and other emerging concerns?

STRATEGY 1 Support the PathWays House and Fellowships. In addition to securing stable and enduring funding for the PathWays House and Fellowship, the Chapel will codify its discernment process to create a replicable curriculum for other ministries across the country. With more than 12 years of experience, the Chapel is well-positioned to resource others working at the intersection of campus and community life. We will also explore new opportunities within the community for summer internship programs and new connections emerging in Durham and beyond.

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Community Engagement

STRATEGY 2

STRATEGY 4

Participate in the growth of Durham. We will

Support and engage the work of the

support one Habitat for Humanity House each

Durham Pilgrimage of Pain and Hope run by

year and participate in other efforts to eliminate

DurhamCares. By offering foundational financial

homelessness in Durham through fair practices in

support to bring Duke students to the community

community development and affordable housing.

for a guided walk that explores the relationship

But most of all, we will build relationships with

between our local faith communities and the

those whose full-time work in Durham focuses on

established and emerging neighborhoods of

projects that align with our core values.

Durham, we increase our awareness of the history of Durham and open doors for intentional relationships and community engagement.

STRATEGY 3 Deepen our engagement with the Mission of

STRATEGY 5

the Month and actively join in their work. The Chapel supports local nonprofits through our

Learn through classroom and practical service

Mission of the Month program and will continue

opportunities both at home and abroad. The

to provide these resources in the coming years.

Chapel will continue and expand its Christian

However, we recognize that through deeper and

mission trips as learning laboratories for students

more personal engagement, we can address

seeking to change the world. We know that we

otherwise intractable problems. For example, the

need to do more than a “fly in and fly out.” The

Chapel is partnering with the Religious Coalition for

Chapel will continue to offer a House Course on

a Nonviolent Durham to serve people reintegrating

the Ethics of Mission Trips and add new layers

into the community after incarceration. These

of evaluation to this aspect of our work. We will

organizations serve God’s people and we will stand

also explore opportunities for interfaith mission

with them, advocate for justice with them, and

work, bringing students of all faiths to serve in

work alongside them.

communities of need.

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Living Our Values Together Hope Compassion Community Justice Creativity

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OUR VALUES ARE TOUCHSTONES, CALLING US INTO A DEEPER RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD AND ONE ANOTHER. Over the course of the next five years, Bridge Panels, lectures, and other public programs and projects will focus on our values as we invite all of our friends and donors to consider with us how to live these values richly in a spirit of truth, reconciliation, forgiveness, and love.

Each year we will focus on one value and look closely at how it is expressed in our work, but we will also reflect on how it influences and informs all the values we hold. We will use these values to shape our all-staff meetings and retreats, our worship, and our work together. But, to be engaged in faith and learning means to be engaged in thinking, believing, and living. When we are true to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, we embody his values as we spend time with our friends, pray for wisdom and work for justice, serve the poor, rest on the Sabbath, study the sacred text, and participate as fully as possible in the creative energies of God.

A STUDY GUIDE FOR LIVING OUR VALUES TOGETHER IS AVAILABLE ONLINE AT CHAPEL.DUKE.EDU/VALUES

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Measuring Our Success A Strategic Plan is only a wish list until it is attached to specific activities and evaluated on a regular basis.

It must be incorporated into our daily schedules and evidenced in how we work, speak, and minister to this campus and community.

Remember, faith has a voice here and it can be yours.

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EACH YEAR OF THIS PLAN, WE WILL PROVIDE THIS COMMUNITY AN OVERVIEW OF OUR PROGRESS AND OUR SUCCESS IN OUR ANNUAL REPORT. We will include a snapshot of our financial health, our progress on the goals in each of our strategic areas, and an overview of our influence and impact on the projects we aim to complete.

We may also find new projects emerging as we walk together and continue to listen for the call of God in this place. Watch for announcements on our social media, website, and in Chapel View magazine. We will always do our best to be faithful to the history of the Chapel, responsible to the priorities of this plan, and responsive to new ideas that have yet to be born.

As we move through these years, you can be assured that the Chapel will remain the icon of this great university, a vibrant center for ecumenical worship, and a vital resource for students.

Our doors will be open 364 days a year to welcome familiar faces and drop-in visitors, first-year students and graduating seniors, faculty and staff. When you are here with us, we welcome your thoughts in the Comment Book near the Visitor Relations desk. We know that listening to God often means listening to God’s people.

WE ALSO ENCOURAGE YOU TO LEAVE COMMENTS ONLINE AT CHAPEL.DUKE.EDU/COMMENTS

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Duke

WILL

Strategic Framework

VINCENT PRICE President of Duke University

As we turn our attention to the future, our community must answer two interconnected questions: what do we want Duke to look like ten years from now, or a hundred years from now?

And what steps will we need to take to get there? President Price has developed a strategic framework that seeks to answer these questions—a framework focused on five core areas: empowering people, transforming education, building community, forging partnerships, and engaging our network.

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1

Duke WILL empower the brightest and boldest thinkers to solve the world’s most pressing challenges.

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Duke WILL transform teaching and discovery for the 21st century.

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Duke WILL build a renewed campus community that promotes growth among our students, faculty, staff, and visitors.

4

Duke WILL forge purposeful partnerships with our neighbors in the region.

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Duke

WILL

engage a global network of alumni and friends.

THE CHAPEL SUPPORTS THE PRIORITIES OF THE UNIVERSITY. LEARN MORE AT CHAPEL.DUKE.EDU/DUKEWILL

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When the song of the angels is stilled, when the star in the sky is gone, when the kings and princes are home, when the shepherds are back with their flocks, the work of Christmas begins: to find the lost, to heal the broken, to feed the hungry, to release the prisoner, to rebuild the nations, to bring peace among the people, to make music in the heart.

DR. HOWARD THURMAN (1899-1981)

STRATEGIC PLAN 2019-2024

chapel.duke.edu