Staff Restructure Recommendations for 2021

FROM THE DEACON BOARD

1. Decrease Associate Pastor Meg Lacy Vega’s schedule from 40 hours per week to 25 hours per week. Duties will include but will not be limited to: Spiritual Development for Adults and Youth, including leading the church youth group, as well as preaching up to 12 times per year. Meg will continue to receive her current hourly rate of pay, and will work with the personnel committee on any necessary re-allocation. Meg will continue to work with personnel committee, staff, and the Deacon Board on updates to her job description appropriate for the needs of the church and her expertise, and according to the limitations of a reduction in hours.

2. Decrease Minister of Music & Worship Judy Fiske’s schedule from 32+ hours per week to 20 hours per week. Duties will include but will not be limited to: planning worship, leading choirs (when possible) and coordinating musicians. Judy will continue to receive her current hourly rate of pay, and will work with the personnel committee on any necessary re-allocation. Judy will continue to work with personnel committee, staff, and the Deacon Board on updates to her job description appropriate for the needs of the church and her expertise, and according to the limitations of a reduction in hours.

3. Increase the Community Ministry Director (April Kennedy) from 50 hours per month to 20 hours per week.

• This will bring April’s pay more in line with the number of hours she has been working since March of this year.
• This change would become retroactive to December 1, 2020.

FROM THE PERSONNEL COMMITTEE AND THE ADMINISTRATIVE BOARD

1. Contract with Amanda Rone to replace Hope Cutchins as Communications Coordinator for 20 hours per week in addition to the 15 hours per week she is now working as Media and Worship Coordinator.

• This is a 6-month contract (January 1 – June 30, 2021) for a total of 35 hours worked, 15 as Media/Worship Coordinator and 20 as Communications Coordinator.

2. Create a 6-month position to work with Pastor Severns approximately 10 hours per week on logistics and scheduling. We recommend that this position be offered to Ron Simmons in addition to his Music/AV Assistant role.

• This will essentially double Ron’s current workload at TBC for the 6-month period January 1 – June 30, 2021. This will be in addition to the wages budgeted for Ron’s position as music / AV assistant.

3. Authorize church staff to seek up to two (2) Worship Interns for the 6-month period January 1 – June 30, 2021 to work specifically with Dr. Judy Fiske and Amanda Rone on Worship planning.

• Partial funding for these positions already exists in the current church budget, and additional funding and/or partnership with other churches may also be available.

Costs for changes in recommendations 1 and 2 will be paid for out of current staff salary fund with no anticipated increase.

Proposal for Leadership and Procedures in Q1&2 2021

 1) Leadership for the following 19 key roles needs to be nominated and confirmed. Those leaders willing to remain in existing positions will be asked to do so:

• Church Clerk
• Trustee Board (3 members)
• At-Large Administrative Board Members (3 members)
• Buildings & Grounds Committee (2 members)
• Finance Committee NEW (3 members)
• Personnel Committee (2 members)
• TCCC Administrative Committee (2 members)
• Row House Oversight Committee NEW (3 members)

2) The Board of Deacons will identify at least 5 members to serve in 2021. 100% of their focus will be on congregational ministry and care.

3) Returning at-large members of the Administrative Board (serving terms for 2021 and through 2022), and representatives from church boards and standing committees will continue to serve as a streamlined Administrative Board.

• For the first half of 2021, no additional, at-large members will be nominated to the Administrative Board
• Committee representation to the Administrative Board will occur on an “if available” basis
• The streamlined Administrative Board will function to approve customary requests by the Finance Committee and other standing church committees. Information will be shared via Basecamp and meetings via zoom will be called as required. Requests requiring major financial commitments or arrangements will be referred to the church’s congregation for vote.

4) The Finance Committee will assume responsibility for all customary decisions regarding banking, bill paying, receipt of gifts & offerings, record-keeping and reporting. They will also relate directly with the church’s financial services company (JP Consulting, Inc.). Any questions outside the established parameters of operation, as outlined in the Church Manual, will be brought to the Administrative Board or the church congregation for vote.

5) A budget for the first half of 2021 will be approved by this year’s Administrative Board and presented to the congregation in early December.

• All church entities with identified budgets will be instructed to authorize only those expenses which are absolutely necessary.
• The Finance Committee will have the authority to grant requests that are within established guidelines or refer decision to the Administrative Board or the church congregation.

6) Tabernacle Church will return to the normal Leadership structure in Q3 2021 unless the Church votes to approve an extension of this proposal.

The deacons spent several weeks this fall working to find Tabernacle members who would be willing and able to serve on the Nominating Committee for 2020-21. With so many of our members’ lives changed so radically by the pandemic, this has proved to be a challenge. As 2020 winds down, our key leaders want to ensure that our leadership nominating process goes forward, and that qualified and committed leadership candidates will be brought to the church for approval in a timely way. Tim Pohl, chair of the Deacon Board; Terry McMahon, chair of the Administrative Board; and Nathan Hatfield, chair of the Personnel Committee will be working together as an interim nominating team to recruit leaders for the six-month January-June 2021 period. Leadership candidates whom they recruit who volunteer to serve will be brought to the church for approval as soon as a completed slate of candidates can be shared.

If you would like to be considered to serve as a leader in the church, or have questions about the process, please contact us at communications@tbcrichmond.org.