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The Vocation and Education unit shall be responsible for development and support of faithful, wise, and courageous leaders whose vocations serve God’s mission in the world; and shall assist this church and its institutions in equipping people to practice their callings under the Gospel for the sake of the world. To fulfill these responsibilities, this program unit shall:

1. articulate and exemplify for this church a guiding vision that cultivates the Lutheran understanding of the vocation of all the baptized and the place of education and knowledge in the context of faith; and, thereby,
   1) initiate and promote theological reflection among all people of this church;
   2) urge continuing attention in this church to the callings of every Christian for service of the neighbor in daily life;
   3) advocate for a vocation-based understanding of servant leadership that recognizes the work of Christians in the world and in the Church; collaborate with other churchwide units, institutions, and synods to assist this church in identifying, inviting, and equipping potential leaders for callings in the Church and the world;
   4) encourage this church and its members to express the faith by supporting and nurturing public, private, and parochial education; and
   5) give focused attention to the multicultural, racial, economic, gender, and age diversity of God’s people.
    
2. relate to and assist ministries, organizations, programs, and movements that support members of this church in discerning and practicing their callings under the Gospel; and, thereby,
   1) nurture efforts of congregations, synods, and related institutions and agencies to engage youth in the ongoing witness and service of this church;
   2) guide and support the Lutheran Youth Organization, which shall operate with youth leadership elected by its members and with a constitution submitted by the Lutheran Youth Organization for possible approval by the Church Council, and review policies, budget requests, and resolutions of the Lutheran Youth Organization and submit recommendations on such matters, as appropriate, to the Church Council;
   3) relate on behalf of the churchwide organization to outdoor ministries;
   4) support involvement of young adults in the life of this church and their preparation for leadership and service in the world;
   5) foster, in coordination with synods, campus ministries at public and non-ELCA colleges and universities, in accordance with the established campus ministry policies and procedures;
   6) foster relationships with Lutheran student movements, ecumenical student movements, and other denominational campus ministries; and
   7) relate on behalf of the churchwide organization to ministries that seek to encourage and support vocation-based understandings of Christian identity in daily life.
    
3. be a steward of the educational institutions and networks of this church; and, thereby,
   1) relate on behalf of the churchwide organization to early childhood education centers, elementary schools, and secondary schools operated by ELCA congregations or associations of congregations;
   2) nurture relationships on behalf of the churchwide organization with the colleges and universities of this church;
   3) facilitate this church’s sponsorship, support, and provision for oversight of seminaries;
   4) develop and monitor — in consultation with synods, seminaries, and other churchwide units — standards for education and formation programs that prepare persons for rostered ministry;
   5) encourage and facilitate the theological education network of this church for cooperation, coordination, and collaboration among its seminaries and clusters, colleges and universities, lifelong learning programs, and other theological education providers;
   6) convene a regular convocation of theologians involved in the teaching ministry of this church, including representatives from the churchwide staff and the synodical bishops; and, in partnership with the Multicultural Ministries unit, convene a regular gathering of teaching theologians of color; and
   7) represent the colleges, universities, and schools of this church in public policy matters, in consultation with the Church in Society unit, and encourage, support, and promote relationships with associations and entities related to higher education and to schools.
    
4. facilitate the calling forth and support of leaders for mission, provide them with life-long learning opportunities, and coordinate the planning, policies, and procedures by which persons will be recruited, prepared, evaluated, and deployed for rostered ministry; and, thereby,
   1) monitor the leadership needs and opportunities of this church and sustain a vision of adaptable, diverse, and inter-connected cadres of rostered and other leaders as means to serving God’s mission for the world;
   2) recommend and monitor, in consultation with the Conference of Bishops, ecclesiastical standards for admission of persons to and the continuation of persons on this church’s roster of ordained ministers and its rosters of commissioned associates in ministry, consecrated deaconesses, and consecrated diaconal ministers;
   3) develop and monitor — in consultation with the Office of the Secretary, the Ecumenical and Inter-Religious Relations section of the Office of the Presiding Bishop, and the Conference of Bishops — policies for the orderly exchange of ordained ministers between churches with which the ELCA has established a relationship of full communion;
   4) oversee and support a candidacy system for this church, in cooperation with the synods and seminaries, for the recruitment, preparation, evaluation, and support of candidates for these rosters;
   5) facilitate the provision of opportunities for rostered and other leaders to be healthy, faithful, and engaged in continued learning;
   6) assist synods and seminaries in providing programs and resources for maintaining healthy boundaries and preventing and responding to sexual misconduct by rostered persons;
   7) assist synods, institutions, and other churchwide units in preparing and supporting persons for various ministries, including mission development, ministries of chaplaincy, pastoral care and clinical education, and synodically authorized ministries;
   8) collaborate with the Multicultural Ministries unit and other churchwide units, synods, and institutions of this church in the identification, recruitment, development, and support of African American, Black, Arab and Middle Eastern, Asian and Pacific Islander, Latino, American Indian, and Alaska Native leadership, particularly for discerning calls to rostered or authorized ministry and with focused attention on young adults and women;
   9) foster, in cooperation with other churchwide units and synods, the leadership of women and women of color or primary language other than English;
   10) relate to and advise the Deaconess Community of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America;
   11) assist this church in inclusive ministry with and among persons with disabilities; and
   12) implement processes, in consultation with the Conference of Bishops, for helping this church match the resources of its leadership rosters with mission opportunities of congregations and other ministries, including the assignment to synods of approved candidates for rostered ministry, and the mobility of rostered persons within the ELCA.