Cut Bill

In Sustainable Leadership, Andy Hargreaves and Dean Fink address one of the most important and often neglected aspects of leadership: sustainability. The authors set out a compelling and original framework of seven principles for sustainable leadership characterized by Depth of learning and real achievement rather than superficially tested performance; Length of impact over the long haul, beyond individual leaders, through effectively managed succession; Breadth of influence, where leadership becomes a distributed responsibility; Justice in ensuring that leadership actions do no harm to and actively benefit students in other schools; Diversity that replaces standardization and alignment with diversity and cohesion; Resourcefulness that conserves and renews leaders’ energy and doesn’t burn them out; and Conservation that builds on the best of the past to create an even better future.

This book is a volume in the Jossey-Bass Leadership Library in Education—a series designed to meet the demand for new ideas and insights about leadership in schools.

Sustainable Leadership (Jossey-Bass Leadership Library in Education)

You’re looking for a youth pastor. Again. What goes wrong? Why do youth ministries crumble? And what is the cost to students, parents, volunteers and church staff? Is a sustainable youth ministry possible, even after a youth pastor leaves? Youth ministry expert Mark DeVries knows the answer is yes, because he helps build sustainable youth ministries through his coaching service called Youth Ministry Architects. So take heart: No matter what state the youth ministry at your church is in–in need of a leader and volunteers, full of battles and stress, large or small in number–it can be built to survive and to last for the long haul. Based on his own experience and on his many conversations and interviews with churches in crisis, DeVries pinpoints problems that cause division and burnout and dispels strongly held myths. He then provides the practical tools and structures pastors and church leaders need to lay a strong foundation for your ministry so that it isn’t built on a person or the latest, greatest student ministry trend. His accessible guidance

* helps senior pastors and search committees create a realistic job description for a youth pastor

* provides tips for making wise hiring decisions

* equips youth pastors to build a strong volunteer team

* offers creative solutions to help youth pastors set and keep boundaries

* gives a road map for navigating church politics

* and more Building a sustainable youth ministry is not easy, and it’s not quick. But with commitment to the process, hard work and DeVries’s guidance, you can put together a healthy youth ministry–one that fits your church and lasts for the long haul. Youth ministry can last. Here’s how.

Sustainable Youth Ministry: Why Most Youth Ministry Doesn’t Last and What Your Church Can Do About It