How Would We Know? Assessing Personal and Spiritual Formation in Clergy and Church Leadership

Educational Assessment and Accreditation Liaison OfficersFormation Directors/Student Life StaffFacultyInstitutional Senior LeadersResearchers (including IR/IE)Field Education / Contextual Ed SupervisorsOther Institutional AdministrationSpiritual Directors

Oct 7

Written By Tidy Studios

DESCRIPTION: This workshop presentation explores how theological schools can define and assess personal and spiritual formation more responsibly. Drawing on Christian ecumenical research on seminarian formation, spiritual maturity, character, well-being, and ATS Graduating Student Questionnaire data, Christopher M. The and David C. Wang emphasize that formation is multidimensional and context-dependent. The presentation offers a practical assessment framework that moves from defining formation to measuring it, evaluating the validity and fairness of measures, and interpreting findings within institutional context, while encouraging schools to combine survey data with other forms of evidence.

KEYWORDS: assessment; character formation; clergy formation; educational assessment; formation assessment; Graduating Student Questionnaire; GSQ; intercultural competence; measurement; personal formation; seminarian formation; spiritual formation; spiritual maturity; student development; theological education; well-being

CITATION: The, Christopher M., and David C. Wang. 2026. “How Would We Know? Assessing Personal and Spiritual Formation in Clergy and Church Leadership.” Workshop presentation at the Pathways Annual Gathering, September 24, 2026.

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