Chapter 3: Assessing Community Needs and Resources

web resource

Description

This web resource helps answer questions about how to better engage your congregation with the local community by providing various resources and toolkits.

Features

toolkit; assessment activities; 15 assessment methods; suggested activities; SWOT analysis; community report card; "Photovoice Project"

Recommended Audience

Clergy and lay leaders

Cost

Free

Practical Applications

Help further incorporate your congregation into the local community.
Learn about the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats that might face your congregation after taking the SWOT analysis.

Updated: January 08, 2025

About the Contributor

Tim Shapiro

President

Tim Shapiro is the Indianapolis Center’s president. He began serving the Center in 2003 after 18 years in pastoral ministry. For 14 years, Tim served Westminster Presbyterian Church in Xenia, Ohio. Prior to his pastorate at Westminster, he was pastor of Bethlehem Presbyterian Church in Logansport, Indiana. He holds degrees from Purdue University and Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary.

Tim’s interest in how congregations learn to do new things is represented in his book How Your Congregation Learns. After his extensive work on the Center’s Sacred Space initiative, Tim co-authored the book Holy Places: Matching Sacred Space with Mission and Message. He has also authored several articles, including Applying Positive Deviance and The Congregation of Theological Coherence.

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