Welcome to Resource Review I, an eight-week course on finding and evaluating resources for Christian leadership and your own area of ministry or professional focus. Peter Bouteneff’s account of Orthodox engagement with Scripture and Tradition gives us a sustained example of how a community receives and uses an authoritative text. You will practice searching, comparing, and annotating additional resources, and leave with the first part of a portfolio you can use in your vocation.
Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84378709925?pwd=8DskHTqyawmVtHTBg6GwtYjCaVsJ15.1
Discussion forum: https://stacollege.org/forums/forum/resource-review-i-ii-sem-prep/
I. Course Description
For leadership, it is important to be able to draw from a broad range of resources that inform personal and vocational excellence and growth. To be able to lead well in a particular area, one should also have access to resources related to that area. As you progress through your journey in Kairos, you will know you’ve completed this outcome when you and your mentor team have determined that you are able to demonstrate familiarity with leadership resources and resources related to your specific area of focus.
II. Course Objectives
While progressing toward this outcome, students will typically:
- Reflect on the skills and process of researching and finding quality resources.
- Create an annotated list of general leadership resources.
- Create an annotated list of resources related to their specialization.
III. Areas of Focus
- Content: Resources recognized in the student’s context as having significant value for general leadership.
- Character: The ability to compare one’s values, ethics, and discernment when selecting and using resources.
- Craft: Skills and practices for finding, evaluating, and annotating resources related to one’s context.
IV. Indicators
An individual proficient in Resource Review:
- Demonstrates the skills necessary for researching and finding quality resources.
- Shows familiarity with quality resources related to general leadership.
- Shows familiarity with quality resources related to one’s specialization.
V. Materials Needed
Student purchase: Peter Bouteneff, Sweeter than Honey: Orthodox Thinking on Scripture. Students may use a print or electronic edition. Page assignments vary by edition; read the named portions in the schedule.
Additional resources: Students will locate accessible scholarly, ecclesial, and practical resources relevant to general leadership and their specialization. Library access and a consistent citation format are needed; no other purchase is required.
Working annotation format: Give a full citation; summarize the resource’s purpose and argument (2–3 sentences); identify its author and audience, evidence, and assumptions; evaluate its strengths and limits (2–3 sentences); and explain one concrete use in leadership or the student’s specialization (1–2 sentences). Include a stable link or location when available. Post each assignment separately to the course discussion page.
VI. Schedule
Week 1 (10/13) — Introduction to the course. Review the syllabus.
Week 2 (10/20) — An Introduction to epistemology.
- Read Chapter One of Bouteneff.
- Compile an annotated list of five useful online scripture resources.
- DUE 10/16
- Comment on at least one student’s online scripture resources.
- DUE 10/20
Week 3 (10/27) — Against Relativism.
- Read Chapter Two of Bouteneff.
- Compile an annotated list of five useful online homiletics resources.
- Due 10/23
- Comment on at least one student’s online homiletics resources.
- Due 10/27
Week 4 (11/3) — Truth as Story.
- Read Chapter Three of Bouteneff.
- Compile an annotated list of five useful online patristic resources.
- Due 10/30
- Comment on at least one student’s online patristic resources.
- Due 11/3
Week 5 (11/10) — The Orthodox Method of Knowing.
- Read Chapter Four of Bouteneff.
- Compile an annotated list of five useful online pastoral leadership resources.
- Due 11/6
- Comment on at least one student’s online leadership resources.
- Due 11/10
Week 6 (11/17) — The Mechanics of Knowing.
- Read Chapter Five of Bouteneff.
- Compile an annotated list of five biased but still useful online sources on Orthodox theology and culture.
In your annotations, describe their biases and why they are still useful.- Due 11/13
- Comment on at least one student’s resources on Orthodox theology and culture.
- Due 11/17
Week 7 (11/24) — The Sources of Knowing.
- Read Chapter Six of Bouteneff
- Compile and edit your sources and e-mail it to the instructor. Fill out your self-assessment and e-mail it to the instructor.
Week 8 (11/31) — Oral exam. Why do we need the Church to provide us with dogma and doctrine? How does the Church find and share the Truth? What are the most reliable sources for discerning the “Mind of the Church” on any given issue? What should we do with important issues about which the Church offers more than one opinion? What sources would you expect to be most useful for catechists, deacons, and priests? Why? What sources, if any, should be avoided? Why?
VII. Course Requirements
Participation. Students are expected to attend all Zoom meetings, arrive on time, stay for the duration, and come prepared to discuss the assigned reading and their developing portfolios.
Weekly work. Students submit the annotations and short reflections indicated in the schedule by the beginning of the relevant class. Annotations should use the format in Section V. Course discussions and feedback are opportunities to revise entries; the final portfolio should be a curated selection, not a pile of unedited weekly submissions.
Oral exam. Students will discuss the course materials and their finished portfolio one-on-one with the professor for fifteen to twenty minutes.
Assessment. Evidence of proficiency comes from preparation and participation, the accuracy and usefulness of annotations, thoughtful revision, the final portfolio and reflection, and the oral exam. The mentor team participates in determining whether the Resource Review outcome has been met. Any course grade or weighting required by the institution should be entered in the course site before the course begins.
Use of AI. Students may use AI to proofread and suggest improvements, but the selection, reading, evaluation, citations, and writing must be their own. Verify any bibliographic information or claims suggested by a tool.
VIII. General Information
Attendance Policy. As participation is a key component of this course, students are allowed up to one unexcused absence. Excused absences include documented illness, deaths in the family and other documented crises, call to active military duty or jury duty, and religious holy days. These absences will be accommodated in a way that does not arbitrarily penalize students who have a valid excuse. Consideration will also be given to students whose dependent children experience serious illness. Please send an email to the instructor concerning the reason for your absence within three days of the absence so that you are not accidentally penalized.
Late Assignment Policy. All assignment grades will be deducted 10% per day the assignment is submitted late unless excused. Please send an email to the instructor if you are unable to submit your assignment on time with a proper excuse. No excuses or exceptions will be considered after the due date/time.
Professionalism. Professional conduct is expected at all times. This includes communication via email with your instructor and your classmates, and communication on the class website. Our classroom should be a place where people feel safe sharing opinions and ideas. Be sure to use respectful language when disagreeing. If you have a concern with the course, please send a thoughtful email to me outlining your concern.
Academic Honor Policy. Anyone caught plagiarizing or abetting plagiarism will receive a zero for the assignment and may result in expulsion from St. Athanasius College. There are no exceptions to this rule. Plagiarism includes claiming as your own work that which is not yours.
Religious Holidays Policy. St. Athanasius College will provide reasonable accommodations to students who request to be excused from class to observe a religious holy day of their faith. Students will make the request in writing to their instructor, preferably upon receipt of the course syllabus, but not later than two weeks before the holy observance. Note that such an accommodation may not be possible when the religious holy day conflicts with group work or experiential learning projects that cannot reasonably be rescheduled; therefore, students should avoid potential conflicts when scheduling courses. While excused students will be held responsible for the material covered in their absence, they shall be permitted a reasonable amount of time to make up the work missed. Instructors and administrators shall not penalize students who are absent from academic activities because of excused religious holy day observance. This policy applies to all St. Athanasius College courses, regardless of location or mode of delivery.
Student Disability Accommodations. St. Athanasius College provides reasonable accommodations or modifications in adherence with local, state, and federal law. To receive accommodations through St. Athanasius College, students must self-elect to disclose their disability to the Office of the Dean and follow the steps to receive accommodations. Accommodations are not retroactive. Approved accommodation requests submitted after courses have begun will be effective as of the date the completed request was received by the Office of the Dean. To complete an Accommodation Request, students can access the form online at the school’s website. If the student has an issue accessing the form for any reason please contact the Office of the Dean. In addition to the Accommodation Request, students should email appropriate documentation to the Office of the Dean.
Syllabus Change Policy. Except for changes that substantially affect implementation of the evaluation (grading) statement, this syllabus is a guide for the course and is subject to change with advance notice.
