# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1981_S185
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

PROPOSED WORDING
6.125 Term of Office

The president of each seminary and college shall
serve an initial 6-year term of office beginning with
July 1 following acceptance of the appointment as
president.

6.127 Reappointment

Following the initial 6-year term the president
shall be subject to reappointment every 4 years by
action of the electors on the recommendation of the
Board of Control of the institution. Ordinarily pres-
idents shall be limited to three reappointments of
4 years each in the presidency. Exceptions, however,
can be made with additional 2-year terms, beyond 18
years, up to and including the year of retirement.

6.129 Reappointment Evaluation

The president and Board of Control shall develop
mutually agreed upon institutional goals and prior-
ities which give specific direction to the president.
The Board of Control and the president will evaluate
presidential effectiveness based on these goals and
priorities. This evaluation will be completed no less
than 9 months prior to the end of each term of office
and will serve as the basis for reappointment;

and be it further

Resolved, That similar evaluative instruments of
mutually agreed upon institutional goals and priorities
be utilized for incumbent presidents of colleges and
seminaries at the discretion of their respective Boards of
Control.

Action: Declined (5).
(Standing vote: 358 for, 508 against.)

To Extend Term of Service
for College and Seminary Presidents
to Maximum Age of 70

RESOLUTION 6-11
Overtures 6-62—6-63 (CW, p. 271)

WHEREAS, Synodical Bylaws presently determine
age 65 to bethe maximum age for presidents of synodical
schools, at which time retirement is mandatory (6.82 a);
and

WHEREAS, The lengthening lifespan for healthy
persons suggests that this limitation is unnecessarily
restrictive; and

WHEREAS, It appears to be poor stewardship of the
God-given gifts and experience of competent admin-
istrators to require their retirement from office at age 65
automatically; and ,

WHEREAS, The United States Congress in 1978
extended the pretected age range to age 70 in defining
the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA);
and ,

WHEREAS, Although the ADEA and other similar
laws might not be applicable to certain positions in the
church because of the “free exercise” provisions of the
First Amendment to the United States Constitution, the
church must consider the public policy on which these
laws are based; therefore be it

RESOLUTIONS 185

Resolved, That the Synod revise Bylaw 6.82 a to read
as follows:

6.82 Modified Service and Retirement

a. The president of a synodical institution may be
honorably retired from his presidential responsibili-
ties by action of the Board of Control, or at his
request, at any time after the end of the school year in
which he attains the age of 60, or after 15 years of
service as president of the same school. He shall be
relieved of his presidential responsibilities at the end
of the school year in which he reaches the age of 70.

Action: Adopted (5).

To Revise Tenure Requirements
RESOLUTION 6-12
Overtures 6-54—6-55 (CW, p. 269)

WHEREAS, The Synod in convention in 1979 amended
Bylaw 6.54, Permanent Tenure, requiring five years of
creditable service at a synodical educational institution,
a requirement not found in prior wording; and

WHEREAS, The rationale for the Bylaw change
indicates that the reason for the change was to allow
Boards of Control to delay decisions on tenure or
dismissal beyond five years of service in order to
maintain a balance between tenured and nontenured
faculty and to allow for retention of qualified instructors
without the granting of tenure; and

WHEREAS, The changed Bylaw requirement has
caused difficulty for Boards of Control who may wish to
grant highly qualified instructors tenure prior to the
completion of five years service; and

WHEREAS, The phrase “collegiate or seminary level”
has been interpreted by some to mean that service at the
high school level at a synodical school does not qualify
for credit toward five years of service; therefore be it

Resolved, That The Lutheran Church—Missouri
Synod adopt the following amendment to Bylaw 6.54 a,
1 (Handbook, p. 141):

PRESENT WORDING

6.54 Permanent Tenure

a. Standards or qualifications for granting tenure
shall be:

1. The faculty member shall have completed 5
years of creditable service (periods of leave are not
included) as a member of the faculty of one or more
educational institutions of the Synod at collegiate or
seminary level, at least the last 2 years of which shall
have been in the institution he is currently serving.

PROPOSED WORDING

6.54 Permanent Tenure

a. Standards or qualifications for granting tenure
shall be:

1. The faculty member shall ordinarily have com-
pleted 5 years of creditable service (periods of leave
are not included) as a member of the faculty of one or
more educational institutions of the Synod, at least
the last 2 years of which shall have been in the

. institution he is currently serving. However, the said
5-year requirement may be waived in exceptional