A Transformational Period of Discernment

Over the past several months, the ACPE board has been communicating about a possible merger with the Association of Professional Chaplains (APC). For some members, this has been a conversation that dates back to the 1980s. For others, this is a new idea that has raised important questions. Every week since March 18, 2021, when the Board of Directors approved a motion to bring the vote to merge to the membership, we have worked to provide videos, Q & As, town halls, and meetings with CoPs to address questions, concerns, hopes, and curiosities about what this will mean.

In two weeks (July 6), the voting process will officially begin and remain open through July 26. As your staff, we have been planning and working to prepare for the vote going either way. We are in conversation with APC about a joint 2022 meeting, either celebrating our new joined organization or renewing our commitment to work together even though we chose not to merge. We are planning for the committees, task forces, communications, and other pieces you will need as members, whether we merge or not.

We hope that the tremendous work of the staff throughout the conference in May provided some insight into our dedication and skill. Whatever the result of the merger vote, your staff is doing all we can to make sure the operations and support you have come to expect will continue with the kind of professionalism that we hope distinguishes our community.

To be clear, the result of the vote is not like the flipping of a switch. For the most part, business will continue as usual regardless of the result of the vote for several months. The goal is to complete the merger process, so that the actual “flip the switch date” occurs mid-2022. That will allow several implementation teams and subcommittees to work with the new organization’s interim board to put the legal, governance, logistical, and operational pieces in place to begin a new journey together. While the new board will determine the processes by which members will engage in decisions, we know that members will have to vote on the new bylaws. Those bylaws will represent the new structure, much like what ACPE experienced when we revised our bylaws as a part of the organizational redesign process in 2017.

If the merger is approved, the next several months will be a very busy time for the staffs of both organizations. That said, I couldn’t be more confident in our team to make sure that we continue to meet the needs of members on a daily basis even as we work to build towards what might come. And if the merger is not approved, I trust our staff will continue as we have, serving you as you provide professional spiritual care and educate the next generation of professional spiritual care givers. May we listen well and trust deeply as we enter this important and transformational period of discernment with our APC colleagues.

Trace Haythorn is the Executive Director of ACPE and can be reached at  Trace.Haythorn@acpe.edu