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Guidepost Solutions Institutional Assessment | 90-Day Update

October 2, 2023

Vineyard USA would like to provide a 90-day update to Vineyard churches and leaders regarding the recommendations offered by Guidepost Solutions.

The Institutional Assessment from Guidepost Solutions “identified three critical areas which put the effectiveness of the Vineyard USA and local Vineyard churches at risk.” Below you will find updates related to each critical area:

1. Minimal structure or formal connection of Vineyard USA to local Vineyard churches and pastors;
  • 1(b) Vetting: Vineyard USA should establish a process for vetting and require comprehensive background checks of newly onboarded Vineyard USA staff, Area and Regional Leaders, and local Vineyard church senior pastors at least every five years.
    • 90-day Update: Vineyard USA continues to require BCI background checks during the Church Planting and Church Adoption processes. Additionally, all new Senior Pastor transitions include a BCI background check of both the pastor and their spouse. In review of the National Team hiring process, Vineyard USA will be implementing new steps in the process of vetting candidates for trans-local leadership positions. This process is currently being developed. 

  • 1(c) Ordination and Credentialing: Vineyard USA and local Vineyard churches should work together to establish a process for joint ordination/credentialing of pastors within the Vineyard movement in the United States.
    • 90-day Update: Vineyard USA is working with the Trustees, National Team, Regional and Area Leaders, and local Church pastors to establish a process for ordination and credentialing. Dr. Caleb Maskell, Associate National Director of Theology and Education hosted a workshop at NC2023 that every pastor was encouraged to attend. Feel free to view the workshop here.
       
  • 1(i) Increased Super Regional Leader (“SRL”) Resourcing: Vineyard USA should consider increasing the number of SRLs to enhance engagement and feedback from local Vineyard churches and pastors to Vineyard USA and vice versa.
    • 90-day Update: Vineyard USA recently added two Super Regional Leader Ministry Coordinator staff members in support of the work of the Super Regional Leaders.

  • 1(j) Vineyard USA Leadership Training: Vineyard USA should conduct yearly training for Area Leaders/Regional Leaders/Super Regional Leaders at a conference, retreat, and/or celebration to teach as well as transform and inspire attendees, to give them renewed commitment and vision.
    • 90-day Update: Vineyard USA has repurposed the previous Leadership Team Meeting (LTM) to an RL/AL Training Meeting each Spring. This meeting is focused more on training than inspiration. 

  • 1(l) Annual Census: In an annual Vineyard census, Vineyard USA should request information regarding church financial health, reports and allegations of abuse and misconduct, and/or concerns relative to church governance.
    • 90-day Update: We will continue to ask for information that will improve our ability to respond to allegations of misconduct, including governance structures, and board members along with additional staff. The 2024 Census will be administered in January 2024.
2. No documented reporting mechanism or response processes for allegations or concerns of misconduct across the Vineyard movement in the United States; 
  • 2(a) 24-hour Reporting Email: Vineyard USA should continue to make available the Reporting Email to receive reports of concerns of leadership misconduct. 
    • 90-day Update: Since March 2023, Vineyard USA Super Regional Leaders, John Elmer and Joel Seymour and Managing Director, Robb Morgan have met bi-weekly with Guidepost Solutions to review the status of the Reporting Email and the ongoing active Reports. This meeting includes reviewing new Reports, providing GPS with updates of responses from local churches, receiving updates from GPS based on new information provided by Reporters, and planning next steps as required and case situation-specific coaching. 

  • 2(b) Reporting Email Visibility: Vineyard USA should more prominently highlight the Reporting email on Vineyard websites, making it available on its main page. Vineyard USA should also encourage local churches and other affiliates of Vineyard USA to highlight the reporting email.
    • 90-day Update: Vineyard USA has placed Report Abuse links in the footer of every Vineyard USA webpage. 

  • 2(c) Process for Responding to Allegations of Misconduct in Churches: Vineyard USA should document a consistent reporting, investigation, adjudication, and resolution process. The process should include policies on confidentiality, conflicts of interest, non-retaliation, record keeping, and whistleblower protections.
    • 90-day Update: Vineyard USA is actively working with Guidepost to develop a process and policies. These processes and policies will be reviewed by VUSA Trustees, National Team members, Regional and Area Leaders, and local church pastors prior to their publication. 

  • 2(d) Support to Local Churches: Vineyard USA should develop vetted resources including legal, investigative, and counseling resources to support local churches in their investigations of misconduct based upon church and pastor standards.
    • 90-day Update: Vineyard USA has identified Church Cares as a thorough training curriculum for pastors, staff, leaders, and volunteers. We would strongly encourage a church to utilize this training or one similar on an annual basis. Vineyard USA is also in active discussion with a number of counseling services and mental healthcare providers that will allow us to refer victims of abuse to professional care as needed or requested.

3. Lack of meaningful standards, guidance, or accountability for Vineyard USA and Vineyard church staff, pastors, and leaders.
  • 3(a) Employee Manual: Vineyard USA should review the Employee Manual, and update or add policies that would provide meaningful standards, guidelines, or accountability for Vineyard USA staff.
    • 90-day Update: Vineyard USA reviewed and updated the Employee Manual in May 2023. 

  • 3(b) A Leadership Focused Handbook: Vineyard USA should clearly outline the roles and responsibilities of the Vineyard USA National Team, and Regional and Area leadership.
    • 90-day Update: Vineyard USA actively developing a Regional, Area & Associations Leader Training Manual and Handbook to outline the roles and responsibilities of trans-local leadership. 

As a result of our summary findings and analysis, we identified several recommendations for Vineyard USA’s consideration and action as appropriate. These recommendations are consistent with the core values, beliefs, and philosophy of the Vineyard movement in the United States.”

Report concerns or allegations of sexual misconduct using this dedicated email address:

Any concern reported to this email will go directly to Guidepost Solutions and not to Vineyard USA. You can report your concerns either with a true name or anonymously.

Guidepost will not identify any reporter by name to Vineyard USA without the reporters expressed consent. If you are reporting criminal activity, we also encourage you to contact your local law enforcement agency as well.

Guidepost Solutions Institutional Assessment | Final Report

June 30, 2023

In November 2022, Vineyard USA announced that it had engaged Guidepost Solutions (GPS) to perform an Institutional Assessment and undertake a review of our current structure and governance, and assess how it has allowed us to respond to significant issues including allegations of sexual misconduct and pastoral failings.

Today, we are making public the Final Report that was provided to Vineyard USA by Guidepost Solutions on June 26, 2023.

Accompanying this Report is a brief video from Jay Pathak (National Director, VUSA), Phil Strout (former National Director of VUSA and Trustee), and Robb Morgan (Managing Director of Vineyard USA). Please take a moment to view this video and hear their initial impressions of the Report. A Spanish translation of the video’s transcript is available here.

Vineyard USA has also created an FAQ section to help answer questions that may arise as you read the report. If you have additional questions or concerns, please contact Robb Morgan () and he will be happy to assist you.

Assessment Observations from Guidepost Solutions

“The Vineyard movement in the United States has a rich history of creativity, church autonomy and dependence on strong personal relationships which have allowed the organization to function for over 50 years. However, as we detail throughout this report, we found the Vineyard movement in the United States lacked any concrete structure, governance, and/or standards often leading to confusion on issues of authority and accountability. Any successful organization including a ministry must have effective communication of mission, values, priorities, and the ethical and responsible execution of those. It does not exist separate from organizational culture. The Vineyard movement in the United States currently lacks effective execution of its mission and values across its more than 500 Vineyard churches. While local churches may execute their respective mission and values within their own entities, the movement itself is hindered because it lacks an ability to act cohesively and to address issues consistently.”

Summary Findings and Recommendations from Guidepost Solutions

“While we speak of our findings in much greater detail throughout this report, we identified three critical areas which put the effectiveness of the Vineyard USA and local Vineyard churches at risk. Within this report, we provide details relevant to our summary findings which are:

  1. Minimal structure or formal connection of Vineyard USA to local Vineyard churches and pastors;
  2. No documented reporting mechanism or response processes for allegations or concerns of misconduct across the Vineyard movement in the United States; and
  3. Lack of meaningful standards, guidance, or accountability for Vineyard USA and Vineyard church staff, pastors, and leaders.

As a result of our summary findings and analysis, we identified several recommendations for Vineyard USA’s consideration and action as appropriate. These recommendations are consistent with the core values, beliefs, and philosophy of the Vineyard movement in the United States.”

These recommendations are briefly identified in the opening SUMMARY FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS Section and then further discussed throughout the Report.

Report concerns or allegations of sexual misconduct using this dedicated email address:

Any concern reported to this email will go directly to Guidepost Solutions and not to Vineyard USA. You can report your concerns either with a true name or anonymously. Guidepost will not identify any reporter by name to Vineyard USA without the reporters expressed consent. If you are reporting criminal activity, we also encourage you to contact your local law enforcement agency as well.

Institutional Assessment with Guidepost Solutions | March 2023 Update

March 20, 2023

Report concerns or allegations of sexual misconduct using this dedicated email address:

Any concern reported to this email will go directly to Guidepost Solutions and not to Vineyard USA. You can report your concerns either with a true name or anonymously. Guidepost will not identify any reporter by name to Vineyard USA without the reporters expressed consent. If you are reporting criminal activity, we also encourage you to contact your local law enforcement agency as well.

Dear Pastors & Leaders,

In November 2022, I joined the Advisory Panel in support of the Institutional Assessment being conducted by Guidepost Solutions (GPS) which is reviewing Vineyard USA’s current structure, governance, and issues regarding how Vineyard USA responds to allegations of sexual misconduct and pastoral failings in our movement.

We have promised updates to our pastors regarding this process, and today I’m coming to you as a senior pastor and a representative of our Advisory Panel with a mid-Assessment update. The team at Guidepost Solutions (GPS) has been actively working on this project, and our Advisory Panel was pleased to see their progress when we met last week.

To date, GPS contacted fifty-seven people involved in the case studies. Of these fifty-seven, sixteen declined or were not responsive, and forty-one were interviewed as part of case studies that illustrate the impact of our structure on our ability to respond to these difficult situations. In our meeting, they shared a number of the overarching themes that they have uncovered and communicated that they are working on the draft of the final report with more robust recommendations. GPS is anticipating a full report by the end of Q2, and at that time our Advisory Panel will process the recommendations offered and consider methods of implementation with the National Team.

Vineyard USA periodically receives calls regarding allegations against local Vineyard pastors and leaders, and as you would be aware, these are processed with local boards and leadership. As part of the early work of the GPS Assessment, it became evident that Vineyard USA lacks the resources to properly process these allegations, receive and care for victims or reporters of abuse in local churches, or help local pastors and leaders, as well as Area and Regional Leaders, to respond to these difficult situations.

Our hope is that this partnership with a globally-recognized independent third-party organization will empower transparency around these issues as well as robust care and support for victims, boards, and congregations. This reporting mechanism coincides with resourcing for Vineyard pastors and churches providing training on best practices, organizational safeguarding, and legal issues state by state.

This ‘hotline’ is already up and running, and we are working to share it on our website for clear access for any reporting victims.

In addition to this added support for reporting victims, Vineyard USA would like to direct local church pastors and leaders to consider available training related to the care of survivors of abuse. ChurchCares is a free resource that is available immediately for boards, pastors, ministry leaders, and volunteers. Vineyard USA is working on additional training but is pleased to recommend this resource to Vineyard USA. 

Our Advisory Panel along with Guidepost Solutions and the National Team are committed to creating healthy structures for the thriving of our churches and ministry. If you have any questions about the Guidepost Solutions Institutional Assessment, please check out this website where we are continuing to post these updates, or reach out to Robb Morgan at .

Gratefully,
John Aureli, on behalf of the Advisory Panel

Advisory Panel members:

John Aureli (Pastor, Mission Vineyard, San Antonio, TX)
Gary Dawkins (Pastor, Mercy Vineyard Church, Minneapolis, MN)
Jeri Heilman (Pastor, Altoona Vineyard, Altoona, PA)
Kathy Maskell (Pastor, East Denver Vineyard, Denver, CO; leader of Vineyard Justice Network; former Vineyard USA Executive Team member)
Danielle Pathak (Associate National Director of Pastoral Health & Development, Vineyard USA)
Josh Williams (Associate National Director of Evangelism and Justice; Vineyard USA)

Guidepost Solutions Hotline

March 16, 2023

We have asked Guidepost Solutions to set up a 24/7 confidential reporting mechanism so that Vineyard USA church attenders and staff can report any concerns or allegations of sexual misconduct via a new email address.

Report concerns or allegations of sexual misconduct using this dedicated email address:

Any concern reported to this email will go directly to Guidepost Solutions and not to Vineyard USA. You can report your concerns either with a true name or anonymously. Guidepost will not identify any reporter by name to Vineyard USA without the reporters expressed consent. If you are reporting criminal activity, we also encourage you to contact your local law enforcement agency as well.

In November 2022, Vineyard USA announced that it had engaged Guidepost Solutions (GPS) to perform an Institutional Assessment and undertake a review of our current structure and governance, and assess how it has allowed us to respond to significant issues including allegations of sexual misconduct and pastoral failings. That work is well underway – GPS has already interviewed a number of people and has reviewed some case studies which illustrate the impact of our structure on our ability to respond to these difficult situations.

Today, we want to let you know that we have asked Guidepost Solutions to set up a 24/7 confidential reporting mechanism so that church attenders and staff can report any concerns or allegations of sexual misconduct, including sexual harassment, assault, and abuse, directly to Guidepost via a new email address. To be clear, this DOES NOT replace legal mandatory reporting required by your state.  

Resource for church leaders

In addition to this added support for reporting victims, Vineyard USA would like to direct local church pastors and leaders to consider available training related to the care of survivors of abuse.

ChurchCares.com is a free resource that is available immediately for boards, pastors, ministry leaders, and volunteers. Vineyard USA is working on additional training, but is pleased to recommend this resource to Vineyard USA. 

"It is our hope that this curriculum would help every participant know how to respond well to the initial report of abuse at their church, school, or ministry and would make the leader's role clearer.

At the end of this training you should be able to say, "I know what I should do, why, and how to do it." From there it is your responsibility as both a citizen and Christian to have the integrity and courage to be one of God’s agents of protection for those being oppressed by various forms of abuse..

We believe every church must be equipped to respond well in the initial stages of learning about instances of sexual, physical, or emotional abuse. That is why we created Becoming a Church that Cares Well for the Abused. This training curriculum of a handbook, an introductory video, and 12 lesson videos brings together top experts from various fields to help leaders understand and implement the best practices for handling the variety of abuse scenarios at church, school, or ministry."

Guidepost Assessment

November 3, 2022

In an effort to evaluate and create new healthy processes within Vineyard USA churches, Vineyard USA has engaged a globally-recognized independent third-party organization — Guidepost Solutions — to assess how Vineyard USA and our churches handle leadership misconduct, moral failings, restoration processes, and allegations of abuse and misconduct.

The new Vineyard USA National Team began its work earlier this year, charged in part by the former Executive Team, to “develop a broadly-consultative, transparent process for making proposals around church affiliation to Vineyard USA.” As we have begun to consider how we would run that process, we have identified challenges that face our movement related to leadership misconduct, moral failings, and allegations of abuse. 

In each situation, Vineyard USA faces the challenge of bearing significant biblical and moral responsibility for the conduct of Vineyard pastors, but having very limited structural authority within which to enact that responsibility. As outlined in our governing documents, the responsibility to address these situations currently lies solely with each local church board. That structural reality leads to inconsistent and often insufficient responses, as boards are often unable or unprepared to handle these difficult situations and care adequately for those impacted. 

This is true of a number of current situations around the movement and, in review, true of many historic situations as well. These situations are made difficult by the fact that Vineyard USA’s only legal authority related to local church matters is limited to our Trademark Agreement which, on its own, fails to address the significant pastoral needs of churches and individuals during these challenging situations.

Vineyard USA believes it is important that, at this pivotal moment, we learn all we can about the strengths and weaknesses of our movement’s response to leadership misconduct, moral failings, restoration processes, and allegations of abuse and misconduct.

In line with our commitment to transparency, Vineyard USA has hired Guidepost Solutions to conduct an independent third-party assessment of the manner in which Vineyard USA churches have handled cases of misconduct, spiritual abuse, and pastoral moral failures. This assessment will utilize several current and historic case studies. We are compelled to conduct this institutional assessment of Vineyard USA churches, so that we, as a movement, can develop organizational safeguarding policies and best practices, giving us the ability to support pastors, victims, boards and congregations, while also resourcing the ongoing health of all Vineyard USA churches. In this moment, we believe that the Holy Spirit is calling the church in America — and Vineyard USA in particular — to act with conviction where policies are non-existent or insufficient to address areas of leadership misconduct and abuse.

To conduct this Assessment, we have engaged Guidepost Solutions (“Guidepost or GPS”), a global leader in institutional assessments, compliance, and governance issues to assist us by reviewing our organizational structures and recommending ways we can improve. As part of their work, they will have access to a Vineyard Advisory Panel composed of Vineyard leaders (listed in the FAQs) who will provide context for and oversight of their work. Guidepost will undertake targeted interviews, review our governance capabilities and documents, and assess the ability of Vineyard pastors, boards, congregations, and victims, to effectively identify and resolve issues and concerns about pastoral misconduct and abuse. 

Our goal in this review is to gain recommendations from Guidepost about how we can more consistently support pastors boards, and churches and care for victims of abuse, misconduct, and impropriety. Ultimately, we expect that the recommendations that will be offered by Guidepost Solutions will result in greater clarity and more consistent support for churches and individuals.

We estimate that it will take 9-12 months before Guidepost provides us with a written report of their findings and recommendations. Over that 9-12 month period, members of the Vineyard USA National Team as well as the Advisory Panel will be in regular contact with Guidepost. We look forward to updating you on the progress of Guidepost’s work as we are able.We will continue to update this web page as this process continues.

In the meantime, if you have any questions regarding this assessment, please contact me (). I would be happy to discuss this further.

Robb Morgan
Managing Director, Vineyard USA