Budget and study

DIOCESAN BUDGET

Jim Kalustian, treasurer of the Diocesan Council, then presented the report on the 2005 budget results and the proposed 2007 Diocesan budget.

In 2005 the Diocese had a $26,138 surplus in net operating results. "This also reflects expenses above budget, but revenue was generated to cover those increased costs," Kalustian said. "So we've been able to maintain a positive trend in the last couple of years."

Diocesan revenue mostly comes from three sources: the endowment accounts for 30%, stewardship accounts for 23%, and parish assessments accounts for about 18%.

Youth, education, and outreach spending was about 44% of the expenditures of the $4.5 million budget in 2005. This includes Armenian studies, Christian education, and youth outreach efforts.

Delegates asked about increase in legal and professional stipends between 2004 and 2005. The Council said that increase was because the executive director is no longer salaried, but is instead a contract employee. A similar expense was a consultant hired to replace the former director of stewardship and communications.

In looking at the 2007 budget, Kalustian noted an increase in the proposed budget. The total budget is being proposed at $5.9 million, with revenue expected to grow from $4.5 million in 2005 to $4.8 million in 2007. "It is an investment budget. We would like to move the Diocese to be investing even more in the future of our children," he said.

The new budget reflects a desire to invest more resources into directly serving the regions of the Diocese. The Council is proposing to put five youth leaders into five regions of the Diocese, to work directly with parishes in those regions.

The budget also includes the creation of a three-person development office. One would be devoted to annual giving through the Archbishop's Annual Appeal, one to major donors, and a third person to planned giving and endowments, which would be underwritten by support from the Armenian Church Endowment Fund (ACEF). "We feel we can generate substantial growth in the Archbishop's Annual Appeal and bring in major gifts from our major donors," Kalustian said. "We could continue with small incremental growth. But, if we really want to drive the growth in investment in our youth programs, we need to take the next step."

Delegates asked about funding for the two Diocesan summer camps, Midwest Hye
Camp and St. Vartan Camp in upstate New York, asking for clarity on the spending parity for the two programs. More support for Hye Camp was requested to grow the camp and reach more young children in the Midwest.

"Hye Camp has gone through a number of changes for the better. It has developed into, I think, a great program," said Fr. Aren Jebejian, director of the camp. "Hye Camp is appreciative of the Diocesan staff support. But we anticipate again this year a deficit. There are needy campers who cannot afford to pay for camp."

Kalustian said the Diocese was glad to support such efforts, and asked requests be put into the Diocese. "When you see the applications, we'll figure out a way to fund what's needed," he said. "We're not going to turn campers away. We'll work with you and support you."

Delegates also asked for details on the proposed three-person development office, asking if it needed to be two or three. "The skill sets are different," said Executive Director Haig Yaghoobian.

Delegates suggested the Council examine lowering parish assessments, the "taxes" assessed to parishes. "The parish assessment has not increased since 1992, we've kept it flat in terms of revenue, and as a percent of our budget it is going down," Kalustian said. "We've talked about it would be nice to not have assessments. But we're not at a point we think we can do that yet."

"The benefit of the assessment dollars that are being spent will be much more tangible with the goals of the parish," Kalustian added, noting the major increase in spending in the 2007 budget would be to put staff into the regions. "The Diocesan Council is not in a position to decrease assessments at this time."

The budget was accepted by the delegates, before a discussion of an on-going sociological study of Armenians in the Diocese.

SOCIOLOGICAL STUDY

At the request of last year's Assembly, the Diocese began a sociological study of Armenians in the Eastern United States. The Council hired Dr. Sara Terian to conduct the study, and she spoke to the delegates about the initial findings of her qualitative study.

She studied a largely randomly chosen sample, which was supplemented with subjects referred to her for the study. She spoke to 89 participants, 56 in individual interviews and 33 in seven focus groups. Her interviews ranged from 30 minutes to one hour.

She focused on three general research questions: What do people think about the Church? Is there a disconnect between what people expects and the Church provides? And what could the Church do to appeal to more Armenians.

Almost everyone affirmed the importance of the Armenian Church for the Armenian cultural identity. There is a mix of feelings, many expressed sadness or anger as they expressed their concerns about the Church, she said.

"Even those who almost never attend, even for them it is reassuring that the church is there. And they felt it is important for cultural identity," Terian said.

When asked what the mission of the church was, few had a clear idea, she noted, even church leaders. "Numerous respondents said 'I guess it ought to be preaching the Gospel.' And many said it should be to keep Armenians together and maintain the culture," she said, noting the ideal mission statement provided by the respondents focused on the preservation of the Armenian culture.

"The language issue was definitely tied to the cultural definition. No one mentioned needing the Armenian language for spiritual reasons, but many thought it was valuable for cultural heritage," she said. "And I didn't initiate talk of language, but almost every one brought it up."

Attitude towards language is an indicator of a respondent's attitude towards modernization and assimilation into American culture, she said. She said language does not keep devote people from worshiping, but it can be a reason why they chose a church other than the Armenian Church.

The largest group of people she spoke to saw the Armenian Church as a primary guardian of the traditions and culture of the Armenian people. They are brought into the church for cultural reasons.

"In the end people are not going to the Armenian Church to find God, they are going there to be Armenian," one of the respondents told Terian, who noted that many young people are drawn to the church for cultural reasons and do not feel the need for the theological part of the church.

Those respondents who were most content with the Armenian Church were made up of many immigrants and clergy.

"Faith verses culture is at the core of my respondents statements and concerns," she said. "Unfortunately many of my interviewees thought the church was failing at its mission."

One surprising finding, she said, was the feeling that the Armenian Church was not viewed as a welcoming church for strangers.

"There was a strong wish for priests to be people-oriented, to be genuinely interested in their parishioners and to get to know them," Terian said. "Many priests are indeed such people, and some priests have drawn people into their parishioners by the sheer power of their personality. The warm welcome, however, should not be left to the priest only. Several respondents noted in other churches there are welcomers who make new people feel welcome."

"There is some discrepancies between what people desire and what the Church provides," she said.

"There is a danger there is too much attention on culture and identity and that takes precedence over knowing the Gospel and their faith," she said, noting the importance of education at all levels. "There is a great hunger for learning about the faith. There was also a great hunger for leaders to be more in touch and welcoming."

The final report will be provided in September. Regional focus groups will then be held to study the results. The final report with additional notes will be turned into concrete implementation recommendations by February 2007.

Delegates warned that since this is a small, qualitative study, outcomes should be taken with a grain of salt.

Posted by Jake at May 6, 2006 12:29 PM