7.1 Role of Local Leaders
Support from local priesthood, auxiliary, and other leaders is vital to the success of PathwayConnect at each site. Local leaders identify Church members who may benefit from PathwayConnect, provide facilities for PathwayConnect gatherings, call service missionaries, and much more. Some of the key leaders who offer support to PathwayConnect include:
- Area Presidencies (where applicable)
- Area Seventies
- Agent stake presidents
- Institute directors
- PEF Self-Reliance managers (where applicable)
Area Presidencies are typically involved only with international PathwayConnect locations. In lending their support, the Area Presidency:
- Determines the manner in which PathwayConnect will be administered in their area
- Assigns Area Seventies to execute PathwayConnect’s initial launch and expansion efforts
- Coordinates expansion efforts with PathwayConnect administrators
Area Seventies support PathwayConnect by:
- Assigning an agent stake president to administer PathwayConnect locally
- Garnering strong stake leadership support for PathwayConnect
- Orchestrating multi-stake implementation and cooperation
- Coordinating expansion efforts with PathwayConnect administrators and the Area Presidency (where applicable)
- Establishing finding goals and distributing responsibility
- Providing structured feedback regarding the program
At each PathwayConnect site, an Area Seventy assigns one stake president as the “agent.” Although all stake presidents in the region surrounding a PathwayConnect site contribute to the program’s success, the agent stake president specifically:
- Assists with initial program implementation
- Identifies and calls service missionaries
- Works with service missionaries to ensure program success
- Encourages stake/ward auxiliary leaders to support PathwayConnect
- Collaborates with others stakes in finding prospective students and missionaries
- Coordinates expansion efforts with the Area Seventy and PathwayConnect administrators
- Provides structured feedback regarding the program
Institute directors offer support to PathwayConnect by:
- Offering courses for transferable credit
- Providing classrooms with Internet connectivity during gatherings
- Allowing PathwayConnect students and missionaries access to institute facilities during BYU-Idaho’s academic year (September–July)
- Coordinating institute classes in English
- Assisting in finding potential students
- Providing structured feedback regarding the program
PEF Self-Reliance managers are typically only involved with international PathwayConnect locations. They offer support to PathwayConnect by:
- Helping to promote PathwayConnect
- Coordinating finding efforts with the agent stake president and service missionaries
- Assisting with new site implementation and expansion