Director of Marriage & Family Life

FLSA:
Exempt

General Description::
Primary Purpose: Provide support to parishes of the Diocese of Sioux City in preparation for the Vocation and Sacrament of Marriage, as well as Family Ministry.

Duties and Responsibilities:
Essential Functions: 1.Cast a vision and lead training days for priests, parish leaders, and sponsor couples on the marriage catechumenate. Develop and lead sponsor couple trainings in deaneries and parishes. 2.Create deanery “cohorts” for sponsor couples with the purpose of offering support amongst the community and sharing resources. Offer sponsor couple retreats and host appreciation dinners for their work. 3.Evaluate marriage preparation curriculums. Consult with parishes to effectively implement them. Teach marriage preparation classes when applicable. 4.Oversee the FOCCUS Inventory for engaged couples preparing for marriage. 5.Collaborate with parishes in developing, implementing, and promoting non-English language marriage and family ministry programming and materials (e.g., marriage preparation and enrichment). 6.Lead marriage enrichment retreats and date nights.7.Plan and promote Natural Family Planning (NFP) efforts. Train and coordinate NFP leaders in the diocese. Improve communication between the diocese and NFP leaders, cultivating support and encouraging growth of the NFP community. 8.Develop and carry out a family ministry conference/event.9.Develop and implement ministry efforts for the divorced, widowed, and remarried. 10.Serve as resource person for materials pertinent to needs in the life cycle, e.g., grief/loss ministry, marriage enrichment, divorce and remarriage issues, elder care, and other programs as developed. 11.Grow in understanding of special needs ministry. Offer support and formation to parishes to grow efforts for special needs people. 12.Assisting with other duties as assigned for special projects, balancing of workload, and/or assisting in the absence of other employees.

Minimum Qualifications:
Knowledge, Skills, Experience Required or Preferred:Must be a practicing Catholic in good standing with the Catholic Church. Bachelor’s Degree in Theology or related field required, Master’s Degree in Theology or related field preferred. Three or more years work experience in catechesis and evangelization within a parish or Catholic school is preferred. Previous training and experience relating to marriage preparation, natural family planning, and adult catechesis is preferred. Demonstrated ability to formulate and implement processes with many interrelated components and work as a member of a team. Strong communication skills, able to communicate with pastors, staff, parishioners, and administrative boards required. Knowledge and understanding of a foreign language and cultural competency is preferred.Physical and Cognitive Requirements: Sedentary work - involves sitting most of the time, walking and standing are required occasionally. Duties require extensive travel including evening and weekend meetings. Although work is performed primarily under inside environmental conditions, the required travel may result in temporary exposure to outside environmental conditions. Regular driving and valid driver’s license are required. Excellent listening and communication abilities needed. Duties require a wide range of intellectual and practical problem solving skills and comprehension of complex concepts.