Education For Ministry

Affectionately known as EFM, this program of theological education-at-a-distance of the School of Theology of the University of the South has demonstrated for over 25 years that you don’t have to be ordained to learn about your faith.  Through the EFM program, the school seeks to educate lay people in areas of scripture, theology, church history and ethics with a four year academic program. Students meet regularly, usually once a week, in seminars under the guidance of trained mentors. The program grants a certificate at the completion of the four years and 18 Continuing Education Units for each year's work.In the fall of 2003, a new class entered EFM, and we invite all parishioners to consider making this a part of his or her spiritual journey.

History and Scope of the Program

The Education for Ministry program began with a vision of enrolling a few hundred students. Within a few years it developed into a program reaching several thousand students with groups around the globe. In addition to EFM groups throughout the USA, EFM can be found in Germany, Great Britain, New Zealand, Australia, Canada, the Bahamas, Hong Kong, Honduras, and Nicaragua. The expansion continues and the program is available in a Spanish translation.

Over 60,000 students have participated in the program, and in the United States more than 16,000 students have completed the full four years. The 1999/2000 USA enrollment reached nearly 8,000. More than eighty dioceses of the Episcopal Church as well as other denominations have contractual arrangements with EFM.

For more information, please click here to be linked to the EFM Home Page.

(all information on this page was adapted from the EFM Home Page - www.sewanee.edu/EFM/EFMhome.html)