Ebener Receives Yves Congar Award


04/26/2015

Dan Ebener, DBA, a professor in the St. Ambrose Master of Organizational Leadership program, was presented the 2015 Yves Congar Award by the Conference for Pastoral Planning and Council Development on Tuesday, April 21, in San Antonio, Texas.

The award recognizes Ebener's "lifelong work in planning and leadership development" in multiple roles as a volunteer diocesan leader, a teacher, a consultant and an author of faith-related leadership books.

Ebener attended the organization's annual conference and was present to accept the award. He said being selected for the award was particularly gratifying because it is named for Yves Congar, a 20th Century theologian who played an influential role in changes within the Catholic Church created by the Second Vatican Council.

"Yves Congar is a real hero of mine and to Catholics interested in developing lay leadership in the church," Ebener said. "This man led the changes of Vatican II and epitomizes what it takes to be a leader in the Catholic Church."

CPPCD is a national Catholic association focused on developing best practices in pastoral planning and leadership development. Ebener has been a member for 10 years and speaks to churches, conferences and dioceses about leadership and pastoral planning as often as 25 times each year.

He has authored two leadership books through Catholic publishers, and a another book about strategic planning, co-authored by MOL Adjunct Instructor Fred Smith, will be released by Paulist Press this year.

Ebener said his recognition for the Congar Award is recognition of the MOL program at St. Ambrose as well.

"Whatever insights I have contributed to the fields of leadership and planning are the fruit of many discussions with my MOL colleagues and students," he said. "It is special that the recognition comes from colleagues around the country who are trying to promote leadership in the Catholic Church and develop best practices in pastoral planning. These are two of my passions."

William Lesch, PhD, dean of the St. Ambrose College of Business, said the honor is well-earned.

"Dan has worked for many years, tirelessly so, to advance the latest strategic planning practices throughout the national collection of Catholic dioceses," Lesch said. "He has been a frequent and celebrated speaker and adviser to individual dioceses throughout the country as they undertake improvements to their planning processes. We are very pleased he has received this honor."

News
news

Addy Nelson ’23 was born with an entrepreneur’s spirit. With her parents owning the bowling alley in her hometown of Gregory, South Dakota—the same place she perfected her game to earn a scholarship to St. Ambrose University—she learned early to be innovative, customer-focused and business-minded.

Read More About Innovative App-lication...

News
Maggie (Verdun) Bohnert '15, '16 MOT
News
news

At SAU, hard work = recognition. Here is a list of full-time students who were named to the St. Ambrose University Dean's List for the Fall 2023 term. These students earned a GPA of 3.5 or higher (on a 4.0 scale).

Read More About Fall 2023...

So, what's next?

Are you ready to take the next step? Click on the visit button below to learn more about our virtual and in-person visit options.