650 – Forms Are Your Friend

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Tune in to WELSTech this week for information on church and school communication using online forms. Martin and Sallie share retro picks of the week plus community feedback.  And you’ll want to grab a link to the Martin Luther College Holy Week devotions … in song!

The discussion

Contact Us – Martin and Sallie discuss online forms for churches and schools – the tools, the rules, the data to collect.

Picks of the week

Ministry resource

7 integrated online forms your church should be using this summer

Community feedback

WELS now

Martin Luther College Holy Week Devotions – My Song Is Love Unknown

Next time

Guests hosts, education technology, and school marketing are on the horizon!

Get involved

649 – Great City Network

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This week’s WELSTech includes a look at the offerings of Great City Network and the wrap up of The Post-Quarantine Church book discussion. There’s also chat about a Lenten podcast, texting in church, online giving, and capturing parent’s attention as they search online for school options.

The interview

Outside-the-box urban ministry – Pastor Kent Reeder from Illume Church, Seattle, WA and Dan Jaspersen, curator, join us to discuss the formation and three-fold vision of Great City Network – collaborating, training, and skill sharing.

The book discussion

From challenges to opportunities – Martin and Sallie finish their discussion of The Post-Quarantine Church  by Thom Rainer.

Picks of the week

Ministry resource

Heart to heart: parent conversations series – Audio and video

WELS now

Jesus’ Passion – 40 days of Bible readings with commentary by Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary Professor Stephen Geiger, available in audio podcast and video formats. Here’s a sample:

Community feedback

Next time

WELS has a new Contact Us form and perhaps your church or school needs something similar.

Get involved

648 – Luck Is The Residue Of Design

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We’re breaking tradition to bring you WELSTech on a Thursday this week, but no worries. The “hit parade” is here, just like always! Listen for details on NDI video streaming, unique opportunities to consider as your congregation emerges from the pandemic, a bit of basketball, suspended suspenders, and so much more. Join the conversation!

The interview

NDI video streaming – Teacher Justin Liepert from Wisconsin Lutheran High School in Milwaukee, WI shares details of their recent live streaming hardware upgrades.

The book discussion

The Post-Quarantine Church – Martin and Sallie continue the discussion of Thom Rainer’s book, specifically covering chapters 3, 4 and 5.  Read along and perhaps share and discuss in your congregations.

Picks of the week

Ministry resource

Finalweb 2.0 YouTube playlist

Community feedback

WELS now

Marriage Moments now in the WELS app

Next time

Pastor Kent Reeder and Dan Jaspersen share details about a new church communication initiative they are launching, and we wrap up our Post-Quarantine Church book discussion.

Get involved

647 – Rachel and Jason EdTech Favorites

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WELSTech welcomes guest hosts Rachel and Jason for a discussion of our favorite edtech resources. Plus we share picks, events, discussions, and reports to supplement your tech-in-ministry efforts!

The discussion

The best in edtech – Our WELSTech edtech gurus extraordinaire – Prof. Rachel Feld from Martin Luther College and Jason Schmidt from the Oconto Falls School District – are back, and the discussion centers on our favorite edtech content.

Picks of the week

Ministry resource

Sign up for the Learning with Google event – February 17 from 2 to 3:30 pm Central

Community feedback

WELS now

WELS annual report

Next time

Coming up in two weeks, teacher Justin Liepert is in the interview chair and Martin and Sallie talk about the post-quarantine church.

Get involved

646 – The Post-Quarantine Church

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Happy 13th anniversary to WELSTech! Today’s show includes a new book discussion, changes to Facebook, Edge browser features which may convert you, online collaboration resources for teachers and more. Join the celebration/conversation!

The discussion

To kick off the new year of podcasting, Martin and Sallie start a new book discussion of The Post-Quarantine Church by Thom Rainer.  Today’s show covers the introduction and chapters 1 & 2. We know the pandemic will end at some point and we want the church to be ready to operate in the new normal which emerges. Read along and perhaps share and discuss in your congregations.

Picks of the week

Ministry resource + WELS now

From the Lutheran Schools Office

Community feedback

Next time

Edtech is center stage as we welcome back Prof. Rachel Feld & Jason Schmidt to the guest host chairs.

Get involved

645 – Looking Back At 2020

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WELSTech wraps up year 13 of podcasts with a review of highlights from this pandemic year!

The discussion

Unprecedented – Martin and Sallie consider the blessings (and challenges) of tech in ministry as we close out 2020, a year like no other.

Events

Episode titles

Photos

Ministry resources

Interviews:

Picks of the week

Get involved

644 – Five Below Cables

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WELSTech is back with the final installment of our Atomic Habits book discussion as well as an interview about cyber security training for children. Martin and Sallie make their last picks of 2020, and we learn about captioning video calls. The beautiful Christmas concert from Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary closes this last podcast before Christmas, and we send our best wishes to WELSTech listeners for a joyous celebration of our Savior’s birth.

The discussion

Make It Satisfying – Just in time to apply to the new year, Martin and Sallie finish their book discussion of Atomic Habits by James Clear with a look at the 4th law and taking your habits from good to great.

Join us in January for our next book discussion of The Post-Quarantine Church by Thom Rainer.

The interview

Security education – MLC second-career staff ministry student Mike Tracy shares his experience in cyber security training, and, in particular, his thoughts on training children about information security.

Picks of the week

Ministry resource

How to Add Closed Captions to a Video Call

Community feedback

WELS now

Creating digital side doors featuring Pastor Peter Hagen and the Raised with Jesus podcast from the December Forward in Christ magazine.

Enjoy the Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary Christmas concert.

Next time

2020 is drawing to a close, and that means it’s time to look back at some of our favorite WELSTech moments of the year.

Get involved

643 – Mind Candy

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Tune in to this week’s WELSTech for a great discussion of the 3rd Law of Atomic Habits. Stay tuned in for a little bit of Elon, Van Gogh, virtual team building, and hymn previews plus lots more WELSTech goodness to enhance your public and personal ministry efforts!

The discussion

Reduce friction – Martin and Sallie return to the book discussion of James Clear’s Atomic Habits, this week focusing on the 3rd Law, Make It Easy (chapters 11-14).  Sallie even has a (short) chat with the author!

Picks of the week

  • 5 Quick Team Building Activities To Do Via Conference Calls
  • Macbook Air M1

Ministry resource

In the Facebook group WELS Educators During COVID-19 and Beyond, Lori Ehlke (St Paul’s, Onalaska, WI) shared an art tutorial video titled Van Gogh Nativity. Check out her YouTube channel for more – Ehlke Art.

Community feedback

WELS now

Christian Worship Hymn Preview

Next time

We wrap up our discussion of Atomic Habits (chapter 15 to the end) and chat with Mike Tracy about cyber security training for schools.

Get involved

642 – Screencast Tools and Tips

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We’re giving thanks this week on WELSTech – for our WELSTech community and for our awesome edtech co-hosts, Rachel & Jason. Tune in for a lively discussion of screencasting as well as picks, resources, and feedback that are sure to enhance your ministry efforts. Plus there’s something new on WELSTech, and you don’t want to miss the announcement!

Subscribe to WELSTech

A new feature on WELSTech is the ability to subscribe to receive e-mail alerts when new episodes of the podcast are released.

The discussion

Image by mmi9 from Pixabay

It’s really that easy – Martin and Sallie are joined by semi-regular classroom technology correspondents Rachel Feld, Director of Academic Computing at Martin Luther College, and Jason Schmidt, Instructional Technology Coach for Oconto Falls School District, and the topic of the day is screencasting.

Tools

Tips

Picks of the week

Ministry resource

WELS Educators During Covid-19 and Beyond

Community feedback

WELS now

While you are subscribing to WELSTech e-news, you may also want to sample a recent release of the weekly e-news from WELS Lutheran Schools, check out the archives, and subscribe.

Next time

We’ll do this again in two weeks, and the topic will be the 3rd Law of Atomic Habits – Make It Easy (chapters 11-14).

Get involved

641 – Make It Attractive

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This week on WELSTech we share the story of one school’s largely digital rebranding efforts that gave them community recognition and a large enrollment increase. We also have more from our Atomic Habits book discussion, a couple of great picks of the week, free early childhood education resources and more!

The interview

Rebranding for Outreach – Brian Polfer serves on the Board of Education at Carlsbad Christian Academy, the school ministry of Beautiful Saviour Lutheran Church, Carlsbad, CA. He joins Martin and Sallie to share details of the steps they took to more than quadruple their school enrollment this year – from changing the school name to Google and Facebook advertising to a mobile-friendly website and more.

The discussion

Temptation Bundling – Martin and Sallie explore the second law of Atomic Habits by James Clear, which adds temptation (incentive) bundling to habit stacking (chapters 8-10).

Picks of the week

Ministry resource

Christmas Event Planning Amid COVID-19 from Church Tech Today

Community feedback

WELS now

ChristLight Sunday School at Home is extended through Winter and Spring!

Pastor Donn Dobberstein, Administrator of WELS Discipleship, shares thoughts on the program.

Next time

Edtech with Rachel Feld and Jason Schmidt!

Get involved