Should College Ministers be Furloughed?

Should College Ministers be furloughed?.....that question had never even passed through my mind even once.  Then, a College Minister shared with me that there was some concern among some of his colleagues that if their colleges went all on line this year, they might be furloughed.  That was a total new and even foreign thought to me.

A few colleges have furloughed some or all of their coaches since there are no sports this fall at those campuses.  Is that the same thing?  Is that comparing apples to apples?  I am a proponent of in person large group campus Christian worship and Bible study events.  I love them for tons of reasons. I am never for getting rid of them.  Yet, I believe the most transformative thing we can do with a college student is meet with them one to one regularly. 

As all our studies indicate, this younger generation is going away from faith and church in growing numbers.  So, should we furlough those that are trained and committed to reaching out to them?  Is that the same as not having a football, volleyball or golf season?  If a ministry has a Center on or near the campus, should they shut it down, sell it, rent it out?  What if we get a vaccine and all goes back to "normal" next year?  Oops, we shut down and went out of business.  Let's start from scratch.

When colleges shut down on campus classes last spring, College Ministers went on line and began having one to one, large group, and small group Bible studies.  Many reported non-Christian students coming to faith during this time as many were wrestling with questions about life.  Mental health professionals report a much higher incidence of depression and thoughts of suicide in young adults during this health crisis and the loss of normal events and activities.  College Ministers are on line and meeting one to one with students and responding to their questions and doubts.

I can imagine some saying, "You don't understand; it's a matter of finances.".  There is concern that offerings to churches will continue to drop as many struggle with job loss and so denominations like Southern Baptists will have to make cuts.  I understand balancing budgets.  I still remember when the coke machine profit was the second largest contributor to our campus ministry.  I get hard financial decisions.  But, it seems that college ministry often takes the first or disproportionate hit. 

Maybe it comes down to this.  Is reaching out to young adults on college campuses a luxury or a mission?  What will our churches look like ten to fifteen years from now, if we give up on college ministry?  Where will the new missionaries come from? One could argue, "furlough is not giving up.".  But, at the very least, it would be a giant step backwards.  How many seasoned veterans would be lost who simply had to seek other employment?  How many ministries would survive being shut down and then starting again from scratch?

When our church went totally on line, not a single person in our church said, "Maybe, we ought to furlough the preacher.".  Even when college campuses go totally on line, there is ministry happening with and to young adults.  Is it all we would like it to be?  No!  Are there some good things happening?  Yes!  Should College Ministers be furloughed?  Not if we are thinking missional and strategically.  College ministry is not a luxury....it is a necessity, if we care about the future.

Arliss Dickerson is a college ministry coach, blogger and author.  His book, ALMOST EVERYTHING ABOUT COLLEGE MINISTRY, is available at Amazon.com/dp/B08CMD9CXX .