What About LARGE College Ministries, Baptists and the Future?

In my previous blog article, I wrote of the different factors or keys in having a LARGE college ministry. While Southern Baptists have some really LARGE campus based ministries, many  of the LARGE ministries tend to be non-denominational with large staffs or a local church ministry. Both the non-denominational and church ministries usually have large staffs and significant funding. So, where do Southern Baptists fall in all of this and what is our future?

 1.  Most  Baptist Collegiate Ministry staffs are made up of 1-3 people. Really large ministries usually have 10-25 staffers.  Many or all of these larger ministry staff people raise their own salaries, which is not widely done in Baptist circles, although it is gaining more acceptance. If we want more LARGE ministries, we must staff for a LARGE ministry. 

2.  Southern Baptists have generally leaned toward having staff on as many four year campuses as possible.  Non-denominational ministries usually target campuses such as larger schools or what are termed flag-ship campuses. Should Baptists target some campuses with larger staffs or continue to be on as many campuses as possible?

3.  BCM Campus Ministers are usually not as entrepreneurial in approach as many non-denominational Campus Ministers.  This is related at least partly to working with and for a variety of churches that may have different views as to what is acceptable and not acceptable.  This is changing in some states as their BCM Campus Ministers are doing annual fund raising banquets.

4.  Some believe that having the name Baptist in the ministry name tends to serve as an unintended exclusion to non-Baptists.  Plus, today's generation is increasingly leery of denominations.  Baptist ministries outside the south usually operate under more generic names that do not have Baptist in the title.  What are the pros and cons of the names such as Baptist Collegiate Ministry, Baptist Student Union, Baptist Student Ministries, etc?

As some believe that Southern Baptist giving and funding will steadily decrease due to the loss of the older "tithing generation" and disgust with denominational politics grows, what are some options?  Here are some thoughts in no order.  None are perfect!

1.  Target certain campuses and focus resources.  The targeted campuses could be the flag-ship campuses or ones where the ministry has been traditionally strong and there are not lots of ministries either on campus or in local churches.

2.  Hire veteran, experienced College Ministers (and pay them good salaries) that would supervise a large number of "Intern types" that would work on a number of campuses.  Obviously, these "Intern Types" work cheaper. These veteran pros would train, supervise, and develop a blueprint for each ministry.

3.  Adopt "The Virginia Model".  Instead of cutting positions, keep all the current positions at a reduced salary and allow them to raise a portion of their salary which would be livable and keep experienced veterans on the job. The State Baptist Convention of Virginia pays their Campus Ministers a salary and requires them to raise a percentage of their salary.

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