The Evolution of a Title in Baptist College Ministry

It has been interesting to me to see the evolution and use of different titles for those who do college ministry in Baptist life.  I think some have been intentional to convey a specific understanding of the role and I think some have also been more accidental.

Student Secretary was the primary term used during the 50's.  I don't know what the intent was for this title. That title also reflects how college ministry used to be called "Student Ministry" in the 50's and 60's.  But, youth ministry began to use this term during the 60's and 70's.  If you were to use this term today, almost no one would think it tied to college ministry.

BSU Director came to be the term used from the 60's through the 90's.  One of the purposes of this title was to emphasize the emphasis of that time that it was to be a ministry done by students for students.  It was often said and my supervisor said to me, "If you are up front all the time, you are not doing your job."  You were to be an equipper. The students were to be the prime do'ers.

Campus Minister has come to be the predominant term during the 2000's.  One of the reasons for the intentional use of this term has been to emphasize that college ministry is a God calling just like that of a pastor or Youth Minister, etc.  Many had seen college ministry as just something you did while you were young or until you could get a real ministry job at a church.  In the 60's through the 90's some of the best known BSU Directors were women.  I think one of the unintentional results of the switch to Campus Minister was to cause fewer women to be able to serve in this role as a result of the use of the term "Minister".

Campus Pastor is one of the newer title evolutions.  I will confess to liking it the least as it conveys the idea of the college ministry being a church.  That has been the thing that Baptist collegiate ministry has worked hard not to be, but to be a ministry of the local churches.  Now, there are churches being started on campus by some and perhaps this would be the best title for them.

Campus Missionary is perhaps the latest term.  It has been used primarily by most who are serving a one or two year term on campus under a veteran Campus Minister.  A few long term folks are taking this title.  The obvious purpose of this to help people in the churches to see and understand the importance of reaching college campuses and to give it the same emphasis as Foreign Missions.

Which title do YOU prefer?  Or, what do you see as the next evolution of the title? 

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Many College Freshmen have Half-Way Dropped Church Before they get to College

What do I mean by, "Many college freshmen have half-way dropped church BEFORE they get to college?"

You will hear many college ministry folks like me quote the statistic, "60 to 70% of high school seniors active in church make NO spiritual connections in college."  

I stand by that statement and those percentages......but........and however

Youth ministry folks will tell you that many of their senior high students come on Wednesday night for youth group and are not regular attenders on Sunday for big church and Bible study groups.   Their schedules are packed with all kinds of activities and they have gotten their driver's license.  Often, their folks, who know they are run down and tired, give them the option of going on Sunday morning and many of them do not.

So, when they graduate from high school, they have basically graduated from their church.....the youth group.

Some larger churches to combat the loss of youth to Sunday morning church have gone to having Sunday Youth Worship.  They are there on Sunday, but not connected to the church as a whole.  

So, it is not that the vast majority of college freshmen make an abrupt change in their church involvement.  For many, they have been in the process of dropping out the last couple of years.

In addition, some larger churches have gone to Sunday Youth Worship which is separate from the church as a whole.

If we want to combat losing our youth to faith commitment and involvement in college, we have to realize that it needs to start early in high school. I will go as far as to say, Sunday school and worship involvement are MORE important than Wednesday youth group, if you have to drop one.

BUT, IF YOU HAVE A FRESHMAN NOW, HERE ARE 4 THINGS YOU CAN DO:

1.  Contact the BCM or other campus ministry or local college church with their contact info.  A grandmother just had me pass on the info for her freshman to a BCM Campus Minister.  It is not too late.

2.  You can encourage them to go and ask about what they may have already done.  You still have influence in their life.

3.  If you are going for parents weekend or Homecoming, make plans for all of you to attend a college friendly church that weekend.  It is way easier for them to go back to some place they have already been.

4.  Pray for your freshman.  If you are half way comfortable doing so, ask them when you talk, what they would like for you to pray on their behalf.  That in itself will be an encouragement!

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Why Don't Church College Ministries and Campus College Ministries Work Together?

 So, I was leading a Breakout session at National Collegiate Week in New Mexico when a nice lady who had come to help cook for their college group raised her hand and said, "Why don't church college ministries and campus ministry work together?  You could feel a lot of the air in the room go out.  We just don't talk about that out loud in front of polite company.

So, here is the deal....it is complicated.  Some try and some don't try....on both sides.  The BCM/BSM/BSU College Ministers I know have working with churches as a key part of their job description and generally work hard at making it happen.  

Here are some of the factors that complicate the situation:

1.  "There are plenty of college students to go around." is one of the common things said.  And, that is absolutely true.  But, here is what is also true.  For a college ministry to work and go well, you need good student leaders and there is often a shortage of those. So, there is often some tug and pull for them.  Often churches are able to pay for some "interns" and obviously getting paid to do it and doing it for free on campus is different.

2.  Church College Ministers tend to feel more pressure to produce numbers.  I am not sure why that is, but I have found it to be generally true. For some, that pressure comes from the pastor and for others it is trying to demonstrate the validity of their position and their budget.  A friend of mine who went from being campus based to church based at a large church got fussed at by the pastor for their student numbers being down the first weekend there was not a home football game. Students had gone home for the weekend.

3.  One campus based College Minister said, "The churches hire my best graduates or upperclassmen to do their college ministry and they turn around and do exactly what they experienced on campus in my ministry."  I (Arliss) believe that church based and campus based should look different.  One of the keys of church based college ministry is to connect students to the church as a whole. That is harder than just having a student event.  When the ministries look the same, why go to both?

4.  Generally (and this is a generalization) Campus Based College Ministers and Church Based College Ministers are different.  For some years I worked as a part time consultant in college ministry for Lifeway where I worked on the National Collegiate Ministers Summit, a once every 3 year meeting.  What we generally found was that Church Based College Ministers wanted preaching and Campus Based wanted more "How to" Breakouts.  Partly, Church College Ministers tend to be more speaker types, but I see that shifting now with more wanting campus College Ministers to be speakers.

5.  Church Based College Ministry positions tend to turn over more frequently.  Some years ago in my role with Lifeway, I was trying to get an accurate number of how many churches in the SBC had College Ministers.  It is not nearly as many as you might think. I called the State BCM/BSM/BSU coordinator in each state and to a person, each said, it is hard to give you a number because they turn over so quickly. I think part of that goes back to Number 2.  But, it has seemed that many Church College Ministers see themselves moving toward the pastorate when the opportunity comes and Campus College Ministers don't seem prone that direction as much.  Because of turnover, then new Church College Ministers are scrambling to get a crowd and being "cooperative" gets lost in the shuffle.

6.  Campus Based College Ministers resent that their ministry gets compared unfavorably to Church College Ministries that often tend to have much larger budgets and lots of interns or even multiple staff members.  It is not apples to apples comparisons, but folks on the outside making those comparisons don't see that.

7.  One "Un-cooperative" person in the mix can create an unhealthy tension or competition for all.  Here are a couple of examples.  One BCM Campus Minister invited all the church College Ministers to say a few words and introduce their ministry at their first BCM event.  One announced and promoted his weekly meeting starting the next week that was the exact same day and time as the BCM one.  Another campus based told the story of organizing a Progressive Dinner for Freshmen through all the churches. At the first stop they had all kind of fun things going on and the College Minister announced if they wanted to just stay there instead of going on, they would take them back to campus.  A large number stayed and the rest of the churches only saw about half what they had planned for.

8.  One Campus College Minister said, "The churches want me to give all my students and especially student leaders to them, but I have to be big and strong enough to help the churches."

Should Campus Based and Church Based College Ministries work together?  Yes...without a doubt.  But, it is complicated and takes extra work. Sometimes, one is willing and the other is not or they see differently what that means and how it will affect them.  

"Teacher, said John, we saw a man driving out demons in your name and we told him to stop, because he was not one of us.  Do not stop him, Jesus said.  No one who does a miracle in my name can in the next moment say anything bad about me, for whoever is not against us is for us."  Mark 9:38-40 

"30 Devotionals for College Freshmen"  Amazon.com/dp/B0H8K6L1QX

"Reaching MORE College Students"  Amazon.com/dp/B0BMW8NPMN

The Role of the College Minister as the Leader of the Ministry

The College Minister is the face of the ministry.  If others see the College Minister in a positive way, they see the ministry in a positive way......and vice versa.

The College Minister must realize and accept his or her role as the leader of the ministry:

1.  Have a vision and plan for the ministry.  

2.  Communicate clearly and often the vision of the ministry. 

3.  Ask others to lead in a variety of ways (particularly areas where you are not gifted) and allow them to do so.

4.  Never forget that no matter who does what, you are responsible.

5.  Never expect anything of students that you are not willing to do.

6.  Realize that every meeting with a campus administrator is an opportunity for future doors to open or close.

7.  Work at being a respected and responsible member of the campus community.

8.  Be conscious of the appearance of your interactions with members of the opposite sex.  Never let that compromise your reputation and the reputation of the ministry as a whole.  Appearances matter.

Adapted from "Reaching MORE College Students" Amazon.com/dp/B0BMW8NPMN.

Check out "30 Devotionals for College Freshmen" at Amazon.com/dp/B0H8K6L1QX.