I have done my best
to summarize the most frequently mentioned themes. I looked for the major perceptions that I
felt the elders, church, teenagers and adult members need to hear. I have not included direct comments in order
to protect confidentiality of those who participated.
Youth Program Evaluation
The youth ministry
program should be collaborative in nature for the future. It is not the youth minister's program nor is
it the parent's or teen's program. The
church needs to embrace a vision of the youth ministry being everyone's
job.
There were a few
concerns about the number of events in the calendar, and the cost for events. This is especially true for any family that
has multiple teens. The youth ministry
should stress quality rather than quantity due to the increasingly busy
schedules of our families. The new youth
minister should continue to check in with parents about the costs and rate of
activity to be sensitive to this issue.
I would encourage a youth minister set up a way for families to
contribute whatever monies that they can give and have a fund to help secure
the remaining amount so that the teen is able to attend the event. There may be some members in your congregation
who would gladly respond to this type of program. I will give you more details about how to
implement this in your church.
The volunteer base of
the youth ministry needs to be expanded to include a wide variety of
people. This transitional period is an
opportunity for more people to step up or be invited to become a part of the
volunteer force in youth ministry. There
are people of all ages that believe in the mission of the youth ministry who
are waiting for someone to ask them to be involved. The search committee will want to pursue
someone who can be collaborative with all the members at West-Ark no matter
what age.
What Elders Can Do?
Make sure students
know you are praying for them and with them.
Elders might go by the classroom for the next few months and just pray
with and for the teens. Let the teens
know that you would appreciate their prayers.
More contact with the
teens informally. Go and be with them
during the good times. Start building
some positive interactions together.
When the new youth
minister gets to West-Ark, the eldership should be his biggest supporters. Be intentional about knowing what is going on
in the youth ministry.
The eldership needs
to believe in the direction and management of the youth ministry which means
they need to observe and have direct experiences with the youth minister, the teenagers
and their parents.
How can the youth ministry grow?
The new youth
minister needs to model that he cares about Christian school students and
public school students equally.
The youth minister
and eldership need to be unified and supportive of one another.
More parent-youth
activities that help us encourage each other.
More youth
involvement in the worship and inner workings of the church. The teens need to be included and involved
rather than watch the adults do church.
What would you say to the search committee?
Experience and
training is important
A high energy level
is needed for this job
Make sure the youth
minister has a passion and desire to work with teens and adults
Final Comments - Summary
This time of
transition is an opportunity for everyone to get involved. I would encourage you to increase the base of
volunteers in the youth ministry. If
more people are encouraged that they are needed, the next youth minister may
start with a bigger number of volunteers than you ever had before. Make sure that the transitional leadership
does not send a signal that the ministry only needs a few committed
leaders. Transitions are times of great
opportunity.
Keep your youth
ministry search group focused on the future. The past is not going to change. The power to change is to focus on what you
want in the future.
There must be a
collaborative relationship between the youth minister and the parents. The parents are looking for someone who will
communicate with them just as much as he communicates with the teenagers. Make sure the parents get a chance to meet
your candidate and feel good about how he interacts with them.
The church is looking
for someone with wisdom. They want to
feel this person is fun and high energy, but has the maturity to manage
themselves and the ministry. The
candidate should have some wisdom on how to deal with conflict and bring things
to resolution.
Make sure the
teenagers feel they are a part of the process before the decision is
final. A series of visits with just the
teens and the search committee before any decisions are made will be important.
This will help them to feel more ownership of their program, and they are more
likely to want the next youth minister to succeed if they were consulted.
Robert Oglesby