One of my favorite things to do in ministry is “On Campus
Club support”. However, I find that
people don’t know what that is or why it is needed.
On Campus Christian Clubs are official school clubs that are
initiated by student interest and leadership.
In other words, the Spanish teacher can decide that he would like to do
a Spanish club. He calls a meeting,
students show up. The Spanish teacher may
even decide what activities will be done.
He can invite his students and even give them extra credit for coming to
the Spanish club. The Spanish teacher
can be very comfortable in his role as a Spanish teacher and the Spanish Club
sponsor. The roles are quite compatible.
The on campus Christian Club functions with a different set
of rules. No teacher can decide that she
would like to sponsor a Christian Club and announce that she will have meeting
in her room. She cannot decide the
topics or activities or give anyone extra credit for attending. The only thing she might be able to do is
announce that she would be interested in sponsoring a Christian Club and see if
any students follow up and ask her to be their sponsor. Maybe at the beginning of the year in her all
about your teacher talk.
It is almost like there is one set of rules for all the
other clubs on campus and whole another set of rules for the Christian
Club. When there is a meeting of faculty
for all club sponsors, the Christian Club sponsor – first of all, is likely to
not be included and if she is, she is the exception to every rule.
To start on campus Christian Club, a student has to go to
the teacher sponsor and ask if they would sponsor their Christian Club. It takes a whole another level of leadership
to start a Christian Club. Sometimes,
students think and wonder about starting a club for a while before they do anything. Can you imagine the student side? You have 5 to 7 teachers. There might be 100 teachers in your school –
Teachers would be hesitant to announce matters of faith – who would you
ask? How would you figure it out?
If you go to your principal, if she is supportive, she might
refer the student to a teacher she knows attends church. If the principal is unsupportive, she might
tell the student: Separation of Church
and State – you can’t do that here.
Principals are sometimes unsupportive for a variety of
reasons. The primary one seems to be the
potential hot bed of political correctness and possible parent complains. It is just easier for a principal to not have
a Christian Club on her campus. Or any
other controversial club for that matter:
A Satanic club, a Future Pole Dancers Club, a Pro Life Club. All of those are legally possible in our
public school system and frankly, the Christian Club will get lumped in with
this list.
On the other hand, a wise principal knows that a Christian
Club will be an asset to her school.
That this club will encourage students to do right, follow the rules,
stand up for what’s right, be good citizens.
It will encourage the kind of students she wants more of. But, a Christian Club is still risky. Those kids could want to pray before the
football game, share Jesus with their
peers, put risky words on their club flyers:
pray, bible, Christian!, pray at the flag pole!
However, an astute principal also knows who will organize
the school food drive or the clothing drive for the hurricane victims in
Haiti. She knows who will lead in the
good.
Let’s go back to our Christian Club sponsor. The Christian Club sponsor has to be asked by
the students. A school is a system where
teachers do the asking and the leading. To sponsor a Christian Club, the teacher has
to be asked by the students to be a team member: the sponsor – a necessary team member. The teacher who is use to leading now has to
let students lead. She also answers to
the principal for the conduct of the club, so she will have to maintain the
status and involvement to cancel the fundraising plan that involves mud
wrestling or other student ideas that are silly, unsavory or just downright
dangerous or ridiculous. This role as a
team member is in contrast to anything a teacher probably does on her
campus. The students have a lot more
freedom and are expected to show a lot more leadership than probably any other
place on their campus.
So, this on Campus Christian Club system is in direct
contrast to the normal operating methods for both teachers and students.
Can you see why both student leaders and club sponsors would
need some help with their roles? My
solution: On Campus Christian Club
Support. Can you see why it is needed?
