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Monday, January 31, 2011

Majoring on Majors?

When I was staff on campus at Washington State, a lot of time went into thinking about what year our students were (Frosh, Soph, etc.) and where they lived on campus. Much less time went into thinking about their academic focus. I think that may have been a missed opportunity.

A sampling of the majors that attended our recent Winter Conference is at right.

How might ministry look different for a business major vs. a nursing major? Outdoor recreation vs a math major? 

What about when they get to the workforce?

In thinking about our conference next year, one beneficial tactic might be to get people of like/similar major together. Imagine a room full of business majors. How could they minister to their peers within the department? What skills/talents/strengths do they have that could serve their campus ministry? Could a group of them connect post graduation to help reach a workplace (or even a city)? What would ministry look like in this area of the workforce? 

Do you consider majors as you work with students? How could we better incorporate this into how we win, build, and send students?




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2 comments:

  1. RussFebruary 25, 2011 at 10:12 AM

    Excellent thoughts Darren. At one of our winter conferences each year, the conference includes a lunch at the hotel where students get together with others in the same area of interest or specialty. They are provided with a set of questions that help facilitate collaboration in sharing best practices for outreach in their specific areas.

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  2. DHFebruary 25, 2011 at 1:01 PM

    Thanks, Russ. The lunch idea sounds similar to what we're thinking about for this upcoming year. One idea is to have both a Cru alumni in the secular/non-staff workforce and a current staff member that both graduated with the same/similar degree share and dialogue with students currently studying in that field. While this won't be possible for all majors (maybe departments, like engineering, education, business, etc.), it would make for an interesting conversation.

    For instance: If I were speaking to (electrical) engineers, I could share how I might not be designing circuits on staff, but I do get to solve problems and work on complex tasks that need to be broken down in to their components and addressed one by one. Someone working in EE would be able to paint a picture of what following Christ, and influencing others toward the gospel, looks like working for a secular company (likely) filled with analytical, logical thinkers.

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