"Only a handful of studies examine the long-term effects of college on religious attitudes and values, but with one exception, they indicate that changes in this area occur during but apparently not after the college years. Where there are postcollege changes, they are slight and generally away | from traditional religious values." p 323-324 (page break is where | is inserted)

Hey, here's a quote from the Oct 17th Stanford Daily. Ehud Barak, the former Israeli Prime Minister, is a Stanford grad and spoke at the university last night. ------------------------------------------------------------- Though Barak ultimately left his mark on the world not through academia but rather through the military and politics, he said that he considers universities to be at the forefront of international leadership. "Somehow, the university is the place where the leadership of the future in all areas of life is formed," he said. "Since the best and the brightest are coming through . . . these institutions, they have a great influence on the leadership of this nation and nations as a whole."

another potential slogan: faith, friendship, and fun

Challenges of college ministry: Heresy: bad beliefs Hedonism: bad behavior

we want to change the changers

A home missionary is without honor in his own district.

Bumper sticker for pastors: Yes, this is my church. No, you can't have a pledge.

Near memchu A circle with roses and benches For the TROUBLED may you find PEACE For the DESPAIRING may you find HOPE For the LONELY may you find LOVE For the SKEPTICAL may you find FAITH Frances C Arrillaga 1941-1995

Even before finishing his degree, and still lacking pastoral experience, Charles Simeon put his name forward for the pastorate of Cambridge's Holy Trinity church. This was unheard of. Amazingly Simeon was given the parish and would labor there the rest of his life. The church was less than pleased to receive this blustering minister who insisted that those who called themselves "Christian" be truly saved by grace and live lives more closely conformed to Christ. They distrusted his ivory-tower background—they were largely artisan's families, or more bluntly, in Simeon's words, "very poor church folks," and they were wary of his fervor. Opponents harassed Simeon by locking the family-owned pews, forcing those who wished to hear the new minister to find standing room as best they could. When Simeon brought in benches, church council members tossed them out into the churchyard, but he was undeterred. Simeon was also determined to provide the Cambridge undergraduates with decent training in theology and pastoral ministry. In 1790 Simeon began holding informal seminars for ministerial students on Sunday evenings. In 1812, he instituted weekly "conversation parties" in his rooms, essentially theological and pastoral Q&A sessions. By 1823, some 40 students were attending. By 1827 the number was closer to 60, straining the room's capacity and keeping two servants busy distributing tea. Along the way, the eager participants acquired the labels "Simeonite" and "Sim," which they wore as badges of honor. Of the undergraduates Simeon trained during his 54 years at Holy Trinity, some 1,100 became effective—and many, distinguished— parish ministers, chaplains, and missionaries. Citation: Chris Armstrong, "Simeon's Brigade," Leadership (Summer 2003)

Hurried Discipleship I disagree with the popular practice of involving young people in an intense regimen of Bible study, prayer, worship, leadership, evangelism and accountability where young people are challenged to “take the campus for Christ,”“be radical for Jesus,” and “give 110%.” I know; I know.How could any Bible-believing Christian not believe in a youth ministry that encourages young people to be “on fire for Jesus”? Well, of course I’m in favor of young people knowing Jesus.What I’m not in favor of is young people doing Jesus because what most youth-oriented discipleship programs are about is doing—reading the Bible, praying, worshipping, attending, leading, and evangelizing with no mention of intimacy, waiting, listening, noticing, and paying attention. Youth-oriented discipleship programs have reduced disciples to cheerleaders and political organizers. Discipleship has been turned into a measurable, external activity instead of an immeasurable, internal lack of activity. Spending time evangelizing has replaced spending time with Jesus, and sharing our faith with others has replaced growing in our faith with Jesus. But there is another, more serious problem. Young people are…well…young, which means they are immature, confused by their hormones, inexperienced, naïve and idealistic. None of these qualities are “bad”; in fact, they are wonderful gifts of youth that are needed in the church, but they are not neutral. Simply put, discipleship is a lifelong process, not a youth activity. Remember when you were a little child and you dressed up in your parents’ clothes? Such antics were cute, but clearly the clothes didn’t fit. Young people are being asked to dress up like disciples, but the clothes don’t fit. How could they? The Bible was written by adults, men who’d lived long lives, men who’d suffered greatly for their faith and the conclusions they reached had been squeezed out of pain and heartbreak and failure. We impose our adult views of discipleship on young people who couldn’t possibly understand what it all means. They haven’t lived long enough. But in a culture where youth is worshipped and idolized by adults, where young people are called young adults, where young people are portrayed in the media as wise, untainted gurus of insight, it’s no wonder we convince young people that they’re the hope of the world. Funny…I thought Jesus was the hope of the world.

Getting Religion By LAURA RANDALL Published: January 18, 2004 Spirituality and religion are thriving on campus, says a new study by the Higher Education Research Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles. Of 3,680 juniors surveyed at 46 colleges and universities, 73 percent said their religious or spiritual beliefs helped develop their identity, while 58 percent found that integrating spirituality into their lives was very important, up from 51 percent in 2000. The interest in religion and spirituality doesn't necessarily extend to the classroom, though. Only 39 percent of students said their beliefs had been strengthened by new ideas encountered in class, and 62 percent reported that their professors never encouraged discussion of spiritual issues. The survey also found that: 78 percent of students discuss their religious beliefs with friends. 65 percent question their beliefs at least occasionally. 9 percent have developed a stronger ''religiousness'' since entering college. 52 percent attended religious services the year before entering college. 29 percent attended religious services their junior year. 77 percent pray.

Nearly half of US undergraduates attend a two-year institution and the vast majority have expressed their approval of those schools. A study conducted by the University of Texas at Austin looked at over 65,000 students on more than 100 public and private two year colleges. They found 86% rated their experience as good or excellent and 95% would recommend their school to a friend. 64% of community college students attend part-time and the average age of such students is 29. 47% hope to transfer to a four year institution while nearly 60% hope to gain job-related skills. While the overall experience is good, the social scene is not - 86% of full time students say they have never participated in an activity outside of class.

RELIGIOUS COMMITMENT ON CAMPUS: A breakdown of how spiritual commitment varies among different college majors. Nineteen majors were surveyed; seven majors were not included because the sample size was insufficient. Level of religious commitment 62 percent: Fine arts majors 59 percent: Education 57 percent: Humanities 53 percent: Health professional 52 percent: Journalism 51 percent: Psychology 44 percent: Business 43 percent: Physical science 43 percent: Computer science 43 percent: Biological science 41 percent: History or political science 37 percent: Sociology Experienced high level of religious/spiritual growth during the first three years of college 46 percent: Education majors 40 percent: Fine arts 37 percent: Humanities 36 percent: Business 35 percent: Journalism 34 percent: Health professional 33 percent: Psychology 28 percent: Sociology 28 percent: Biological science 25 percent: History or political science 22 percent: Computer science 19 percent: Physical science Engaged in a "spiritual quest" 43 percent: Fine arts majors 42 percent: Humanities 38 percent: Psychology 37 percent: Journalism 33 percent: History or political science 31 percent: Biological science 30 percent: Sociology 29 percent: Education 26 percent: Health professional 24 percent: Business 23 percent: Computer science 19 percent: Physical science Express high level of "spiritual distress" 31 percent: Humanities majors 27 percent: Fine arts 25 percent: History or political science 24 percent: Sociology 24 percent: Journalism 24 percent: Psychology 22 percent: Biological science 21 percent: Physical science 18 percent: Health professional 17 percent: Education 15 percent: Business 10 percent: Computer science Source: Compiled by Kevin Eckstrom from Higher Education Research Institute/University of California at Los Angeles.

Art majors learning at 'higher' level BY KEVIN ECKSTROM Religion News Service AAre biology majors a bunch of godless evolutionists and business students coldhearted capitalists? Are art and music students the ones truly in touch with their spiritual sides? Maybe so, according to new findings from the first-ever survey of the religious habits of American college students, conducted by researchers at the University of California-Los Angeles. The national survey of 3,680 students by UCLA's Higher Education Research Institute found that religious commitment runs strongest among fine arts, education and humanities majors and lowest among biology, history and sociology majors. "Naturally, scientists are focused on the exterior world of objects and things, whereas the humanities and people in the fine arts are more focused on the interior," Alexander Astin, co-director of the study, said in an interview. Astin defined "spiritual commitment" through a series of questions that measured personal value of religion, attendance at worship services, belief in a higher power and applying religious values to everyday life. Sixty-two percent of fine arts majors rated high on "spiritual commitment," compared to 52 percent of journalism majors, 44 percent of business majors, 43 percent of biology majors, 41 percent of political science majors and 37 percent of sociology majors. In addition, Astin found that arts and humanities majors were twice as likely to exhibit signs of "spiritual distress" — questioning beliefs, struggling to understand evil, wrestling with religious upbringing — as business or computer science students. Still, Astin said it is premature to label all scientists or computer whizzes as spiritually hollow. Most of these academic disciplines simply don't prompt or promote spiritual reflection, he said. But, for biology students who are training to be doctors and business majors entering the work force in the shadow of Enron and Martha Stewart, colleges would do well to help students hone their internal spiritual and moral compasses, he said. "I would say that's something desperately needed in modern medicine," he said. "It's the ability of the physician to empathize with the patient's interior situation and not just treat them like a piece of meat." The newest findings, part of an ongoing survey of students at 46 U.S. campuses, support Astin's early data that show campuses do a poor job of fostering spiritual development. Last November, Astin said nearly two-thirds of students said their professors do not encourage discussions of spiritual matters, and 53 percent of students said time in the classroom had no impact on their spiritual development. What's more, only 29 percent of college juniors attend religious services, compared to 52 percent of incoming freshmen. Among Astin's other findings: Students who party frequently are more likely to stop attending religious services, and "spiritually committed" students generally earn higher grades. Students who score high on measures of spiritual commitment generally are healthier, happier and more involved in community service. Education students (46 percent) showed the highest levels of "spiritual growth," followed by one-third of journalism majors, one-quarter of political science majors and one-fifth of physical science majors. One striking finding, however, showed that students engaged in a "spiritual quest" to find meaning in their lives also show higher levels of "psychological distress," evidenced by stress or anxiety. Not surprisingly, majors who tend to be more spiritually engaged — the humanities and fine arts — displayed the highest levels of physical distress, while education, business and computer science majors ranked near the bottom. "Part of questing is not having answers. It's not necessarily a bad thing," Astin said. "Psychological distress can be a positive thing if it leads people to solve some of their problems."

We're here to invest in the next generation by helping them to * Negotiate their thoughts * Name their gifts. * Guide their zeal * Defeat their enemies. * Turn imagination into reality.

From an interview with the rich creators of collegehumor.com in the New Yorker - http://newyorker.com/fact/content/?050124fa_fact2 2005-01-24, "Funny Boys" by Rebecca Mead A key to college humor, the four have realized, is that students like to think they belong to a small in-crowd that understands the joke, while the public at large remains clueless. Take the phrase “More Cowbell,” which is a slogan appearing on one of the most popular of the company’s Busted Tees; it comes from an instruction given in a skit on “Saturday Night Live.” “Not everyone saw that episode, so the people who did see it think it is that much cooler because nobody else knows,” Josh said.

http://youngadultleaders.blogspot.com/2004/08/bridge-between-on-campus-and-off.html I don't think the key distinction is between on-campus and off-campus ministries. Instead it is between ministries that focus on traditional college students and ministries that focus on anyone who is youngish. There are four kinds of ministries relevant to our discussion: 1) Campus-based college ministry (Chi Alpha, Intervarsity, etc) 2) Church-based college ministry (www.ncncollege.com for a list in my district) 3) Church-based young adult ministry (you would know better than I) 4) Young-adult focused churches (they seem to be emerging everywhere) In my district (Nor Cal/Nev) there are a ton of church-based (off-campus) college ministries that I always invite to our events. I don't usually invite the young adult ministries directly--instead I invite any college students from the young adult ministry to join us just as I invite college students from all our churches to join us. To me it just seems obvious that a twenty-eight year old with a spouse is processing some different issues than a sophomore who lives in a dorm. Sometimes it doesn't matter (at a worship fest, for instance) and other times it does (at a retreat where the goal is building a campus-based community that will work collaboratively to reach their dormmates with the gospel). I hope that young adult ministries continue to build momentum in our movement and in our district, but the reason we're two different departments within the Assemblies is that we have different assignments. At times, that will prevent us from working together too closely. At other times, the synergy between us will be wonderful. It's going to vary wildly.

"THE TRUSTEES ... SHALL HAVE POWER AND IT SHALL BE THEIR DUTY:... 14. To prohibit sectarian instruction, but to have taught in the University the immortality of the soul, the existence of an all-wise and benevolent Creator, and that obedience to His laws is the highest duty of man.

(speaking of his changing roles in campus ministry). I started out as their brother; I became their uncle, and pretty soon I'll be their father.

Asian Campus: In California, the proportion of Asian students in the freshman class at several UC campuses dwarfs the Asian population of the state. Though only 12% of the total state population, 46% of the incoming class at Berkeley was Asian this fall, 43% at UC Davis, 43% at UCLA and 56% at UC Irvine. The high percentage of Asian students has made the UC system attractive to many others around the country. However, some critics feel that by shifting to a merit only admission process, blacks and Hispanics will not escape their historically underrepresented status. Representing 7% of the total California population, black students make up less than 5% at all the schools mentioned above. At UCLA this year, only 100 African American students enrolled in the freshman class (out of more than 4,000). (New York Times January 7, 2006 Education Life p.24-27).

College Enhances Faith

Last but not least, higher education is not especially damaging to religious faith. Given the wealth of religious options available on campus, it should not be surprising to learn that college students are less likely than other young adults to lose their religion. Though religious participation tends to decrease in the young adult years, a University of Texas study found that going to college decreased the risk of religious decline.⁴⁶ Such findings suggest the need for a new evangelical advice book: How to Stay Christian Outside of College. In the final analysis, the student union may be one of the most religious places in American society. Footnote ⁴⁶ reads: Jeremy E. Uecker, Mark D. Regnerus, Margaret L. Vaaler, “Losing My Religion: The Social Sources of Religious Decline in Early Adulthood.” Unpublished paper, Department of Sociology and Population Research Center, University of Texas at Austin, 7 March 2006. In a related study, the University of Notre Dame sociology graduate student Jonathan Hill found that college graduates were more likely to attend church than those with less education, arguing that there is “little support to the notion that college secularizes individuals.” See Hill, “Higher Education and Change in Religious Belief and Practice: A Longitudinal Analysis.” Paper delivered at the annual meeting of Society for the Scientific Study of Religion, November 2006.

Hedonism Drives Heresy

A typical case of such unbelief begins when young men are brought up as nominal Christians. Their parents take them to church as children and there they become acquainted with those passages of the Bible used in the service. If their parents still keep some of the old habits, they may even be taught in the catechism. But they go off into the world, yield to youthful temptations, neglect to look at their Bible, and they do not develop their religious duties. They do not even try to reflect, study, or mature in the thoughts that they once might have had as children. They may even travel abroad, relax still further their religious habits, and tend to read only about those controversial issues of religion. Attending church occasionally, these occasional incidents more often offend such youth than strengthen them. Perhaps they are tempted to be morally superior to those they think are superstitious. Or the poor examples of some professing Christians disgust them. Or else they stumble because of the absurdities of others who see they are equally ignorant to themselves. At any rate, they gradually begin to doubt the reality of Christianity. A confused sense of relief that it is all untrue settles within them. Impressions deepen, reinforced by fresh arguments. At length they are convinced of their doubts in a broad sweep over the whole realm of religion. This may not be universally so, but it may be termed the natural history of skepticism. It is the experience of those who have watched the progress of unbelief in those they care about. It is confirmed by the written lines of some of the most eminent unbelievers. We find that they once gave a sort of implicit, inherited assent to the truth of Christianity and were considered believers. How then did they become skeptics? Reason, thought, and inquiry have little to do with it. Having lived for many years careless and irreligious lives, they eventually matured in their faithlessness—not by force of irreligious strength but by lapse of time. This is generally the offspring of prejudice, and its success is the result of moral depravity. Unbelief is not so much the result of a studious and controversial age as it is one of moral decline. It disperses itself in proportion as the general morals decline. People embrace it with less apprehension when all around are doing the same thing.

Higher Education an Elusive Dream For Latino Californians

A <a href="http://www.chicano.ucla.edu/press/briefs/documents/LPIB_16.pdf">report</a> from the Chicano Studies Research Center at the University of California at Los Angeles released last year, for instance, found that of every 100 first-time Latino students in the state, 75 enter community colleges — and only 7 of them will transfer (6 to CSU campuses). Yet, upon entering community college, 40 percent of these students said they aspired to transfer to a four-year institution.