For college-aged students, Summer Staff is the experience of a lifetime. Encouraging them to sign up, however, often takes consistent and intentional effort on the part of YLC staff and leaders. On this episode, John Byard (Southwest Division), Billy Jack Blankenship (San Diego State), and Ryan Buskirk (Grand Canyon University) share their most valuable tips and tricks from their Summer Staff recruitment strategy for Young Life College. 

In this episode, Kevin and Maggie Tietz from the University of Kansas join Jason Rinne for a deep dive conversation into the topic of spring ministry. Through shared adventures like Spring Break trips and the day-to-day faithfulness of contact work and developing student leaders, our hope in the spring is to create spaces for students to have threshold moments to plant seeds, cast vision, and consider their next steps in following Jesus. These moments allow us the opportunity to invite students into a life of community, adventure, and significance.

John Byard and Anne Pinkerton walk Young Life College staff and leaders in a breakout session at the Summit through the foundations of effective gospel proclamation in a Young Life College Club and share how and why clubs at the college level should look different than a traditional Young Life Club.

In Young Life College, our hope is that students know they belong before they consider believing. Emily Kiaha, area director supervising ministry at The University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, shares a “TED Talk” at the YLC&U Summit that challenges whether or not we are keeping lost and disinterested students as the focus of our ministry, from contact work and weekly events to how we celebrate students. Jesus modeled the kind of ministry Young Life strives to have: a ministry for the unreached.

Pete Hardesty, Eastern/Northeastern challenges staff and volunteers with the question "Who is your one or two that you are pouring your life into?" and shares how Jesus modeled effective discipleship through multiplication.

Effective multi-ethnic ministry goes deeper than strategy and best practices. In this "TED talk," YLC Director in the Bronx, urges us to see that college students of all ethnic and cultural backgrounds are waiting to be seen in the darkness. Our relationship with Jesus qualifies us to step beyond our clubs and share the light of Christ with every kind of student. As we consider cultural competency, Shanay reminds us to move from knowledge to empathy, and from conviction to loving kids well. 

Chris Cockerham and Kelly Coleman present a seminar on Engaging Generation Z. Young Life College staff and leaders are encouraged to learn about the unique differences that set Gen Z apart and how to think about ways to shift our leadership strategies so we can share Jesus to the next generation of students with more relevance and significance.