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daily deals as campus ministry opportunities

June 1, 2011 in for community-building, for fun & social activities, for funding, for large-scale efforts | Leave a comment

I’ve posted this idea before, but it seems like a particularly summery thing to do… and at this point, a lot more people are familiar with Groupon and sites like it (Living Social, for example).

Yesterday I tweeted news of Living Social’s amazing $10-for-$50-worth-of-VistaPrint deal. Knowing VistaPrint is what many college ministers use for rave cards, business cards, etc., it seemed like a cool chance to get some savings.

But as sites like these (and now Facebook Deals, as well) have taken off around the country, I’ve pondered how college ministries might take advantage of the offerings. Clearly, these things mean getting quite an enormous “bang for your buck” – if you remember to use them before the expiration date. So I figure we should try to take advantage of this little goldmine. Right?

Here are some thoughts – so far – on how to use Groupons and similar “Daily Deal sites” for college ministry:

Giveaways (you probably already give away gift cards, right?)
Groupon donation drives: Occasionally encouraging your students (or supporters, or church members) to buy specific Groupons to donate to fellow students (including international students), faculty / staff / administration at your campus, or others who could use it.
Getting students to buy Groupons for an upcoming college ministry hangout – like at a restaurant – so everybody’s money will go a lot further. Schedule it!
Buying (or encouraging students to buy) extra Groupons so they can invite friends – like unsaved friends, whole fraternities, all the freshmen, etc.
Figuring out the Referral and Affiliate programs of the various sites, generating revenue for your campus ministry.
Simply using Referrals to earn some free credits for you and your family!
Using these sites to identify local restaurants that may be willing to cut your ministry a deal in the future. (If they’re willing to do the Groupon thing, they’re probably willing to think about other advertising avenues.)
Encouraging your college ministry sponsors to purchase Groupons for you as a little “bonus support.”

You might as well sign up to get the daily Groupon emails, and Living Social is the other BIG one these days. But others may be well worth checking out, as well.

What other creative (or non-creative) uses can you think of, or have you seen? Let us all know in the comments!

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ingredients #1: dancing around your grill

May 9, 2011 in assessment & strength, for communication, for community-building, for fun & social activities, for large group meetings, for recruitment, ingredients for the mix | 1 comment

For many of you, you’re in the middle of Finals Week (or it just ended – or will begin shortly). So this week I’ll be “peppering” the blog with some quick posts that may help as you plan for the future.

The “Ingredients to Consider” series will highlight some characteristics that – I believe – some college ministries might want to add a little more liberally!

First up…

I have no idea if you’ll agree, but I’m fascinated by the Weber Grill commercials. Apparently this campaign’s been going since last year, so maybe I’m only noticing because I’ve been watching some Texas Rangers baseball.

In any case, the folks at Weber have clearly taken a product already connected to rest & relaxation and added an extra dose of… fun. More fun than might be normally associated with a grill. In fact, the tagline for this campaign is “Have Fun with It” – and to an awkward degree, these people are indeed having fun in proximity to their backyard grills.

Honestly, that commercial is super-cheesy and random and a little ridiculous… and I really, really like it. If I was in the mood to buy a grill, I would actually check out a Weber now. But whether you agree with that or not, the point is this:

Fun is an ingredient many college ministries could add more of. Because I’ve seen some ministries really have a lot of fun, it’s very clear to me that many could sprinkle a little more Fun into their weekly meetings, into their communications, into their calendars, and into their ministries as a whole.

I’m not saying that “Fun” has to be the ultimate characteristic of every ministry. But the point of this post is to encourage you to think through the different aspects of your college ministry. As you evaluate your campus ministry for the future, are there places you should add even more Fun to the mix?

(And I know if I was a freshman, I would notice the fun-like-a-Weber-commercial college ministry standing out among all the other like-other-grills ministries…)

[See the rest of the series here.]

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the vintage continues: st. patrick’s potential

March 9, 2011 in articles & posts, current events, for community-building, for evangelism, for fun & social activities, for large-scale efforts, for service, for teaching & small groups, millennial generation, teaching topics | Tags: campus ministries and st. patrick's day | 1 comment

While I’m being all vintagey (see yesterday’s post about Lent), I figured I’d pass on a timely reminder I received yesterday from Orthodox Christian Fellowship, the national college ministry for the Eastern Orthodox branch of Christianity. (Yes, there is one!)

This year, they’re pointing their member ministries toward celebrating the “Real St. Patrick,” and clearly we Evangelicals can celebrate this hero of the faith, too. While not all their suggestions might work for your ministry or in your context, they might be something to springboard from. Be sure to see their downloads, too.

st. patrick as a hero

Examining Christian heroes from throughout the centuries holds amazing potential for impacting our students – while also tying in to Millennials’ love of “roots” and the presumed authenticity that goes with it. I would highly encourage you to consider working “heroes of the faith” (both ancient and modern) into your college ministry in some way – and St. Patrick’s not a bad person to start that list.

He was a missionary to the people who originally enslaved him, don’t you know.

st. patrick’s day as opportunity?

Meanwhile, St. Patrick’s Day at some campus tribes is one of those moments for “unified debauchery.” (See also my post on 4/20 at Colorado from last year.)

Penn State is one of those campuses that goes a little nuts around this holiday; their annual “State Patty’s Day” took place on February 26th this year. (Read a newspaper article here.) But I also heard from one college minister that

On a day entirely dedicated to binge drinking and green paraphernalia, over 500 people decided to be “in it, but not of it.” Rolling up their sleeves, stepping out of their comfort zones, and risking for the purpose of being a peaceful presence, these hundreds were part of a different kind of green that day: the green of life, goodness, and shalom.

How we handle those moments will differ… but in any case, it takes a lot of wisdom and grace. Plus, I imagine, a healthy dose of watching for natural opportunities to arise after a whole lot of prayer and personal preparation. (Don Miller covered one approach in that great “Christian confessional” chapter in Blue Like Jazz, and I know campus ministries take the annual opportunity to share in the midst of Spring Break craziness – just to name a couple more examples.)

st. patrick’s day as unity opportunity

Lastly, this would be one opportunity to venture over to the OCF chapter or Catholic Center on your campus, right? Because your groups might just be able to celebrate the life of St. Patrick together, learn about St. Patrick together, or otherwise come together around this Church History celeb.

Ooh – are there any other Irish-related organizations at your campus? Ethnic, language, or other things? I don’t know – but maybe there’s unity potential there, too.

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On a day entirely dedicated to binge drinking and green paraphernalia, over 500 people decided to be “in it, but not of it.” Rolling up their sleeves, stepping out of their comfort zones, and risking for the purpose of being a peaceful presence, these hundreds were part of a different kind of green that day: the green of life, goodness, and shalom.

snow day capitalization plan

February 2, 2011 in brainstorming & creativity, campus integration, for community-building, for fun & social activities, for large-scale efforts, for service | 2 comments

Just in time for the Super Bowl, Dallas-Fort Worth is experiencing some winter craziness. As you may or may not know, that’s fairly rare in these parts.

So a bunch of my buddies and I were all rather homebound yesterday – or dormbound, in the case of my SMU friends. And that led me to a simple idea that might just be something extraordinary if you did it right.

What if you developed a “Snow Day Capitalization Plan”? (I wanted something fancier than “Snow Day Plan” and something less awkward than “Snow Day Exploitation Plan,” but you can call it whatever you want.)

If your school ever experiences inclement weather days (or other unplanned class cancellations), I bet there are indeed plenty of ways to capitalize on the opportunity that arises. Think about the semi-chaotic canvas that presents itself:

Students in your ministry who by definition don’t have other plans
Students all across campus who might be a little bored
Quasi-confinement to the campus grounds and buildings
A general feeling of campus “community”
A generally excited attitude
Real-life needs by the school itself (everything from increasing safety to reporting on schedule changes to keeping students happy)
Real-life needs from students
Killer opportunities simply to have a blast
Perhaps the best of all possible days for ministry via conversations and “presence” on campus
[Around here, everybody has a second snow day today, which is even rarer. But that reminds me: you might wanna make multi-day plans!]

I’m pretty psyched about this idea, but it will take the locality of your unique situation to really get the brainstorming brilliance going! What if you put a team of students on this task, praying and thinking through some awesome, purposeful ways to use the next Snow Day? (I’d talk to the administration, too – you never know what real needs they might have on days like this.)

*Bonus: Think about off-campus, too, especially if you’re thinking about service opps. Weather days on campus mean difficulties elsewhere, too.

Whether via service, community, or some of both, I bet your school’s Snow Days could turn out to be some of the best days of your campus ministry.

As I was telling a couple of people the other day, I’ve never seen larger snowflakes than I did at Gonzaga University… in April…

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[Everybody has a second snow day today, which is even rarer.]

it’s basi©

November 19, 2010 in for fun & social activities, frideas, legal issues, theology for college ministry | Tags: campus ministries and copyright law | 1 comment

As you may have noticed, it’s Movie Week here at Exploring College Ministry. But today is also Friday, which means it’s time for a movie-related Fridea!

This one may be a little bit of a downer. But if doing right is always doing best – we teach our students that! – then this Fridea is as applicable as any method or “Best Practice” I could put before you.

The Fridea?

Obey copyright law (like with movies).

Did you know it’s usually illegal – like really, truly against the law – to show a DVD in a big, public college ministry setting without a license? Doesn’t matter if you’re charging; doesn’t matter if you’re doing it for the sake of ministry or education. It’s wrong.

Since it’s movie week, movies are the focus. But I could just as easily discuss the rules about music or TV or computer software or the many other things that are copyrighted. Pictures on the internet are usually copyrighted, too, which is why I have to be selective about the pictures I use on the blog. Having a © sign or an FBI Warning isn’t required for something to be copyrighted, either.

I get it. The rules are annoying, I agree. They’re quite restrictive. They’ve kept me – many times – from doing what I wanted to in a campus ministry activity. In fact, they came to mind only after I had half-written today’s Fridea; as it turns out, I would have been encouraging a lot of people to break the law. Bummer. And while there’s definitely room under “fair use” for implementing copyrighted materials in a college ministry, the “fair” in “fair use” is determined by law, not by us.

A great explanation for the movie rules – AND how to get licenses – can be found over at Kansas State’s site. (Of course, it’s a sad day if college campuses are following the law-of-the-land more closely than their campus ministries.)

I realize that this is not popular to talk about, and that probably some of you like me less after reading this. I’m sure not trying to hold it over anybody’s head or play “holier than thou” games. But I’d be remiss if I never mentioned this, because in our field it comes up an awful lot. It’s not legalism. Just legal.

And of course, this gives you permission to hold me accountable. Do it. Do it.

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the good time evaluation

November 10, 2010 in assessment & strength, for atmosphere, for fun & social activities | 1 comment

Monday I mentioned one axis on which to evaluate a college ministry, examining the midweek vital signs between the Big Activities that are our more traditional signposts.

Another eclectic evalution worth considering is how much students actually enjoy our large group meetings- as well as our small groups, special events, and other activities. For each of these, there’s the opportunity not only for the event to be good, but for it to be a good time.

Hopefully you have some core students who dutifully attend your college ministry events on a regular basis. They’ve cast their lots with you; they’re committed. Meanwhile, there may be plenty of students who consider your ministry generally to be “fun” or “cool” or whatever means “enjoyable” to them. But do they – and the less-involved students who show up, too – truly enjoy the individual activities they attend? Do they truly have a good time, right in the midst of all that good?

Of course, it’s more important that a campus ministry be good – valuable, impactful, purposefully discipling – than that it be a good time. And there are some campus ministry activities where it might make little sense to imagine “enjoyment” ever being a priority.

But I’m also pretty sure that most people reading this blog would be happy to know people enjoyed their time at this week’s large group meeting or in this week’s small group discussion.

So the question is, do they? And more importantly, what have you done purposely to increase students’ enjoyment of your ministry? Again, I’m not saying you should – this is an evaluation with lots of “right answers.” But it does seem that some attention to enjoyment makes sense.

This is part of hospitality.

This is part of being missional. What better way to be missional on a college campus than to provide a good time? (And that’s one reason why the large group meeting is more missional than some people like to think – because of course “big, fun gatherings” have special currency in the campus tribe.)

This may even be obedience, if you can believe it:

Go, eat your bread with joy, and drink your wine with a merry heart, for God has already approved what you do. Let your garments be always white. Let not oil be lacking on your head. (Eccl. 9:7-8 ESV)

…especially when we note that verse 8 is talking about dressin’ up, party-style.

This is just one evaluation of many, and like Monday’s, where you put this on the priority list will differ from even other ministries on your campus. But it’s worth noting honestly where your ministry stands and – if necessary – doing something to change that.

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fun & “inside baseball” (great baseball teams & great college ministries #3)

October 28, 2010 in assessment & strength, for community-building, for fun & social activities, good baseball & good CM | 3 comments

Sadly, the Texas Rangers underperformed last night. But if you watched in the innings before we fell apart, you might have noticed (or heard the Fox guys talk about) today’s entries in this series. Here are those two characteristics – aspects that would make the Rangers a pretty great college ministry indeed. (If you missed it, the series starts here.)

4. Fun

Just yesterday, I heard commentators marveling at how “loose” the Rangers seemed, even as the World Series approached. For us in Dallas, we’ve been watching guys give each other shaving cream pies in the face, celebrate wins in wonderfully frivolous fashion, play like stinkin’ kids out on the field, and otherwise enjoy themselves… all while winning the American League, of course.

I have, on occasion, lamented the fact that fun isn’t nearly as prevailing a characteristic among college ministries as it could be. There are certainly exceptions.

And yes, most college ministries do have fun. But being fun – owning “fun” as an adjective describing a campus ministry – is certainly rarer. That’s too bad.

5. Traditions

One of the many ways the Texas Rangers have a fun time together may be something you noticed in the game last night. They have a couple of hand signs used for encouragement: The Claw (for any big play) and The Antlers (for particularly speedy plays). These not-so-secret inside jokes are a random – and fun – addition to the games on the field.

And that’s one more ingredient that would make them a strong college ministry.

The organic growth of traditions is a really healthy sign of all sorts of good things in a college ministry. (More on that here and here.) So yes, in some ways it’s a symptom of other great characteristics. But such things – spiritual traditions, inside jokes, favorite activities, shared memories – also add to the community and mutual encouragement that can make a college ministry so beautiful.

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from the mailbag: college ministry retreat fun!

August 4, 2010 in for community-building, for fun & social activities | Tags: campus ministry games, campus ministry retreats | 4 comments

I fairly regularly get GREAT college ministry questions via Facebook. I figure that others might have the same questions, so occasionally I post my answers here! Plus, it gives me and everybody the chance to learn from each other!

This week, I got a question from a college ministry buddy, Christi Brazile, who helps lead a big campus ministry at the University of Texas at Arlington. If you have anything to add to my list, please do! But remember: Ideas are only good when they help us reach our specific purposes!

Question: Do you know of any fun activities for retreat? Last year I had them break into groups and choreograph a dance to random songs of of all genres. It was a big hit. I need to top that for this year. Have you seen any groups do anything super fun at retreats? [I asked about their purpose for this activity.] The purpose is for fun. Hopefully, the most fun they have ever had!

Answer: Here are the thoughts that come to mind whether I’ve seen ministries use them or not, and maybe you can find something that either fits or springboards you to something even better!

making up skits together
Mafia (the card game – I love this one in college ministry, and I’ve always wanted to do this on a BIG scale)
a giant board game relay event
Underground Church or some largescale capture-the-flag (or something like that), using any sort of weaponry (like water balloons, water guns, flashlights, etc.)
scavenger hunt
treasure hunt (with actual things actually buried)
that trading scavenger hunt where people start with a pencil and end up with a car (if you’re going to be in a town of some sort)
Office Olympics (like on the Office, or some other variety of Olympic sports)
Fear Factor
Minute-to-Win-It (that’s SUPER easy and very timely)
Assassins (everybody gets a name and has to “kill” their person during the weekend, at which point they get that name, and on and on – you can certainly call it something else)
Bible Drill (just kidding)

New ideas (since I first wrote my answer):

Bring in an improv troupe or other comedy team / comedian (A great improv troupe in the DFW area that actually performs regularly in a college ministry setting is Curtis Needs a Ride*)
Dance party
A themed mixer (luau, 80s night, western, etc.)
A unique service project (yes, for Millennials this may be a really fun activity)
Speed-meeting (like speed-dating, but for fellowship purposes – could be done one-on-one or in larger groups. Also great on the bus ride to the retreat.)
Dodgeball and other everybody-can-play games
Video game tournament (but with fun games like Mario Kart, Wii stuff, etc.)
Campus golf (doesn’t have to actually be on a college campus – just pick “holes” and use tennis balls instead of golf balls)
Scary hayrides or other country adventures (like trekking into the woods) – especially great if you have a bunch of city kids

*yes, I happen to be related to a couple of the CNAR members. But I wouldn’t endorse them if they weren’t actually awesome. They’re great.

What other ideas can you add to this list?

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Welcome to Exploring College Ministry

After ministering to college students for 8 years, my calling moved to advancing the entire field of College Ministry in every way I can. So I've spent the last 5 years exploring it very broadly (including a yearlong road trip), publishing a free book (Reaching the Campus Tribes), speaking, consulting, writing, and working on other projects - all to serve college ministers! To learn more, explore the header links or the tools below.

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