University / en Re-envisioning the Mission Field as an Area Director /news/re-envisioning-mission-field-area-director <div class="layout layout--twocol-section layout--twocol-section--33-67"> <div class="layout__region layout__region--first"> <nav role="navigation" aria-labelledby="-menu" class="_none block block-menu navigation menu--about-us-menu"> <h2 class="visually-hidden" id="-menu">About Us Menu</h2> <ul class="clearfix nav" data-component-id="bootstrap_barrio:menu"> <li class="nav-item"> <a href="/about-us/what-we-believe" class="nav-link nav-link--about-us-what-we-believe" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/9386">What We Believe</a> </li> <li class="nav-item"> <a href="/about-us/our-purpose" class="nav-link nav-link--about-us-our-purpose" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/6927">Our Purpose</a> </li> <li class="nav-item"> <a href="/about-us/financial-info" title="Financial Info" class="nav-link nav-link--about-us-financial-info" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/6926">Financial Info</a> </li> <li class="nav-item"> <a href="/about-us/2022-2023-annual-report" class="nav-link nav-link--about-us-2022-2023-annual-report" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/4976">2022-2023 Annual Report</a> </li> <li class="nav-item"> <a href="/about-us/leadership" class="nav-link nav-link--about-us-leadership" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/6928">Leadership</a> </li> <li class="nav-item"> <a href="/about-us/intervarsity-and-ifes-history" class="nav-link nav-link--about-us-intervarsity-and-ifes-history" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/6925">ñ and IFES History</a> </li> <li class="nav-item"> <a href="/about-us/news" class="nav-link nav-link--about-us-news" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/6929">News</a> </li> <li class="nav-item menu-item--collapsed"> <a href="/about-us/press-room" class="nav-link nav-link--about-us-press-room" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/6931">Press Room</a> </li> <li class="nav-item"> <a href="/contact" class="nav-link nav-link--contact" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/9383">Contact Us</a> </li> </ul> </nav> </div> <div class="layout__region layout__region--second"> <div class="_none block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodenewsfield-author"> <div class="content"> <div class="field field--name-field-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Gordon Govier</div> </div> </div> <div class="_none block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodenewstitle"> <div class="content"> <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden"><h1>Re-envisioning the Mission Field as an Area Director </h1></span> </div> </div> <div class="_none block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodenewsfield-square-image"> <div class="content"> <div class="field field--name-field-square-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img src="/sites/default/files/styles/300x169/public/news/AmyJacobsen300.jpg?itok=L0TUNlYO" width="298" height="169" alt loading="lazy" class="image-style-_00x169"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="_none block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodenewsbody"> <div class="content"> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p><a href="/intervarsitys-2030-calling">ñ’s 2030 Calling</a> got Amy Jacobsen thinking about the future. Not just about ñ’s but also her own ministry future.</p> <p>“My immediate context is the Southeast Wisconsin Area,” she said. “I saw a lot of growth in the eight years I was the Area Director (AD), adding chapters on three new campuses. But I see a lot more potential.”</p> <p>ñ currently has chapters on 9 of the 19 campuses in the Area. When she was an AD from 2008 to 2016, Amy saw those nine campuses as her mission field. But not anymore.</p> <h3>A Broader Vision &nbsp;</h3> <p>“The 2030 Calling—all the talk about owning every corner of every campus—helped me see the mission field in a broader way than I had previously,” Amy said. “It was compelling as I began to think of my geography in light of the new vision of the 2030 Calling, with all 19 campuses as the actual Area.”</p> <p>There was just one thing. Although she still lived in the Southeast Wisconsin Area, Amy was now an Associate Regional Director. She supervised four ADs in the Lakes and Plains Region, including ADs in South Dakota and Minnesota. She traveled a lot with these supervisory obligations.</p> <p>Combine all that with an upcoming vacancy in the Regional Director (RD) position, and Amy had a decision to make. Should she apply to move up the organizational ladder to RD, or back down to AD?</p> <p>As a driven high achiever, it initially seemed counterintuitive to consider what might be perceived as a downward move. But Amy sought spiritual direction from people who know her well. She was pleased to find out that they saw the move back to AD as a good fit for her, her family, and the Area.</p> <p>“It seems sacrificial by worldly standards, but it’s also freeing and life giving,” Amy said. “This allows me to integrate a lot of my passions and callings as I shrink the geographic territory which I’m leading, investing more deeply in staff, students, and volunteers in a certain area.”</p> <p>Amy’s return to the AD role at the beginning of 2020 fits in with a critical need to fill many AD positions, according to Jason Thomas, Executive Vice President of Field Ministry.&nbsp; Since the 2030 Calling was launched in July 2018 , <a href="/sites/default/files/ADsHiredSince7.1.18.pdf" title="Yes to new AD roles ">28 people have said yes to new AD roles</a>. “We praise God for these new staff directors,” he said.</p> <p>Also, 50 prospective ADs gathered at SC20 to hear Jason and other senior leaders describe the strategic role of Area Directors in pursuing the 2030 Calling.&nbsp; At that gathering, this list of 10 critical vacancies across the country, from Alaska to Florida’s Sun Coast, was shared.</p> <p>Amy is not the first ñ staff to make a counterintuitive career move in order to return to ministry that’s closer to the student level. “I am invested in women leading in higher levels in ñ.&nbsp; In my case, I am drawn to impact Southeast Wisconsin,” she said. “It’s with the people and the places that I’ve been doing ministry with and alongside of for 20 years.”</p> <h3>Leading Differently</h3> <p>Amy has always been compelled by the vision of the university as a mission field ever since she was a student at Carroll College (now Carroll University). She arrived on campus as a relatively new Christ follower and knew she needed to find a Christian community to grow her faith. She connected with ñ right away and matured through the fellowship and discipleship of upperclassmen. During her senior year, she served as chapter president. “In college, I became a more serious disciple,” she said.</p> <p>Now the 2030 Calling has given ñ staff a new paradigm for ministry. “How I used to do the job is not going to be enough to get it done,” Amy said. “The 2030 Calling felt like both an invitation and a challenge to lead differently in a familiar context.”</p> <p>She looks forward to working within this new paradigm, which includes finding new partners—churches, alumni, and other ministries and volunteers—who share the same dedication to reaching students and faculty with the gospel message.</p> <p>Amy believes every student on all 19 campuses in her Area should have that same opportunity that she had, to find a community to help them grow in faith. Now she’s back in the best place for her to see that happen.</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="_none block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodenewsfield-news-keywords"> <div class="content"> <div class="field field--name-field-news-keywords field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News Keywords</div> <div class="field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2713" hreflang="en">Amy Jacobsen</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2714" hreflang="en">Wisconsin</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2715" hreflang="en">Mission Field</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2716" hreflang="en">Counterintuitive</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2717" hreflang="en">Carroll</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2475" hreflang="en">college</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2284" hreflang="en">University</a></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> Wed, 05 Feb 2020 21:04:37 +0000 gordon.govier@intervarsity.org 9068 at Bearing Burdens Together: The Power of Prayer and Flourishing Faculty /news/bearing-burdens-together-power-prayer-and-flourishing-faculty <div class="layout layout--twocol-section layout--twocol-section--33-67"> <div class="layout__region layout__region--first"> <nav role="navigation" aria-labelledby="-menu" class="_none block block-menu navigation menu--about-us-menu"> <h2 class="visually-hidden" id="-menu">About Us Menu</h2> <ul class="clearfix nav" data-component-id="bootstrap_barrio:menu"> <li class="nav-item"> <a href="/about-us/what-we-believe" class="nav-link nav-link--about-us-what-we-believe" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/9386">What We Believe</a> </li> <li class="nav-item"> <a href="/about-us/our-purpose" class="nav-link nav-link--about-us-our-purpose" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/6927">Our Purpose</a> </li> <li class="nav-item"> <a href="/about-us/financial-info" title="Financial Info" class="nav-link nav-link--about-us-financial-info" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/6926">Financial Info</a> </li> <li class="nav-item"> <a href="/about-us/2022-2023-annual-report" class="nav-link nav-link--about-us-2022-2023-annual-report" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/4976">2022-2023 Annual Report</a> </li> <li class="nav-item"> <a href="/about-us/leadership" class="nav-link nav-link--about-us-leadership" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/6928">Leadership</a> </li> <li class="nav-item"> <a href="/about-us/intervarsity-and-ifes-history" class="nav-link nav-link--about-us-intervarsity-and-ifes-history" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/6925">ñ and IFES History</a> </li> <li class="nav-item"> <a href="/about-us/news" class="nav-link nav-link--about-us-news" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/6929">News</a> </li> <li class="nav-item menu-item--collapsed"> <a href="/about-us/press-room" class="nav-link nav-link--about-us-press-room" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/6931">Press Room</a> </li> <li class="nav-item"> <a href="/contact" class="nav-link nav-link--contact" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/9383">Contact Us</a> </li> </ul> </nav> </div> <div class="layout__region layout__region--second"> <div class="_none block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodenewsfield-author"> <div class="content"> <div class="field field--name-field-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Gordon Govier</div> </div> </div> <div class="_none block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodenewstitle"> <div class="content"> <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden"><h1>Bearing Burdens Together: The Power of Prayer and Flourishing Faculty</h1></span> </div> </div> <div class="_none block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodenewsfield-square-image"> <div class="content"> <div class="field field--name-field-square-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img src="/sites/default/files/styles/300x169/public/news/Hawaii2-KCC%20Prayer%20Group300.jpg?itok=yTjgTRh9" width="298" height="169" alt loading="lazy" class="image-style-_00x169"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="_none block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodenewsbody"> <div class="content"> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>May Kealoha, a nursing professor at Oahu’s <span>Kapiʻolani</span> Community College (KCC), was used to praying about big decisions. But as a member of a faculty committee that was facing a big decision affecting the future of KCC, she did not want to pray alone.</p> <p>Brennan Takayama had just moved to Oahu to become an ñ Area Director. Prayer was part of his plan as he envisioned planting ñ chapters on more Oahu campuses to reach more students with the gospel.</p> <p>But neither expected how well their hopes and prayers would come together when they discovered each other at their church in Honolulu and began to talk about campus ministry.</p> <p>Brennan said he would help Professor Kealoha start a faculty prayer group. But a week later, when he returned from a conference, he found a message from her saying that she had already contacted other Christian faculty and administrative staff whom she knew and planned a meeting. She invited Brennan to come.</p> <p>“We got together, shared prayer requests, and then we prayed,” Brennan said. “There was not a dry eye in the room. It was so significant. They were praying with other faculty and staff, on campus, in the middle of the day, to Jesus—something that they had never experienced before, and never imagined could happen.”</p> <p>The KCC prayer group has been meeting almost every Friday for the last year-and-a-half. “We have so many struggles,” Professor Kealoha said. “It’s such a blessing. We call it a little heaven at the end of the week.” Answers to prayer have included financial support for a medical outreach and chemistry research, as well as healings.</p> <p><img alt="University of Hawaii prayer group" src="/sites/default/files/news/Hawaii-UHMPrayerGroup300.jpg" style="width: 300px; height: 170px; float: right;">Terry Lock, an elementary education professor at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, attended last year’s celebration of ñ’s 70-year history in Hawaiʻi because all three of her children had been, or are currently, on ñ staff. When she heard about the KCC faculty prayer group, she knew she wanted to start one on her campus.</p> <p>“We’ve been meeting regularly every other week to pray since September and it’s been incredible,” Professor Lock said. “God quickly revealed to us that he’s been present on this campus all along and that we were now joining him in his efforts. Now we don’t have to bear the burdens of our work by ourselves and we pray for the souls of faculty, staff, and students across our university system.”</p> <p>Professors Kealoha and Lock are not only working with Brennan but also now with Dan Stringer, a Campus Staff Minister with ñ’s <a href="https://gfm.intervarsity.org/" target="_blank">Graduate and Faculty Ministries</a> (GFM) who has returned to Honolulu after three years at the University of Southern California (USC).</p> <p>“It’s amazing that there’s so much traction with faculty already,” Dan marveled. “Often you hear stories in GFM that it takes a long time to get started with faculty ministry.”</p> <p>A year ago, in the spring, an annual dinner tradition was begun aimed at fanning the flames for more faculty prayer groups and fellowships on Oahu. “Now it’s a bonfire,” Brennan said.</p> <p>Professor Kealoha observed, “When we pray, we strengthen whatever God has put in each of us as leaders. We are strengthened and we can flourish, because we have prayer.”</p> <p><strong><em>Will you partner with ñ and our 2030 Calling so that faculty on more campuses can experience the power of praying together and partnering with God for his mission on campus? </em></strong></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><a class="button-action mega" href="/2030-calling"><b>Be a part of our 2030 Calling</b></a></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="_none block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodenewsfield-news-keywords"> <div class="content"> <div class="field field--name-field-news-keywords field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News Keywords</div> <div class="field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/1997" hreflang="en">Faculty</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2499" hreflang="en">Flourishing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/1021" hreflang="en">Prayer</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2500" hreflang="en">Sharing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2421" hreflang="en">Hawaii</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2501" hreflang="en">Oahu</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2284" hreflang="en">University</a></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> Wed, 24 Apr 2019 13:48:04 +0000 gordon.govier@intervarsity.org 9046 at From L.A. to LA: Reviving Campus Ministry Along the Gulf Coast /news/la-la-reviving-campus-ministry-along-gulf-coast <div class="layout layout--twocol-section layout--twocol-section--33-67"> <div class="layout__region layout__region--first"> <nav role="navigation" aria-labelledby="-menu" class="_none block block-menu navigation menu--about-us-menu"> <h2 class="visually-hidden" id="-menu">About Us Menu</h2> <ul class="clearfix nav" data-component-id="bootstrap_barrio:menu"> <li class="nav-item"> <a href="/about-us/what-we-believe" class="nav-link nav-link--about-us-what-we-believe" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/9386">What We Believe</a> </li> <li class="nav-item"> <a href="/about-us/our-purpose" class="nav-link nav-link--about-us-our-purpose" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/6927">Our Purpose</a> </li> <li class="nav-item"> <a href="/about-us/financial-info" title="Financial Info" class="nav-link nav-link--about-us-financial-info" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/6926">Financial Info</a> </li> <li class="nav-item"> <a href="/about-us/2022-2023-annual-report" class="nav-link nav-link--about-us-2022-2023-annual-report" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/4976">2022-2023 Annual Report</a> </li> <li class="nav-item"> <a href="/about-us/leadership" class="nav-link nav-link--about-us-leadership" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/6928">Leadership</a> </li> <li class="nav-item"> <a href="/about-us/intervarsity-and-ifes-history" class="nav-link nav-link--about-us-intervarsity-and-ifes-history" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/6925">ñ and IFES History</a> </li> <li class="nav-item"> <a href="/about-us/news" class="nav-link nav-link--about-us-news" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/6929">News</a> </li> <li class="nav-item menu-item--collapsed"> <a href="/about-us/press-room" class="nav-link nav-link--about-us-press-room" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/6931">Press Room</a> </li> <li class="nav-item"> <a href="/contact" class="nav-link nav-link--contact" data-drupal-link-system-path="node/9383">Contact Us</a> </li> </ul> </nav> </div> <div class="layout__region layout__region--second"> <div class="_none block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodenewsfield-news-type"> <div class="content"> <div class="field field--name-field-news-type field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2104" hreflang="en">News</a></div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="_none block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodenewsfield-author"> <div class="content"> <div class="field field--name-field-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Gordon Govier</div> </div> </div> <div class="_none block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodenewstitle"> <div class="content"> <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden"><h1>From L.A. to LA: Reviving Campus Ministry Along the Gulf Coast</h1></span> </div> </div> <div class="_none block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodenewsfield-square-image"> <div class="content"> <div class="field field--name-field-square-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img src="/sites/default/files/styles/300x169/public/news/Mark%26Lauren300.jpg?itok=r0kHu3ag" width="298" height="169" alt loading="lazy" class="image-style-_00x169"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="_none block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodenewsbody"> <div class="content"> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Starting new things with God in difficult places is “our heartbeat,” says Area Director Beau Crosetto. Six years ago, Beau and his wife, Kristina, moved from San Diego to Los Angeles to focus on Greek students who were not being reached with the gospel. In 2018 Beau and Kristina are trying something even more ambitious: moving halfway across the country to replant ñ in Louisiana.</p> <p>Louisiana has 39 campuses and nearly 300,000 college students, but it’s the only state with no ñ undergraduate ministry and no ñ staff. Six of the 10 campuses in the Baton Rouge/New Orleans area are majority Black, and two of them have the biggest Greek systems in the state. “What does it look like to start a movement that reaches high identity Black students and high identity Greek students?” Beau queries. “This is where we’re going to start!”</p> <p>God was already at work opening doors for ñ in Louisiana through long-term prayer and alumni cultivation by Bill DePury, Area Director in nearby Florida. In March, Smiley Abrams of Mississippi and Chelir Grady of Texas—two veterans of ñ’s Black Campus Ministry—brought teams of students to help Beau and Kristina make connections on several campuses and plant seeds of ministry. During one visit more than 100 students at Southern University expressed interest in campus ministry involvement.</p> <p>In April ñ’s team of Evangelism Champions visited three campuses—Louisiana State University (LSU), Tulane, and the University of New Orleans—and connected with 120 interested students, including two new believers. The outreach at Tulane was assisted by an ñ alumnus from the 1960s who has been praying for ministry to return to campus for many years. Another alumna at LSU guided the team down Greek Row, where they found several students who were already involved in Bible studies and interested in ñ.</p> <p>Beau was cautious about visiting Loyola University New Orleans, as he had heard they were leery of outside groups. But he met an administrator there who had also been praying for ñ to come to her campus. She introduced him to other administrators, including the Directors of Greek Life, Athletics, and Student Affairs. They welcomed him to campus and even talked about giving ñ office space.</p> <p>In his planting ministry in Southern California, Beau learned how to start chapters on multiple campuses at once and network them together, raise up staff and volunteers, create advisory councils to resource the campus mission, and design tools that help spread the gospel on campus. These tools, lots of prayer, alumni involvement, and much more are being put into play now in Louisiana.</p> <p>This fall as classes begin, Beau and his team have ambitiously identified five campuses for planting: LSU and Southern in Baton Rouge, Tulane and Loyola in New Orleans, and Southeastern Louisiana University in Hammond. Allison Allred, another campus ministry veteran, has joined the team, moving with her family from Arizona to Baton Rouge.</p> <p>“The state of Louisiana is the leading edge of our new 2030 Calling, of reaching every corner of every campus with the gospel,” says Jon Hietbrink, Vice President, Central U.S. “I’m so excited about what God is doing in Louisiana.”</p> <h3><sub><sup>Photo: Students Lauren and Mark at Tulane University</sup></sub></h3> </div> </div> </div> <div class="_none block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodenewsfield-news-keywords"> <div class="content"> <div class="field field--name-field-news-keywords field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News Keywords</div> <div class="field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/980" hreflang="en">New Orleans</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2284" hreflang="en">University</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2382" hreflang="en">Loyola</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2383" hreflang="en">Tulane</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2384" hreflang="en">LSU</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2385" hreflang="en">Baton Rouge</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2386" hreflang="en">Southern University</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2387" hreflang="en">Southeastern Louisiana University</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/826" hreflang="en">Evangelism</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/867" hreflang="en">Greek Ministry</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/718" hreflang="en">Black Campus Ministry</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2388" hreflang="en">Beau Crosetto</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2389" hreflang="en">Kristina Crosetto</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2390" hreflang="en">Chelir Grady</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2391" hreflang="en">BIll DePury</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2394" hreflang="en">Smiley Abrams</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2393" hreflang="en">Allison Allred</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/899" hreflang="en">ñ alumni</a></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> Mon, 13 Aug 2018 16:37:23 +0000 gordon.govier@intervarsity.org 9025 at ñ Defends Religious Freedom in Wayne State University Case /news/intervarsity-defends-religious-freedom-wayne-state-university-case <div class="layout layout--twocol-section layout--twocol-section--33-67"> <div class="layout__region layout__region--first"> <nav role="navigation" aria-labelledby="-menu" class="_none block block-menu navigation menu--about-us-menu"> <h2 class="visually-hidden" id="-menu">About Us Menu</h2> <ul 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hreflang="en">Press Room</a></div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="_none block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodenewstitle"> <div class="content"> <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden"><h1>ñ Defends Religious Freedom in Wayne State University Case</h1></span> </div> </div> <div class="_none block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodenewsfield-square-image"> <div class="content"> <div class="field field--name-field-square-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img src="/sites/default/files/styles/300x169/public/news/Old_Main_WSU_-_Detroit_Michigan300.jpg?itok=ZnB6AqPY" width="298" height="169" alt loading="lazy" class="image-style-_00x169"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="_none block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodenewsbody"> <div class="content"> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p><strong>For Immediate Release</strong></p> <p><strong>Media Contact:</strong>&nbsp; Melinda Skea | <a href="mailto:media@becketlaw.org">media@becketlaw.org</a> | 202-349-7224</p> <p>UPDATE: ñ's Wayne State University chapter has been allowed back on campus. <a href="https://www.becketlaw.org/media/breaking-christian-student-group-back-cold/" target="_blank">More information in this Becket news release</a>.</p> <p><strong>WASHINGTON, D.C. </strong>–ñ is fighting for its right to continue serving at a campus it has been on for over 75 years. In <a href="https://www.becketlaw.org/case/intervarsity%E2%80%AFchristian%E2%80%AFfellowship%E2%80%AFv-wayne-state-university/"><em>ñ Christian Fellowship v. Wayne State University</em></a>, an ñ Christian Fellowship student group, represented by <a href="https://www.becketlaw.org/">Becket</a>, sued Michigan-based Wayne State University after school officials stripped them of official recognition just because the group requires its leaders to affirm their faith. Wayne State has over 400 student groups that contribute to its intellectual and cultural diversity, all of which are free to select leaders who embrace their missions—except, suddenly, one Christian student group.</p> <p>ñ welcomes all students to its meetings and to join as members. It requires only that its leaders believe in and live out its faith. Yet in 2017, Wayne State rejected the group’s constitution, derecognized ñ, and cancelled all of ñ’s reserved meetings. After 75 years, Wayne State decided that ñ’s religious leadership requirements violated school policy. Meanwhile Wayne State actively violates its own policy in many of its programs, and allows dozens of other larger student groups do the same.</p> <p>“ñ just wants to continue to serve Wayne State students as we have for 75 years,” said Greg Jao, ñ Director of External Relations. “Students should be able to find a campus community which reflects their faith tradition with authenticity and integrity.”</p> <p>ñ Christian Fellowship at Wayne State is one of the oldest ñ chapters in the country, and has held weekly Bible studies, meetings, and organized service opportunities on campus for over 75 years. In 2009 the group sponsored a series of campus events that raised awareness regarding human trafficking. And the group regularly hosts discussions of important issues, like the intersection between faith, race, and social justice.</p> <p>Now ñ is given second-class status, forced to rent tables like outside vendors if it wants to host discussions or reach out to new students. It can no longer reserve meeting rooms for free like other student groups.&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Additional information, including the Complaint (February 28, 2018), Press Kit and Case page is available here: </strong><a href="https://www.becketlaw.org/case/intervarsity">https://www.becketlaw.org/case/intervarsity</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>Photo: Del Arte via Wikipedia &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="_none block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodenewsfield-news-keywords"> <div class="content"> <div class="field field--name-field-news-keywords field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News Keywords</div> <div class="field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/1044" hreflang="en">Religious Freedom</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/753" hreflang="en">Campus Access</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/986" hreflang="en">Nondiscrimination</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2281" hreflang="en">Legal action</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2282" hreflang="en">sue</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2283" hreflang="en">Wayne State</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/2284" hreflang="en">University</a></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> Wed, 07 Mar 2018 14:55:23 +0000 gordon.govier@intervarsity.org 9016 at