Starting a ministry on your campus is an exciting step, but it can also raise a lot of questions. What should you do first? How do you find students who are interested? What if your group is small or things do not go the way you expected?
This is where a coach can help. A campus ministry coach is someone who has experience helping students and leaders start and grow ministries on high school campuses. They listen to what you are facing, help you think through wise next steps, and connect you with helpful tools and resources along the way.
Throughout the Reach Your School Playbook, you will see short insights from coaches who have spent years helping students reach their campuses. This page gathers more of those tips in one place so you can learn from their experience and keep moving forward.
Below are practical coaching tips from leaders who have walked this road before. As you read, look for what applies to your situation right now and take your next step. You can get your own coach by emailing us at coachingcenter@cru.org. We’d love to help.
Starting a ministry on your campus can feel overwhelming, but you do not have to figure it out alone.
Coaching Tips
- Ask a few non-Christian friends how they would respond to your ideas, then process those same questions with Christian friends to sharpen your thinking.
- Evangelism is the engine of your ministry, and helping students influence others is how you build future leaders.
- You don’t have to figure this out alone, there are people with experience who would love to help you gather students and get the word out.
- You have rights on campus, learn them, then live them out with confidence.
- Many people are looking for something bigger than themselves, so give them a vision worth joining.
- You may be walking past someone God is preparing, start a conversation and see what He does.
- Pray Scripture, if God says it, you can pray it, and keep prayers short so more people can participate.
- Invite a coach to join your team early, it will help you move faster and avoid common mistakes.
- Use the tools available to you, there are helpful resources for sponsors, leaders, and teams if you ask.
- When meeting with school leaders, bring others with you so it’s clear you’re building something together.
- Be curious, kind, helpful, and bold, those four traits open doors.
- Work with your school, not against it, staff can often help you more than you expect.
- Teams help you reach more people, save time, and build momentum.
- If your school allows non-curricular clubs, they must allow a Christian club too.
- Use tools and visuals that help people remember and apply what they learn.
- Create environments people actually want to be part of, whether on campus or off.
- Use social media, simple graphics, and personal invites, everyone plays a role in getting the word out.
- Have a clear process for identifying and developing student leaders.
- Work within school expectations for roles, but organize your team in a way that actually helps you function.
- Start outreach where you already have relationships, teams, clubs, and shared interests.
- Use response cards or forms to follow up, gather feedback, and invite people into next steps.
- If God is nudging you to take a step, go for it, but bring others with you.
- Parents can be powerful allies, don’t be afraid to involve them.
- Always have a next step ready so you can invite people while they’re still engaged.
Next Step
Do you have any questions for our coaches? If so, ask your question here, or request a coach for your ministry by emailing us at coachingcenter@cru.org!
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