Resource Topic: Evangelism/Outreach

One of the most important components of reaching freshmen is securing their name and contact information. Here are ways we do so at our BCM.  

How to Secure Names and Contact Information of Freshman 

 

1. Names from local and state churches. 

(1) State events
(2) Local Association Camps
(3) Attending at BCM events such as our Senior Night
(4) Letters/Emails to all SBC pastors, church secretaries and youth ministers of our state. Our State Convention office sends an email to every pastor,   every church secretary and every youth minister in the state requesting the name, contact information and college choice of the High School Seniors of the church. 

2. Orientations of Your College/University

These are all of critical importance for a church or campus based collegiate ministry. We have a table at each LSU orientation for new students. 

3. Christian High Schools in your State

There are 4,118 Christian High Schools in the US. I would suggest contacting those in your state in February to request the contact information and college choice of their graduating high school seniors. In Louisiana, we network out the names through our state BCM Directors. (Click here for Christian High School Senior email resource.) 

4. Christian High School Co-ops

There are 1,586 Christian High School Co-ops in the US. We contact them in February to request the name, contact information and college choice of their graduating High School Seniors. 

5. FCAs in your State

We contact the State FCA Director to secure area and local contacts for this. 

6. National Summer Conferences

(1) Fuge
(2) Student Life 

7. Instagram Class of 28

We follow all of them that will be attending LSU. If they follow us back we send them a message asking them if they would like to receive a Welcome Bag from our BCM. It will include a BCM shirt and stickers. See U of A info and U of South Carolina info below. We got the idea from them. 

8. Other Freshmen

In all contact to other Freshmen we ask for names and cell numbers of their friends. 

9. Parents Survey

We send a letter to “The Parents of” every freshmen whose names we secure. We ask the parent to partner with us to help their son or daughter get involved in our ministry. We include a Parent Survey they can fill out about their son or daughter. 

10. Information Table

In front of the LSU Union during the Welcome Week and the first week of classes. (Click here for a sample of our BCM Ministry Information flyer.) 

 

How the BCM at LSU Connects with the Freshmen 

1. Through e-Newsletters (mail chimp) (Click for url link.)
2. Through Texts – Personal and Group (Clearstream) 
3. Telephone 
4. Inviting High School Seniors to be involved in the BCM during their senior year in High School. 
5. High School Senior Night at a worship service in April. 
6. Class of 28 Group Me.  
7. Tiger Saturdays – We sponsor three of them. They begin at 12 noon and last until  dark. They include share groups, games, food, an upperclassmen panel, kayaking,  fishing, and swimming. (Click here to see our Tiger Saturday flyer.)
8. Welcome Week Events – Waffle Night, Trivia Night, Cookout, Glow Night, Game Night, Survival  
9. Follow Up System – For freshmen that attend a BCM ministry 
10. Freshmen Bible Study Groups 
11. Formation of a Freshmen Praise Band each year.  
12. Formation of a Freshmen Leadership Team. 
13. Participation in our State Fall Collegiate Conference. 
14. Participation in our Mexico Mission Trip. 
15. Discipleship Partners 
16. Promotion of Church Involvement – Our local church based ministers that help  sponsor our BCM ministries are invited to the Tiger Saturdays and all of our Welcome Week events. Our goal is that a student is involved in the BCM and a local church. All freshmen are assigned to a local church member to be prayed for during the upcoming school year. (Click here for the Prayer Partner Ministry flyer.) 

Steve Masters 
Email: lsubcm@eatel.net 
Phone: 225-964-0830

 

How Other BCM’s Reach Freshmen 

Here is info from several other BCM’s, BSU’s, BSM’s with information of how they reach freshmen. Thanks to the BCM, BSU, and BSM staff that provided this information.  

 

Reaching Freshmen 
Tarleton BSM 

 

Youth Groups 

• Call Youth Pastors around your state each year. Gather graduating senior information for any college or university. Forward those to the appropriate BSM/BCM. Contact the ones attending Tarleton. 
• We have also began hosting open houses, missions training, and student panels to different youth groups. They have been successful. 

Social Media 

• Follow #tarleton2028 and the page “Tarleton Class of 2028” 
• Go follow every freshman on that hashtag and page. 
• Everyone who follows us will receive a message funneling them towards an online connection card. 

Outreach During School 

• Move freshmen in 
• Post up at Walmart during move-in weekend 
• Do information tables somewhere everyday the first two weeks of school
• Door to door invites and “trash pickup” 

This is not an exhaustive list but it is a good starting point. We are not allowed to table at orientations, but we will be around campus in unofficial ways. 

Megan Trotter 
Tarleton BSM 
Phone: 903-239-9003 
Megan.trotter@texasbaptists.org 

 

University of Arkansas BCM 
Freshmen Strategies 

 

Before Welcome Week

We aim to get as many freshmen contacts as possible before the new school year starts. We do this through:

1. A High School Senior Night in the Spring.
2. Contacting Churches and well attended Christian camps in the summer
3. Involvement at every incoming freshmen orientation session during the summer. We send every one of these contacts a small gift in the mail during the summer and begin texting them invitations to our welcome week events. 

During Welcome Week

We try to host the best events on campus to connect with students: Corn Hole tournaments,  Lawn Parties, University of Arkansas Football Stadium Tour. We start our weekly programming during Welcome Week so that students can get into the  routine of coming weekly from the start. 

After Welcome Week

We follow-up one-on-one with everyone whose contact information we have via text, personal meet-ups, and small group hangouts. We run a weekly “FreshLife” program for the first month of  the fall aimed to help freshmen meet new friends and connect to BCM and local churches. 

Ryan Scantling 
BCM Campus Minister of University of Arkansas 
Phone: 479-264-5405
Email: HogBCM.com 

 

Freshman Experience at OU 

 

Fresh10 | Recruiting & Gaining Contacts. 

• For 10 days after moving we have inclusive and fun events where we meet and get contacts for as many new people as possible. 
• Recruiting ministry goal of 2000 contacts before September  
  • Examples of Fresh10 events: 10pm-1am pancake & live music event that usually sees 600-700, Line dancing, Volleyball tournament, and karaoke/game night 
  • We have a coffee shop and give away around 2000 free drinks to freshmen each fall. They give us names and fill out our survey, and then we follow up with event information  and personal requests to have gospel appointments and visits. 
  • We table a lot and get around 300-500 names within the first 2 weeks of school. We often give away items via raffle in exchange for names. 
  • We call churches in Oklahoma and ask for contact info for incoming students. 

Freshman Challenge | Relationship Form and Contacts Find Belonging. 

• The tagline for the night and the challenge is “Find purpose and a place to belong”.
• Freshman Challenge is a large meeting/small group for freshmen. We recruit for this event, but then divide students into small groups based on housing. 
• Every group has 3-4 upperclassmen small-group leaders who form a missional team called a CORE team. 
• Freshman Challenge Night Components: 
  • The evening usually has competitive games that accumulate in a house system style point system (competition is fierce). 
  • Usually a leader or staff will present a 10-12 minute Ted Talk on a subject like “prayer,” then we divide up into student leader-led groups to discuss the topic. 
  • The event goes from 8-9:30 with snacks at the end. Groups typically get done around the same time and a party vibe ensues. 
  • CORE team leaders are responsible for follow-up with group attendees throughout the week. 
  • We try to recruit as many freshmen as possible to have a discipleship relationship as fast as possible (this relationship could be a discipleship group or 1-to-1). 

Freshman CORE Leadership | Moving from Connected to Contributors. 

• We started many years ago having a leadership meeting for new students (mostly freshmen). 
• The style of the night is classroom and accountability-group focused. The meeting lasts one hour and usually has a discipleship & leadership topic/teaching, scripture memory for the week and weekly review of a portion of the book “Fuel & the Flame” which they are required to read to be in this leadership cohort. 
• 1 of the C.O.R.E. questions are asked each week in smaller groups:
  • How has CONNECTING with God been this week? 
  • How have you OBEYED God’s word this week?
  • Who have you been able to RETELL God’s story with this week? 
• Contribution starts with students attending serving at our large group and/or hosting an evangelistic bible study in their dorm (led by upperclassman leaders or staff). 
  • Hosting a bible study is a big push for us and a big ask 

Retreat Early 

We have a retreat in September that is very important to get freshmen at. 

SHANE KAMMERER | BCM 
University of Oklahoma | 1203 Elm Ave. Norman, OK | 73072 
Phone: (940) 368.8581  
www.oubcm.com 

 

Mississippi State University BSU 
BASIC Training 

 

Schedule:

2 days before classes begin; recently this has been held on Monday & Tuesday and classes begin on Wednesday 

Theme:

Student team selects theme; sessions, schedule, and helps interview Family Group Leaders 

Format:

4 large group worship sessions are led by a speaker and a band. Other activities involve family group activities, games, panel discussion, meals, late night option, and local church introduction (family groups rotate in the BSU building to meet and hear about local church opportunities for students). 

Timeline:

• Spring Semester – Family Group Leader applications and interviews. Each family group has a male and female leader. There are 17 Freshmen groups and 6 Transfer groups; therefore, 46 leaders are needed. 
• Summer – recruitment at all of the summer orientations, seeking to inform and enlist as many newly enrolled students as possible. We also are able to obtain a list of Baptist preference students. From this master list, we send multiple mailings, email, texts, and a phone call. Students register for the event online. There is a $30 fee that is charged that includes a t-shirt, program cost and all meals. 
• BASIC Training – students are placed in groups according to their entering as a freshman or a transfer student. These leaders are tasked to lead 8-12 students in small group and large group activities. These range from games, small group Bible studies, and large group activities. 
• After BASIC Training – These groups are asked to meet weekly for the fall semester and most choose to also meet the spring semester. They go through a book of the Bible that is selected for them.

Challenges:

1. Packed calendar – Campus events stacked before the start of school (Greek recruitment, New Maroon Camp, Band Camp, other start up events, etc). The university calendar could drastically alter or cause this event to cancelled. 
2. Getting names of new students Each school has different policies about providing new student info to faith based groups. Groups need to expand their reach of getting names (churches with graduating seniors, Super Summer, camps, community college transfers, etc). 

Micheal Ball 
MSU BSU Director 
Cell: 662-312-8655 
Email: michael@msubsu.com 

 

University of South Carolina BCM 
Freshmen Strategies 

 

1. High School Senior Night in the Spring before fall.

Huge win for students already connected to our ministry to invite people they know. We recognized that you only really need to have 5%-10% of the room be high school seniors to have a successful night. There is many positive things that come from our current students starting to think about recruiting people they know and if they are invited but don’t come it starts the conversation.  

2. Orientation at the university in the summer.

This is a no brainer. We get tons of contacts from this in the summer.  

3. Open House.

This is a USC specific thing but they do a guide for local businesses for students to check out while they are in on the two days orientation. Our BCM Center is one of the featured buildings to check out. USC runs 20+ orientation during the summer. Some we only get a few that come and check out the open house. However, sometimes there are ten to fifteen students that come by.  

4. Welcome Bags.

We promote this really heavy and use it as a promotional tool but any student we connect with during the late spring to summer process we give them a bag that has: Flyer, Wrist Bands, T Shirt, and a handwritten card. We will deliver these bags in the late summer after we have collected contact information from students. The ones in SC we will deliver them and the ones of people in different places we will mail them. We will not mail the shirt but we will put a voucher for a free shirt that they can get when they get to campus. 

5. Coffee/Food Meet ups.

Outside of Columbia, the two largest counties in SC that feed into USC are in Greenville, SC and Charleston, SC. We have set dates that we will go to those  areas and meet up with students that we have contacts on. We do this later in the summer. Our state convention works to secure contact information from camps throughout the summer. Usually, we connect with local ministers in the area that help with the recruiting efforts. We will usually pick another area or two that is manageable to do a meet up at as well, depending on where contacts are coming from through the summer from welcome bag sign ups.

6. Statewide organization at campus and with youth ministries to secure contacts.

Our state convention puts in a lot of effort to connect with youth pastors and help the process of transition.  As well as some awesome churches and youth pastors that will make individual calls to BCM’s across the state to get their students plugged in. 

7. Alumni prayer walking and contacts.

USC has many alumni in the local area. MANY of them serve in their churches and are strong relational contacts for us. We do a prayer walking night and emphasis in prayer to help them recruit and connect students to the BCM that they know personally. 

8. Social media.

We make a strong push on social media to connect with students by following accounts connected to freshman. When they follow us, we will reach out, share info about the ministry, and ask them if they would like a welcome bag. 

9. Move-in help.

We will help with move in days at the university. 

10. New student focused events.

The first week we are planning multiple events that new students can connect with and utilize multiple churches at each of those events to host, connect  and promote Sunday morning opportunities that they can connect with corporate worship. 

11. Foundations.

During the three weeks of each semester, we offer a spiritual discipline and leadership time for new students to connect with each other and dig into the basic disciplines that will help them create God honor rhythms for college. We call the hour and half time “Foundations”. 

Adam Venters
BCM Director at The University of South Carolina
Phone: 425-202-6512
Email: adamventers@scbaptist.org 

 

Sam Houston State 
Freshman Outreach 

 

During the Summer

• Attend and table at all freshman orientations 
• Gathering contacts all summer and following up with a personal text from our student leaders to invite them to our Welcome Week events in the Fall Semester. 

Freshman Move In

• Have a team of students help move freshmen in and invite them to Welcome Week events. 
• Table and hand out popsicles and water to new students and families moving in Bearkat kick off (freshman move in a week early to learn about campus and SH traditions) 
• Table and hand out popsicles during the day while advertising for Welcome Week
• Plan Barbecue at the B and Game nights 

Welcome Week

• Have events starting from Friday night before school starts (for returning BSM students) casting vision for connection to new students 
• Text all summer freshman contacts we received during Orientation 
• Having events every night for the first week Saturday to Saturday (ultimate game night, water kickball, volleyball, Barbecue, Campus scavenger hunt, Sing-o etc.)
• The goal is having our leadership team connect personally with every freshman that attends to invite to coffee or lunch for follow up. 
• Advertise our small groups (Freshman to Senior) 

Second Week of School

• Follow up, Follow up, Follow up
• Goal is to get our upperclassman to approach incoming students that have connected for Dship groups. 
• Start our weekly outreaches to the campus (Henna, Stickers/Soularium, Coffee, Spiritual Surveys) 
• Advertise our Servant team opportunities to new students who want to connect and serve in our weekly outreaches. 

We strive to connect our upperclassmen to our underclassmen as much as possible whether that be through gospel appointments, small groups or discipleship. 

Chris Smith 
Director, BSM at Sam Houston State University 
Phone: 915-238-8511 
Email: bearkatbsm@gmail.com 

 

Oklahoma State University 
Freshmen Outreach 

 

New Student Orientations 

We partner with the school to work new student orientations on behalf of all faith based orgs and as a result are given all contact info of students that show interest in faith groups. This usually gives us a few hundred names to follow up with over the summer.  

Summer Camps 

We go to two different youth camps over the summer and meet with incoming students to OSU. We bring along current students who give them some insight on how BCM has helped them grow in their faith and connect to local churches. We also bring along info cards, stickers, and a free t-shirt so the students know we really care about them and want them to connect with our ministry when they mover to Stillwater in the fall.  

Welcome Week 

This is where we focus our main efforts in meeting freshmen. New students start moving in the Wednesday before classes start so we host an event on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday of that week specifically designed to meet and engage with as many new freshmen as we can. We host a pizza party on Wednesday by the freshmen dorms and have students fill out a super simple form on our website to get the free pizza. Then we follow up the next day with everyone that filled out the form and checked the box that they wanted to stop by with a free gift. Thursday we host a worship night and give away free t-shirts to all who come and fill out the simple form. We follow up the next day as well with everyone that checked the box while getting a shirt. Friday we host a glow-in-the-dark ultimate Frisbee night to try to reach some of the more athletically inclined students. They play in a tourney, we have side games going on, and competitions for giveaways that help us gather info. Again, we follow up the next day with everyone who gave us permission to. In addition, on Saturday we host a sand volleyball and free snow-cone event where we give out free snow cones in Eskimo Joe’s cups (if you are from Oklahoma that makes sense, ha ha) that have the BCM logo on them.  

Then we take all that contact info and invite them to our freshmen Bible study that starts the next week.  

This has worked to be effective in reaching new freshmen. We have been having well over 100 freshmen each week to our freshmen Bible study over the last several years.  

Paul Lewis 
OSU BCM, Director 
Phone: 918-261-4863 
Email: plewis@oklahomabaptists.org

 

About a year ago, I transitioned to the University of Memphis and one of the first things I learned was how different ministry dynamics can be on a large commuter campus. A commuter campus is simply one where most students live at home or in an off-campus apartment and commute to their classes daily. Even though some students live on campus, most students drive to school from their houses every day to attend class and are working jobs off campus as well. 

Reaching commuter students can really seem like a daunting task, but I have learned that it is not an impossible one. It just takes some strategic planning, passion, and a good perspective on knowing your campus. It is important to remember that commuter students are just as important as anyone else and need the hope of Christ that we have to offer them just as much as any other student. At the end of the day, these students really do desire to be involved, even if their schedules seem busier and less flexible. 

Commuter students’ schedules look very different from those at a campus where the majority of students live on campus so methods to reach them must be different and creative as well. Here are a few tips to keep in mind and encourage you as you reach commuter students: 

1. Understand their schedules are different. 

Many of these commuter students are still living at home, but often they are working at least one job, sometimes two. They are trying to balance school, work, relationships, community, and other extracurricular things they are involved in. Commuter students are often only on campus for a short period of time before they need to head to the next thing. They have a lot going on and balance is sometimes a struggle for them. Many students say to me, “I want to participate and be involved, but I just don’t know if I can commit at the moment.” I really do believe they want to be involved, but sometimes they just don’t know how to balance all of their responsibilities. As a campus ministry, we can come alongside them and help them as they make this transition, form community, and balance work and college life. 

2. Commuter students still need community. 

Not only do commuter students still desire community just like any other college student, but many of them desire mentorship and discipleship as well. We recently sent out a google form to new students that would be attending University of Memphis in the Fall. Most students who completed the form lived right in our area and would be commuting to campus. However, many of their prayer requests were the same as any other college student. Prayers for a smooth transition to college and to find good community. Even though they are local, these students are still in transition and need help navigating a new normal due to how different life looks after high school. They need community just as much as students living on campus or coming from other areas. 

3. Be strategic in reaching commuter students.

Because we have a limited amount of time with these students, we must think through strategic ways and times to reach them. When it comes to outreach events on campus, we must determine if there is a specific day of the week that commuter students are there, what times they are there, and where they enjoy hanging out and studying in between classes. This helps us to be intentional during the time they are actually on campus. We can plan the best outreach event, but if we do it at a time that is not strategic, then we miss opportunities to connect! We have also made changes that were needed to reach the greatest number of commuter students. We recently moved our weekly worship service up by an hour and have also started providing a meal before the large group worship time. Many of our commuter students benefit from this transition because they do not have to wait around on campus as long to participate, and if they are coming from work, they do not have to worry about grabbing dinner on their own before a BCM event. 

Also, if you have the privilege of having a ministry building or space on campus, use that strategically to reach commuter students. Our building daily provides commuter students with a place to study, good community or games – and a free cup of coffee helps too! 

There are so many different creative ideas for reaching commuter students depending on the culture of your campus. It just takes planning, intentionality, and knowing and researching your campus culture. We have seen the Lord at work in our commuter students, and it has been a true joy to be a part of. The task can be overwhelming, but it is worth it! 

Ashlyn Trice is the Associate BCM Director at the University of Memphis. You can follow her on Instagram @ashlyntrice and the ministry @uofmbcm.

Below are several ideas for welcome week, shared by fellow college ministers. Borrow their ideas, and if you need more details, feel free to contact them! 

Baggo Tournament

Table throughout the day and promote/register people for a Baggo tournament at night! Have a great prize for the winning team. Average attendance: 75-100. Cost: $100

• Ryan Scantling, Arkansas BSM, rscantling@absc.org

First Day of School Photobooth

Simply set up a good camera on a tripod facing an iconic location on campus. Create a few fun chalkboard signs like, “First Day of College 2023”, “Making Mama Proud!”, etc. Students will line up to have their photo taken, then ask them to input their phone number into a quick google survey and say, “Share your number with us and we’ll text you the link to the album this afternoon.” This event allows you to gather several hundred names & numbers for follow ups. Average attendance: 200. Cost: $0

• Gary Stidham, Director of Training for TX BSM, gary.stidham@texasbaptists.org

Cookout on Front Lawn of BCM Building

Time for students to connect with one another over a hamburger and hotdog. This is an event where we invite local churches to come and be a part of, so they can hang out with students and make connections. Average attendance: 300 plus. Cost: 500- 600

Scavenger Hunt around Town

An “Amazing Race”/Scavenger Hunt to help students see the campus and town. It is all done on foot with challenges along the way. Average attendance: 50 plus. Cost: Max $100

-Keith Wade, North Georgia BSM, kwade.bcm@gabaptist.org

Speed Friending 

Like speed dating, but not weird! Getting to meet new people with questions that help you get to know them! From silly to serious, questions that hopefully open up opportunities for friendship and the Gospel. Average attendance: 80. Cost: $50-60

• Ricky Carrion, TAMU Kingsville BSM,  roelcarrion@gmail.com

Photo Scavenger Hunt (On Campus/Add your hashtag!)

We meet at the BCM at 7PM, I give a list of Photo OPS with points attached (Double Points for Stranger/Students & Creativity). First one back gets a prize. End with Pizza. Photos are amazing for promo events! Ask them to hashtag your event. Cost: Free, or plus pizza

Food Truck Event

Ask a bunch of food trucks to come to your location. Ask each of them for a $3 dollar smaller special. Add 9 Square, Corn hole, and Free Water bottles. Average attendance: 150. Cost: Free, unless you pre-pay food trucks so students are free. Get a church to donate water bottles or sponsor a truck. 

• LaDonna Wilkin, BSM Co-Director in Indiana, wilkin97@yahoo.com

Maverick Adventure Night

Maverick Adventure Night is a new student social to help new students at UT Arlington connect with current students for a heart-pounding adventure to familiarize themselves with their new campus. Two to three student leaders lead a group of 6-10 freshmen/new students on a wild scavenger hunt across campus to complete as many items on their list before the time limit. Afterward, we hand out generous rewards, eat pizza and ice cream, then get as many new student numbers for Gospel appointments as possible. Average attendance: 80-100 Cost: $350 for Little Ceasers and Ice Cream

Retro Skate Social

We print out Retro Skate Social cards and hand them out over several days on campus before the event to hype it up the best we can. Students arrive, fill out a waiver for the skating rink, then fill out a separate 30-second survey that incorporates spiritual background questions: if they would be interested in a 5-minute gospel presentation sometime, and permission to share upcoming events with them. After the event, we have a calling party with student leaders to make Gospel Appointments, and many have come to know the Lord through the Retro Skate Social. Average attendance: 200-300. Cost: $1200 plus

• UT Arlington BSM, TX, info@utabsm.com

Dodgeball Tournament

We meet in a gym, do 4v4 coed teams and give a gift card to winner. Average attendance: 30. Cost: $100

Tye Dye

We make tye dye shirts. Average attendance: 20-40. Cost: $250-350

• FL BSM

Open Field or Dorm Quad Area Movie, with Popcorn, Water, Giveaways, and Promo

We set up a large screen between two large step ladders, and project a movie like “Shrek” for one of the nights during “Weeks of Welcome.” We cooperated and co-opted with the University, while sponsoring the event. We provided popcorn, drinks, and info packs about the BCM. Average attendance: 600 Cost: $200

Color Wars

We took over a field that was in the middle of campus behind our BCM center. We made black and white T-shirts to give away and then had various relays and activities in which students were pelted with either color powder or colored water guns, etc. baby pools, water slides, buckets, balloons full of colored water or colored powder. It was so messy and so fun. We divided the various groups with two of our family group leaders over each of the groups. Average attendance: 450 Cost: $300

• Jerry Johnson, University of Georgia BCM (retired), and currently at Transylvania University BCM in Lexington, KY, jerrybcm@gmail.com

Howdy Party

Welcome Party with Square Dance Caller. Average attendance: 100 plus. Cost: $500

Pass Out Breakfast Bars

We pass out 1600 breakfast bars the first two days (combined) with our welcome week schedule. Average attendance: A lot of students! Cost: $600

• Shannon Lambert, University of Houston, TX, uhbsmdirector@gmail.com

Freshmen Survival

An intro to BCM while meeting current leaders & connecting with other freshmen! This 2-3 hour event allows students to meet ministry leaders, find out information about connecting with local churches, small groups or what’s coming up at BCM and also laugh/play games together! We also have held spike ball/9-square tournaments, had line dancing & game nights and worked together with other campus ministries to provide food on campus with a picnic style feel. Average attendance: 80-130 Cost: The students are sometimes charged $10 to cover lunch and the newest BCM shirt. BCM cost is whatever food we provide. 

Luau

Hosted with 5 local churches, we offer live music, an 8-12 team volleyball tournament, lots of food and also inside games! Outside, students can spread out and get to know each other, cheer on their favorite team or float from station to station. Each church and BCM have leaders out to connect and welcome students, and there is often a visit from the school mascot! Average attendance: 500-800. Cost: Students come for free. Local churches provide food of choice within luau theme, BCM provides water, outside lighting and sometimes Snocone or popcorn machine. 

• Angelle Campbell, LA Tech BCM, Angelledcampbell@gmail.com

Progressive Dinner

We take students to 4 churches for them to see the church, meet people in the church and learn how to plug in. The churches serve a different portion of the meal (appetizer, salad, entree, dessert). Average attendance: 130 Cost: $0-churches fund it

Ice Cream Social

We host students late night after the 2nd day of class. We do giveaways and intro our Dgroup leaders. It is a come and go, all you can eat ice cream hangout. Average attendance: 250 Cost: $300

• Matt Daniels, North Alabama BCM, mdaniels@alsbom.org

LA Tech Luau

Five churches and BCM provide food, games, sand volleyball tourney, giveaways, and live music outdoors/indoors for a festival vibe. Lots of conversations by leaders. Everyone registers so we can follow up. Average attendance: 500-800. Cost: $300

Survival For Freshmen

BCM in house freshmen orientation. Food, games, “how to” seminars, ice breakers/mixers, ministry/small group sign ups, church intros, t shirts. Average attendance: 200. Cost: $1,000, charge $10

• Kevin inman, LA Tech BSM, inmanrk@gmail.com 

Snow and Glow

A Welcome Week event on the campus quad with free snow cones and glow in the dark games. We give out free snow cones, connect with students, and have various games going on like glow in the dark capture the flag, volleyball, 9-square, etc. Average attendance: 150. Cost $200

• Stacy Murphree, Austen Peay State, TN,  smurphree@tnbaptist.org

Survival

Freshmen meet other freshmen and upperclassmen and BCM staff and local church staff. Freshmen find out how to survive and thrive spiritually and socially in college. Average attendance: $150. Cost: Free

Glow Night

A line dance party. Average attendance: 125. Cost: Free

• Steve Masters, BCM at LSU, Lsubcm@eatel.net

Speed Friending 

This event helps Freshman find friends with the intention that they also get connected to a student leader. Have each student leader have a handful of questions and have freshman students rotate to a new group of three students every 5-10 minutes. Train leaders to be intentional with their interaction and follow up with gospel appointments. Average attendance: 50-60. Cost: $0

Glow Games

We have glow in the dark ultimate frisbee and at 11pm we take out the material to play capture the flag throughout the campus. We give students glow in the dark wristbands and have glow in the dark cones, markers, and flags. Before starting the capture the flag we have one of our pastors share an invitation to follow Christ and be the light in the campus. Average attendance: 100. Cost: One time cost of $200 and then purchasing wristbands the following years.

• Stephen Galarza, Corpus Christi BSM, TX,  stephen@ccbsm.org

Campus Wide Worship

This is an outdoor public worship gathering. It is a partnering event with as many as possible of the Christian student organizations on campus. In a high traffic area of campus on a busy evening to let freshmen know that it is okay to publicly worship Jesus. Average attendance: 100. Cost: $4,000 (but that is because the university outsources the A/V and pays for it. Could be done for much cheaper.)

Find a Church

Usually a Sunday morning gathering at 9 AM where returning upperclassmen represent the local congregations that they attend and facilitate transportation to and from the church for new students. Average attendance: 75. Cost: 0

• Brian Musser, Drexel University, PA, bjm63@drexel.edu

Each fall, student leaders have the opportunity to connect with new students arriving on our campuses across the country. The nature of college ministry requires constant turnover, recruitment, and investment each year to keep ministries growing and thriving. While campus ministry staff work hard to connect with new students, ensuring your student leaders invest in incoming Freshmen is vital to this process. The question is, how do we Motivate and Equip student leaders to connect with and invest in new students?

Motivation

Two points to focus on that may help motivate student leaders are Mission and Experience. 

1. First, the Mission of a follower of Christ is to connect with non-believers and encourage other followers of Christ.

The jump from high school to college is one of the most significant transition times in life, and many students, even “church kids,” come to college unsure about what path they will take during these years. Challenge your leaders to reach out to new students because they may be the person who helps guide them down the correct path toward a growing walk with Christ.

2. Second, remind them of the experience they had coming to college.

Did an upperclassman invest in them? Did someone reach out that helped make them comfortable in their new setting? Then take the opportunity to do the same thing for another student. What if a leader needed help connecting and desired more investment from older students? Challenge them to be for someone else what they wish someone had been for them. Whatever the motivation, show your leaders that they have an excellent opportunity to make a tremendous impact in the life of a new student desperate for relationships, connection, and security in their new surroundings.

Equip

With the motivation and opportunity established, the next step is to give some hands-on tips to help connect with Freshmen.

1. Embrace the Awkward. 

New connections and relationships usually do not start with a natural flow or ease. It will be awkward because new students are uncomfortable and nervous, which produces disjointed conversations and interactions. Help leaders know that this is ok, to expect odd interactions, and press through knowing this person is trying the best they can in their new situation. Refrain from letting the first impression set your final opinion about a new student. Know it will be awkward, and keep pushing and investing until you find some natural flow to your conversations and interactions. 

2. Be the Guide. 

An incoming student needs direction and advice navigating our college campuses. How do you buy books? Where are your classrooms? Which dining hall has better food? Which coffee shop is the best in town? Use these needs as an opportunity to resource the new student. Take a new student on a tour of the city or pick spots that are great hangouts and invite them to go and visit. Have a leader say, “there is no dumb question,” and maybe give an example of something they wondered when they arrived on campus and did not know who to ask. Have your leader show the new student they are interested in being a resource because they want the Freshmen to have a great first year on campus. 

3. Always take Someone With You. 

Always inviting someone along is a great way to spend time with a new student. Do you need to go to the grocery store? Invite a new student. Need to run an errand, go by Target, run to the bank, etc. Use these minor things as opportunities to spend time together. A car ride while running an errand gives you something to do while being able to talk as you go. First-year students have more time on their hands due to their lighter class loads and schedules. They usually look for things to do to fill their time, and these simple trips may be the starting points of great relationships. 

4. Include Them in Your Life. 

New students are people, not projects. Investing in Freshmen is not an assignment but the beginning of new relationships. So encourage leaders to invite new students to hang with their friends as they do everyday social events. This step can sometimes be challenging because leaders may worry that adding new people may change the social dynamic in their established relationships. Remind them that college is all about change, so relationships do not stay static. There are always people coming and going, and changes in the social fabric of college are constantly shifting. Adding new folks to a group, routine, or activity is part of life and will show a new student a genuine interest in them as an individual. 

5. Be Ready to Be Left on Read. 

New students are figuring out their path in college, and some will choose a different path. Leaders may be frustrated when a Freshman does not respond to texts, skips events, or disappears from the ministry. While this is frustrating, challenge them to keep reaching out (within reasonable limits) and know that investment is a long process. 

Chad McClurg is the BCM director at the University of Louisiana Monroe. You can follow the ministry on Instagram @ulmbcm.  

I minister along with our associate director, Katie Troutman, on the state university campus, Lander University, which has  a population of 4000 plus students.  Our university is very open to ministry and has “seen the light” of utilizing our ministry.  Let me confess that I have been serving on this campus for almost 39 years (as of June 1^st), but this didn’t happen without a lot of prayer, groundwork and developing a reputation of being a valued part of the university.   Our university makes it possible for BCM to have a table at all the freshman orientations during the summer.  We also have a table at all the Open House sessions that happen throughout the school year.  Lander gives our ministry many opportunities to connect with students, faculty, and staff.  Here are some ways that I hope will help your ministry use campus sponsored events like freshman orientation to connect with students.

First, follow the rules!! 

This is important because our campus sees us as a team player.  Not only do we believe in following the rules, but it means that we do this consistently.  We put up signs in the appropriate places; we get permission for events through the right channels (usually student affairs can tell you the appropriate process for this).  When we meet freshmen at freshmen orientation, we contact the incoming freshman through three methods:  1.) A letter is written  2). A message is sent via text to the incoming student by Katie or me  3.) A current BCM student sends contact through a telephone call or text message.  Then we make our appreciation known to the university personnel that gave us this opportunity.  It is an important part of our work to express appreciation through written contact (thank you notes), by electronic media (phone, text, email, etc.), and by personal words of affirmation.

Second, we make sure that appropriate people in the school are well aware of our work and our efforts. 

We provide written summaries of the number of students we have reached, stories about students that are impacted, and relationships with students who have made good choices.  We do this by sending a report to the President, all Vice Presidents and other student oriented staff members.   A few years back our university hired a “retention specialist.”  We met with this new staff person pretty soon after he arrived.  He became a friend of our ministry and he began referring students to our ministry.  We have also formed a relationship with our university counseling center.  The director of our counseling center has also become a friend of our ministry.  Anytime there is a student that has faith questions, he and his staff refer that student to our ministry.  Not only does this give us great opportunities to talk with students, but it also gives our counseling center a strong relationship for questions they might have.  We had a student that was not involved in BCM who sadly took his life.  Our counseling center asked us to meet with students who had been impacted by this student’s life and death.  We spent a week meeting with each student by phone or in person. Our university staff was grateful when they heard that we had made contacts with so many that were affected by this tragedy.

We also have made it a point for many years to attend events that students participate in. 

We attend athletic events (especially the ones that are a little more obscure), attend concerts, Christmas events, graduations, end of the year events, and anything else that involves students.  Not only do we attend these events but we try and meet family members if they are in attendance.  This gives us a great opportunity to connect with families on a bigger scale.

It’s okay to ask the faculty and staff in areas of influence if they need your help and ask them if you can pray for them. 

We have new athletic facilities being constructed fairly regularly on our campus.  In the past we attended all ground breaking ceremonies for these new buildings and playing fields.  We then began receiving invitations to offer an invocation for the dedication at these new facilities.  This past year the Athletics Director asked us to speak to the head coaches about our ministry.  We were able to share about our ministry and our opportunities.  This came about because the Athletics Director saw us at different sporting events over the last few years. 

It is important to establish a relationship with Student Affairs/Student Activities.  

Because of this long term relationship the folks that work in these areas will assign us tables that we can display BCM promotional literature in a most advantageous spot.  These are usually the higher traffic areas which allow our ministry to meet and greet more students.

It is important to make contacts with as many people as possible in your university setting.  It’s important to be reliable.  If you say you are going to be somewhere at a certain time, be there.  It’s important to show up when events begin and stay the whole time.  It’s important to be a person that cares about the university and the people that work there. Relationships matter and don’t underestimate kindness—it matters!

Scott Smith is the BCM Director for Lander University. You can follow Lander BCM on IG @landerbcm.

In 2001 I approached a couple of ministers to gauge their interest in partnering with the BCM to reach different affinity groups on campus. UAB was a diverse and segmented campus in 2001 and has only grown more diverse and segmented since then, especially post-covid.

Initially, I targeted three groups on campus in 2001-2002 and approached three different churches about partnering to reach them. We began with students involved in Greek Life, Medical and Dental students and the UAB Marching Band. Some of the churches have changed, but these partnerships are essential in reaching different segments of campus and marshaling more funding to reach students. Today we have 6 such partnerships in place.

Our efforts to reach affinity groups on campus are not restricted to partnerships with churches. For instance, we have a prayer/outreach breakfast each semester for the Army ROTC cadets that our Freshman Ministry team plans, prepares and executes. They meet at 5:00am to begin the process of cooking eggs, bacon, sausage, pancakes, grits, biscuits, etc. This serves as a visible example of Christ’s love to these cadets. We have been doing this for more than ten years. We have also had joint service projects with the ROTC cadets. We work on Saturday morning and then return to the BCM Building for a cookout. (We have also done this with fraternities and sororities).

Our efforts to reach International students include partnerships with some churches and other ministries on campus. Within the greater efforts to reach International students we also do some targeted ministry with different nationalities such as a Chinese Bible Study.

One thing we do with each of our efforts to reach and minister to these different affinity groups on campus is we have a drawing for door prizes at least once each semester for every effort. This allows us to gather names and contact information to follow up with conversations and involvement in BCM efforts to reach students with the good news of Jesus, involve them in Bible Study, and disciple them. We don’t ask a lot of questions on the door prize entry form. Here is what we ask:

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1. Name ___________________

2. Email ___________________

3. Cell# ____________________

4. I am interested in: (Check all that apply) _______ Worship ______ Small Group Bible Study

 _______ Mission Trips _______ Speaking with a student leader or campus minister about BCM or spiritual matters _________ No interests. Please don’t contact me.

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Looking at the campus post-covid I see a need to engage students through technology. I’m not entirely certain what that looks like yet, but we had 21,600 students enrolled during the Fall of 2022 and right at 5,000 of them are online only. They never come to campus. This does not include those students who take at least one online course. This comprises a large affinity group that needs to be reached.

Every partnership/affinity group effort has access to use the BCM building to host meetings and outreach events.

Bill R. Morrison is the Campus Minister at The University of Alabama at Birmingham. You can follow him and his ministry on Instagram @bcmatuab and @billrmorrison, as well as Twitter @BCMatUAB.