ACF Institute

Event

• What’s the purpose?
• Who’s the audience?
• Does this date work? (for the audience)
• Does this time work? (for the audience)
• How much money do we need?
• Does it require an RSVP?
• Is lodging or transport needed (and will it cost)?
• Is there a fee?

Activity/ies

• Will there be food?
• If so, what kind? 
• Any dietary concerns?
• Other resources…(games, tables, chairs…)

Advertising

• Facebook
• Texting
• Email
• Word of mouth

People to Help

• Setup
• Cleanup
• Spreading the word
• Speakers/Presenters

Reflection Time

• What worked?
• What didn’t work?
• Should we do it again?
• How can next time be better?

Saying Thank You

• Send cards/emails to those who helped

Report

• Where meaningful, share a short written or verbal report and include high-res pics!

At our fall retreat (Fall 2010), we talked about the importance of knowing the culture of your campus. If you’re at a commuter school, students will probably head home after their last class instead of sticking around for another activity. If you’re at a dorm-based school, students will probably schedule group meetings at 9pm so an evening gathering will work more easily for your ACF chapter. Does this mean you shouldn’t bother to organize Bible studies and social activities if you’re on a commuter campus? NO! It does mean you have to be a lot more intentional in your planning and set more realistic expectations, especially if your ACF chapter is brand new or in transition.
 

Does your campus have a ton of other Christian organizations? Maybe. Maybe not. But getting to know the other ministries is invaluable. You become more aware of various initiatives that your ACF group can join and you get a better sense of what’s working and what’s not as other ministries also strive to impact the campus for Christ.
 

Are you aware of your school’s programming, guest lecturers, art gallery shows, special celebrations? Take a moment to check the calendar this week. Pick a future event and attend with a few friends.
 

Lastly, how are you serving your campus? Yes, your “to do” list is incredibly long and your professors are demanding but are you taking a little time to let your campus feel your love for Christ? There are many low-threat ways to serve your campus. Bake some cookies and hand them out. Write notes of encouragement and drop them off randomly in library carrels. You don’t even have to leave your name or say you’re with ACF—just find a simple way to be kind.
 

Courage for the journey!
 

What should we do?

How can we help?

Thank you for asking. But more than that, thank you for wanting to journey with our students. For a variety of reasons, most Adventist students do not attend Adventist colleges/universities. And if they all wanted to and could afford to, our schools wouldn’t have enough space to hold them all. So we need to journey with them wherever they are and if you’re reading this page, you’ve probably experienced a desire to join that journey. The following information is for you. If you have more questions, send us as message on the Contact Us page.
 

Students

They are probably some in your congregation, visiting from week to week or even playing an active role in the health of your church. If you’re not sure, just ask.

 
• Make several announcements (several…people need to hear things repeatedly) in various ways (from platform, in a flyer, in the bulletin, via facebook) letting students know that you want to journey with them in whatever way they need. Ask them to get in touch with one main contact.

After you’ve gathered a few names, have something special for them.

 
• If they are very few in number, give those you know some sort of care package. Students will always be grateful for a Panera gift card or just a simple note saying someone’s praying for them.
• Have a dinner at a church member’s house or at the church. Never underestimate the power of the ministry of food.

Location

Are you near a public college/university? Do a quick google search if you’re not sure. Begin praying for the campus.

 
• Do a prayer walk on the campus with just a few people. This doesn’t mean talking to students. It just means walking around the campus, getting familiar with the scene and asking God what He would like you to do there.

Are you far from a campus? You can still help by helping students you know get connected to the ACF-GCC network.

 
• Check the list of chapters on this website. If your student is attending one of those schools, let them know there’s a group there to support their journey.

Campus Culture

Check out a blog post here.
 

On-Campus Activity

Unless you have a student presence on a campus, it’s not likely that the school will allow you to be on campus in a very active manner. And that’s fine–the school must protect its students from crazies. But you’re not crazy, you just want to reach out, share the love of Jesus. Ok. If you don’t have students on the campus and you want to do something on the campus, get in touch with the Student Life or Dean of Students Office (different schools use different names).

 
• Let them know who you are. (It may help to have the pastor with you.)
• Let them know you’re interested in meeting the spiritual needs of the Adventist students.

They may or may not give you more than a yes or no. Regardless of what they say, ask what their policy is for connecting with a specific demographic.

 
• Don’t hinder the work of others by not abiding by school policy. Many hinder future work by putting their agenda ahead of school policy.
• Get creative with how you can minister to the campus in light of the school’s policy. Simply letting them know that you’re there as a support for students would be a great first step.

This list is not exhaustive. Allow God to lead your journey…

1. Pray! God has resources, knowledge, and power beyond all human abilities, and He is the only One who can make your efforts fruitful. Start with Him.

2. Ask for help. Talk to local church pastors & your conference youth/young adult director. Find out if they know of any other Adventist students in your area and if they know any groups already meeting. 


3. Find others. Be creative: search Facebook, put up a table at student orientation, advertise in church bulletins, advertise in the school newspaper, and talk to the chaplain’s/dean of students office.


4. Get together. When you find others who are interested in worshipping and fellowshipping as Adventist students, start hanging out. 


5. Get organized. Become an officially recognized student organization and get access to school resources: meeting rooms, web space, and more! Also connect with student government and the religious life office.

6. Get connected. Get recognized as an official ACF group. Contact acflink.org to get your group listed on the site, hooked into the larger ACF network, and more.

7. Enjoy the journey! 
 Growth takes time. Don’t focus on the numbers—rest in the knowledge that you’re following God’s will and allow God to determine success.

On-campus initiatives* such as:

• Bible studies**
  • Books used for study
  • On-campus advertising
• Socials
  • Food
  • On-campus advertising
• Worship services
  • Site reservation (if cost is involved)
  • On-campus advertising
• Health initiatives
  • Site reservation (if cost is involved)
  • On-campus advertising

Travel to & from ACF-GCC initiatives:

• Leadership Reboot (in August)
• CONNECT Conference (in February)

Other at no cost to you:

• ACF-GCC business cards, personalized for student leaders
• “Hands & Feet”-themed posters for advertising events

ORIGINAL receipts should be mailed to:

Michaela Lawrence Jeffery

1918 Terrace Ave

Knoxville, TN 37916

Also send the name and mailing address of the person who the reimbursement check should be sent to. If several people paid for things, we will send the total reimbursement to one person who will then be responsible for distributing the funds to the others.
 

Stipulations:

All activities for which reimbursement is requested must fit within the vision & mission of the Georgia-Cumberland Conference and ACF-GCC. (See attachments.) If your expenses are weekly, please send original receipts in twice a month if possible, instead of weekly. Clearly mark (on the original receipt or in an attached letter) what the money was used for.

*If the initiative is already listed above, simply send in original receipts—no need to check first.

**ACF-GCC highly recommends that someone well trained lead prophecy studies. Students shouldn’t feel pressure to handle these topics on their own. ACF-GCC can recommend people in your area who can speak on prophecy.

at the University of __________

Article I

Name of Organization

The name of the organization will be Adventist Christian Fellowship at the University of __________ (ACF @ ____).

Article II

Purpose

The purpose of Adventist Christian Fellowship at the University of __________ is to provide a place of:

• belonging to a community
• believing in an unbelievably loving God
• becoming a messenger of that love to others

Article III

Membership

Membership to the Adventist Christian Fellowship at the University of __________ is open to all students and faculty/staff members regardless of race, gender, disability, religion, or national origin.

Article IV

Officers

Officers of the Adventist Christian Fellowship at the University of __________ must be full-time students in good academic standing at the time of their election and continuing throughout their term of office.  Any student who is not in good academic standing according to the Office of Student Conduct will be ineligible for office.

Elected officers will include president, vice-president, and treasurer.  Others offices may be appointed as deemed necessary by the elected officers that may include, but are not limited to, social coordinator, technical director.

Article V

Term of Office

Officers of the Adventist Christian Fellowship at the University of __________ are to be elected before the end of spring semester for the following academic year.  New officers will be nominated by the current officers.  Elections are to be held by secret ballot and a majority vote of the members is required for election.  Officers will serve for one year.  In the event an officer wishes to step down, a new officer will be chosen by the remaining officers.  In the event that one-half of the members request a reelection of an office, a new officer will be nominated by the advisor and will need a one-half majority vote to be elected.  Election procedures are defined in the by-laws of Adventist Christian Fellowship.

Article VI

Frequency of Meetings

Meetings will be held once a week.  Meetings may be suspended for a specified amount of time as voted on by the officers of Adventist Christian Fellowship for such reasons as vacation, holiday leave, and final examination periods.

Article VII

Financial Statement

No membership dues are required.  In the event the group should dissolve at any time, all remaining funds will be given to (wherever they originated).

Article VIII

Advisor

The Adventist Christian Fellowship at the University of __________ will have an advisor who will be a full-time faculty or staff member at __.  The advisor will be elected by majority vote and must agree to serve in this capacity.  The advisor will have the responsibility to verify through the Office of Student Conduct that the current officers are in good academic standing and are not on disciplinary probation.  The advisor may serve in that capacity indefinitely provided no member of the group requests a reelection and at least one-half of the membership is in agreement.  If the current advisor wishes to step down, or one-half of the members request a reelection, a new election will be held within one month.  A majority vote and consent of the full-time faculty/staff member are required for appointment.