Hi team,

I don’t have my notes handy at the moment so am going to wing a recap of some of our discussion from our meeting on Sunday. I’ll get you more details as needed.

Our main topic of discussion was rearranging Preschool / Children / Youth to better align with the structure of the schools the kids are in and also fit within the structure and size of our classes. Jill and I sat down for an hour yesterday (Monday) and went through this in some more detail, and here is where we came to. This may be slightly different than what we talked about at our meeting in terms of the arrangement of the classes, but this makes pretty good sense, and it’s still up for changes as we start talking with Sara, Jill, and the teachers… but we are going to move with this.

Primary changes:

1. Change Y1 to include 6^th grade. Why? All of the local schools – Plainfield in particular – are now arranged with Middle Schools for grades 6-8. This new structure will allow us to mimic that for both the relationships / friends of the people who come, and it will also lend itself ok to literature provided by Lifeway. One drawback to this is that for “general” youth events in which both Y1 and Y2 are together, we will now have 7 grades all together, which makes for a large and very diverse group, in terms of age, maturity, and all that. So there may be some additional consideration to give to all this with Mark and the other youth leaders, and we will do that.

2. Change our upper children’s class (C3) to include 4^th and 5^th grade. Why? Well, first off… just having a single grade in a class is not practical at the stage we are in now in terms of size. This new structure will also match Plainfield’s new school structure where 4^th and 5^th graders are together at what used to be the Middle School.

Those are the two MAJOR changes. Here are some of the consequences of those changes, as we see them now.

1. We need to decide how to divide up the rest of the children’s area. Jill’s suggestion is to have a class for the 2^nd and 3^rd graders (C2) and a class for the Kindergarteners and 1^st graders (C1). This would move Kindergarten from the Preschool area to the Children’s area. I am not positive how we concluded this in our meeting on Sunday – I don’t have my notes with me – but this comes from my talk with Jill, and it makes sense to me at the moment. But it’s still open for discussion.  – SARA: call me with input if you have some.

2. We will have some major teacher re-arranging. Jill and Sara are setting up division meetings for Preschool and Children to discuss these upcoming changes. They are also working on re-recruiting existing teachers for the next year, but with all these changes, we may want to have “the meeting” first. We’ll also be discussing (Jeff, Laura?, and I) outreach with the teachers at this time. GORDON, I’d like you to set up something similar for all youth SS workers. We need to do this… SOON. Here is a suggestion from Jill in terms of teachers:

a. K and 1st. grade – Charlie and Joan  (she doesn’t like to teach, so she’d just be an extra pair of hands)

b. 2nd. and 3rd. – Suzie and I (maybe Suzie would stay if we only had that one particular child 1 yr. instead of 2!!)

c. 4th and 5th – Kerri and Jeff (with Mark when he returns)

d. Then I wonder if Jeannine would want to move up with Gordon?  She enjoys the youth and they work well together.

e. So we now have two different women who we might consider to work with Gordon – Kerri – from our meeting Sunday – and Jeannine – from my meeting with Jill. Pray, pray, pray over this.

3. Doing what we are planning is going to eliminate a SS class. I am fine with this, at this stage. Others may not like it… “we should be expanding, not shrinking…” That is an empty argument, in my opinion, and we are dealing in reality here. What I feel this does is give us the ability and potential to grow. We may also run into some conflict with moving teachers who truly believe God has led them to “their spot.” I accept where God has led them, but also believe that this is bigger than a single person, especially a teacher. This is why we are going to bring this to the teachers – not for a vote, necessarily, but their voice will be heard, considered, and taken into the big story. Heck, they might have a suggestion we haven’t even considered!

4. We may need to review literature to make sure it is appropriate for the new structure. The literature order is making the rounds now, but if you have questions, let’s deal with them NOW. I would say we are planning on doing this in September.

Ok, that’s enough for today… I thank you all for your participation in our discussion on this on Sunday (and Monday). It is a good dialog, and I’m glad we were able to take the month to look at it, and then regroup Sunday and set some clear direction.

Chet

]]> http://plainfieldbaptist.wordpress.com/2008/06/17/sunday-school-leader-news-june-17-2008/feed/ 0 chetcromer http://plainfieldbaptist.wordpress.com/2008/03/26/10-excuses-for-new-sunday-school-classes/ http://plainfieldbaptist.wordpress.com/2008/03/26/10-excuses-for-new-sunday-school-classes/#comments Wed, 26 Mar 2008 19:11:48 +0000 chetcromer http://plainfieldbaptist.wordpress.com/2008/03/26/10-excuses-for-new-sunday-school-classes/ ]]>

This is not my stuff, but I’m putting it here with a link to the original author.

Monty Grover (mcagrover@hotmail.com) writes:
New Sunday School class ideas!!!!!

10 ‘excuses’ for new Sunday School classes

By: David Francis

Original article can be found here, http://www.bpnews.net/bpnews.asp?Id=27404.NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)–At a conference held last year at LifeWay, Rich Smith, minister of discipleship at First Baptist Church in Ellisville, Mo., asked for input on starting classes that match teaching and learning styles. As I thought about it, it occurred to me that just about any excuse to start a new Sunday School class is probably worth trying.

Following are a few ideas:

1. A life stage class. How about a class for Nearlyweds & Newlyweds? Parents of Preschoolers? Parents of Children? Parents of Teens? Empty Nesters? LifeWay’s Bible Studies for Life (BSFL) series includes resources aimed specifically at such classes: Life Matters for younger adults; Life Truths for parents; and Life Values for empty-nesters. LifeWay magazines BabyLife, ParentLife and Living with Teenagers are perfect supplements for classes for parents as well.

2. A “Couples without Kids” class. One of the negative responses we have received about the life-stage approach with the BSFL series is that adults -– notably median-age adults -– who don’t have children feel left out of classes designated for parents or empty-nesters. That’s a good excuse to start a new class specifically for such folks! They could even study the same Scripture passages as other classes using BSFL by using Life Lessons or Life Words. Both of these titles are designed for adults of all ages and life stages.

3. A KJV class. Some people have a strong preference for the King James translation of the Bible. The Life Words title mentioned above utilizes the KJV exclusively and is a complete family of resources, including learner guides, leader guides, a leader pack and even audio CDs.

4. A “Through the Bible” class. LifeWay’s Explore the Bible series is perfect for such a class, covering all 66 books of the Bible every eight years. The series balances studies from the Old and New Testaments and also provides a balanced approach to the various types of biblical literature in each two-year “mini-cycle.”

5. An affinity group class. These classes might include such groups as teachers, medical professionals, peace officers, bikers, etc. Use your imagination! Just about any curriculum choice would work.

6. A “No Teacher” class. What? How would you do that? By using a curriculum resource like LifeWay’s MasterWorks. This Bible study series, based on books by popular Christian authors, includes only one book that is used by learners and leaders. Ideas for guiding the discussion are found at the end of each lesson, so the leadership could rotate among members. In such a class, it would be wise to designate one person as the “shepherd” of the class –- functioning like a teacher in all regards except actually “teaching.”

7. A college class. Recently while dialoging with a group of pastors in Princeton, Ky., a pastor shared that he had started a college class. In a small town. In a church with an attendance of about 70. In jest, I said, “You can’t start a college class in that kind of setting!” But he did and now has about 10-12 collegians each week. LifeWay’s Collegiate Bible study materials are perfect for starting such a class.

8. A special needs class. Churches are rediscovering the joy of serving the needs of adults and children with special physical and developmental challenges. For many years, LifeWay has published Access, a Bible study resource for teaching special needs adults. Now we also publish a resource for special needs children in grades 1-6, Special Buddies. Leaders and parents also benefit from the LifeWay magazine, SET (Special Education Today). Beginning in 2008, LifeWay’s VBS materials will include materials for special needs kids: Outrigger Island: Special Friends. One of the big surprises reported by churches that begin such a ministry is how many people are willing to help. They don’t want to teach a big class. But they are eager to help out in a special needs class.

9. A “transition year” class. Kindergarten and sixth grade are two of the toughest years for kids to navigate. Even churches struggle with where to put these kids. In some churches, kindergarten is in the preschool division; in others, it is in the children’s division. In some churches, especially in communities where the schools operate middle schools, sixth-graders are in the youth division and often grouped with seventh- and eighth-graders; in other churches, they are in the children’s division and often grouped with fourth- and/or fifth-graders. The solution is to start a class just for them. LifeWay has curriculum choices specifically for both of these transition years: Bible Teaching for Kids: Kindergarten and Everything You Need to Know to Be a Teenager.

10. An off-campus, not-on-Sunday class. You mean you can have a Sunday School class that doesn’t meet on Sunday? Of course you can! Funny thing is, the term Sunday School has such a strong “brand identity” that you can even call it a Sunday School class. Wayne Poling, lead Sunday School leadership specialist at LifeWay, recently led training in Guam along with Clyde Kakiuchi, who directs Sunday School work in the Hawaii-Pacific Baptist Convention. Clyde was headed on to Saipan, where one pastor holds Bible study classes every night for different groups of factory workers after they end their nighttime shifts. A perfect opportunity for gathering for fellowship and study.

Every church has unique needs. I hope these ideas have started to generate some ideas that will need some of those needs.
–30–
David Francis serves as director of Sunday School for LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention.
Copyright (c) 2008 Southern Baptist Convention, Baptist Press. Visit www.bpnews.net. BP News — witness the difference! Covering the critical issues that shape your life, work and ministry. BP News is a ministry of Baptist Press, the daily news service of Southern Baptists.

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FYI, we have support from both of our pastors on this. I think my original statement was a little long and drawn out. I will shorten it here. This is not officially written down anywhere, but you have the full support of our pastors, the SS director, and the VBS director on this. You are empowered to stand up and speak for us along these lines any time this type of issue arises.

The church staff, along with the Sunday School and VBS Leadership teams, stand in agreement that we will not publically discuss or evaluate the “qualifications” or “lifestyle” of any individual Sunday School or VBS teacher / worker. If a person or group has a concern with one of our leaders or their character, they may address their concern to one of our leaders privately or in our regular meetings and we will respond to it as a group, with respect to all parties’ privacy and personal worth.

Hopefully this is a little clearer. I will post it online as well, should you ever want to refer back to it.

Chet

Team,

To me, it seems like it’s been a while since I wrote you all a note. While you may welcome that, I miss it. I missed seeing you guys this past Sunday while we were in Pennsylvania, even though it was good to be around family we haven’t seen in a while. You all are my comrades, my compatriots, my brothers ( & sisters, I guess) in arms. I hope today finds you well. If not, I hope you can find the relief you need. And if you need a night off (guys), let me know… I am planning a short camping trip this weekend and would love to have you join me.

Ok, down to business. We have a lot of irons in the fire… and I do mean “we,” not just “me” – and I’m thankful for that. Here are some highlights; I won’t give you too much detail for now; feel free to follow up with me or the relevant person if you want more info:

·         We are still searching for an adult director. We’ve focused on a couple people so far but haven’t found the right person. I still believe that person is out there, and am waiting for God to bring us and that person together.

·         The story with our SS Outreach ministry is a little different. We have several interested individuals / couples, and I will be setting up some time with them, hopefully as a group, here in the next few weeks. I am hoping that at that time we can find some leadership roles to partake in and get things rolling. April is going to be a big month for this as we organize it, and I hope to start the ball really rolling in May. We are all part of this plan, and it has been on the drawing board for a long, long time, so I welcome your support as we switch from planning to executing.

·         VBS enlistment is coming along well. I’m not sure of the percentage of spots we have filled right now, and frankly, I don’t care. We have two very willing and capable women (Deanna & Katrina) who are excited about this ministry and talking to people like crazy. I have unofficially crowned Katrina the “Queen of VBS Enlistment.” I hope you’ll join me in showing our appreciation to these hard-working teammates.

·         We are looking to start a joint venture in outreach through our SS ministry & Van Ministry. This is another one that’s been on the drawing board for a while between myself and Monty, and we are going to be talking to Mike & Mark about it in the very near future (like 2 ½ hours from now) to get their input & support. This is kind of cool, and I will fill you in on it more in the future.

·         I am THRILLED about the response we are getting by our SS classes/teachers for this SS promotion / highlight time in the worship service once a month. I will be talking with Mike and Mark about that more today as well, to make sure we have their backing and to get things in place. We launch this the 2^nd Sunday in April with the Womens 1 and Childrens 2 class being the classes we will highlight. I will have a full schedule for you at our next meeting. We have some neat things lined up for the next several months!

·         I encourage you to ALWAYS keep your eyes and ears open for willing teachers / leaders / workers and either get with them or get with a teammate who can get with them. We have openings in several spots, from kids to adults.

·         I’m opening up my long-range-vision to you here for a sec to tell you that we may well be anticipating starting a brand new Sunday School class in the next 6-9 months. More details as this develops, but I’d appreciate your prayers on this venture. We may also be multiplying 1 or 2 of our adult classes as they continue to grow. Pray for this and THANK GOD for it as well.

·         I have a “top secret” project that I need a helper for. This will be a fun project that I would like the help of one or two people on and will be worked on through the next 3-4 months. If you’re interested in making someone’s day and giving our teachers a huge “pat on the back,” let me know of your interest and I’ll fill you in.

·         We have some cool hi-tech stuff in the works as well. Not very far along but I think it’s going to be extremely useful for the outreach ministry as well as general Sunday School communication. Stay tuned…

Ok, I’m out of breath… and I am thrilled to be working on these ventures with you. Be courageous, build your strength, and let’s DO THIS!

Chet

Upcoming Dates

Next SS Emphasis Sunday: April 13

Next SS Leader Meeting: April 20, 5:00 PM

Watched these two videos today… For what it’s worth…

http://www.paulkaiser.net/thewayofthemaster/videoclips/Bullhorn_Guy.wmv

and a response…

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8560032043053002550&hl=en
What do you think?

Team,

Mark Mylcraine called me Monday and said he was having second thoughts on the Adult Director position and was going to back out for now. If you’d like more info you can talk to him or me, but it looks like now is just not the right time for him. So we keep going.

I will be following up with the people I spoke to last Sunday about the Outreach Leadership team tonight. We have some other ideas we’re working on to fit into this as well involving other SS related ministries in the church.

There is a VBS leadership team meeting next Tuesday at 6:30 PM.

I have been working and working and working to see about changing our meeting time for this week, but there is just nothing that’s really any better than our scheduled Sunday meeting. I know several of you are in FPU but we will deal with that this month and figure something better out for the next few months, but this time it’s just not going to work. So our meeting will remain at on Sunday; I am, however, going to change it to 5:00 PM and am going to cancel the all-teacher meeting this month because of FPU; we may pick a different day for that as well over the next few months. I will hang out between the meeting and church and after church if any of you who can’t make the meeting want to talk.

If any of you can’t make the meeting on Sunday but need to talk about something with me or one of our other team members, I encourage you to not wait a month to get it done. Make a phone call, write an email, or sit down and talk. We are on the verge of some great things right now – each of us – and I thank you for staying on top of each of your areas. (even when it doesn’t feel like you’re staying on top of your area)

Chet

Mike / Monty / Cliff,

I’d appreciate your help in reviewing the attached SS Class Review document. This will be for our adult classes and will be used to build a good directory of classes, as well as used to promote / highlight our classes as we start doing so once a month in the bulletin & worship service. I would like to start the next few months with the following classes:

April: Ladies 1 (Ann) Ann has already given me much of the requested info, so I know they can come up with it. She’s also agreed to help us “try the waters” in some new things, and we are now to that point.

May: Adult 4 (Cliff & Co.) Cliff’s class has been one of our best classes at welcoming guests and raising up leadership from within.

…and here is a schedule for the remaining classes. This is still tentative but at least it’s out there now.

June: Singles [2] (Susie G.)

July: Adult 2 (Spencer)

August: Men (Scott)

September: Adult 1 (Jeremy / Deanna)

October: Ladies 2 (Karen)

November: Adult 6 (Dick)

December: Adult 3 (Mark M.)

January: Adult 5 (Dewey)

I have not forgotten Singles 1 or doing another short term class with Pastor Mike or someone else. I also expect / anticipate to start a new class in the next 6 months, but where that’s going to come from and come about is still to be determined.

Let me know what you think of the schedule, and of the attached questionnaire. I could use a better word for survey/questionnaire/report, but I can’t think of one. Can you?  You will be hearing much more about this in days / weeks to come, but this is the part I need your help and feedback on.

Monty – can you have Susie take a look, too, at the basic format and layout? I’d appreciate her thoughts.

The first one of these is going to go to Ann this week. So let’s get ‘er done.

Chet

Here is the Survey

Diana & Mark,

One of the projects we’ve been working on in our Sunday School planning meetings is to have a once-a-month emphasis on Sunday School in the Worship Service. We have come to the point to start rolling this out and would like to begin in April. Our plan is to do this on the 2^nd Sunday of each month during the morning worship service, and here is what the emphasis will include:

1. An insert in the bulletin containing some or all of the following:
   1. Highlight / Promote a preschool/children/youth class
   2. Highlight / Promote one of our adult classes
   3. SS related News and Calendar Items
   4. A blurb from Sunday School Leadership – me, pastor, my leadership team, or even a teacher… something a bit “inspirational”, I guess.
   5. Pictures or something else from recent SS events (later)
   6. Something fun
2. About 5 minutes during the service to focus on Sunday School. We anticipate doing this such as:
   1. A testimony from a teacher or SS member about how SS affects their lives
   2. Special music by a SS person about an evangelistic or outreach type of thing.
   3. Something fun (children-related things, like 1^st grader responses to the question “How big is God?”)
   4. Skit related to or put on by SS members
   5. Recognition of accomplishments

Pastor Mike has been in these meetings and I think I’m correct in saying we have his “go-for-it” to incorporate this into that once-a-month Sunday focus, and I’d like to go ahead and get you all on board to work it in as well.

Diana, I’d like to know when you need the insert (probably a PDF file) so that you can print it and get it in the bulletin. It will probably be ½ sheet, 2 sided.

Mark, I’d like to start off this first month with me sharing a bit about the new insert, and in addition, probably do the “fun” thing to kick it off by working with a powerpoint of some of our childrens classes to get their answers to some of the “deep” questions in life that kids answer in such a unique way. How far in advance would you need any fully-prepared powerpoint slides to work them in? In future months, assuming we do all the preparation work, how much lead time would you need to work something like I’ve described into the service & powerpoint? And last but not least, should I have a particular drama or maybe even want you to find one for me, what kind of lead time to you need on that?

Thank you all for your help; this has been brewing for quite a while and it is neat to see our team starting to come together around it to make it happen, TOGETHER.

Chet

Sunday School Leaders Job Descriptions

This document comes from Lifeway

General Sunday School Leaders

• Pastor and Other Ministers
• Sunday School Director
• Outreach-Evangelism Director (FAITH Director)
• The Sunday School Secretary

Preschool Sunday School Leaders

• Preschool Teacher
• Preschool Department Director
• Preschool Division Director
• Preschool Division Outreach Leader

Children’s Sunday School Leader

• Children’s Teacher
• Children’s Department Director
• Children’s Secretary

Youth Sunday School Leaders

• Student Leader
• Student Teacher
• Student Department Director
• Student Department Outreach-Evangelism Leader
• Student Department Secretary 
• Student Division Director
• Youth Minister

Adult Sunday School Leaders

• The Sunday School Leadership Team
• Adult Division Director
• Adult Division Outreach-Evangelism Director
• Adult Division Secretary
• Adult Department Directors
• Adult Department Outreach-Evangelism Leader
• Adult Department Secretary
• Adult Teacher
• Adult Class Coordinator
• Adult Class Outreach-Evangelism Leader
• Adult Apprentice
• Adult Class Secretary
• Adult Class Leaders
• Participants

Responsibilities of General Sunday School Leaders

Pastor and Other Ministers

Basic Role
The pastor is the primary leader for a church’s Sunday School strategy. The pastor and other ministers on the church staff are responsible for the overall direction of all the church’s ministries, including Sunday School.  The pastor works with the Sunday School directors and the Sunday School Planning Team to set goals and evaluate the Sunday School’s effectiveness in engaging people in evangelism, discipleship, ministry, fellowship, and worship through open Bible study groups.

Major Responsibilities

• Provide overall leadership to the Sunday School Planning Team.
• Lead the Sunday School Planning Team in keeping Sunday School ministry focused on its objective.
• Give vital and visible support to Sunday School and its leaders.
• Communicate the overall mission (objective) and message of Sunday School to the entire church.
• Guide team members toward spiritual maturity and assist them in developing skills that enhance their ability to fulfill their responsibilities.
• Set a positive example for others by living as an authentic witness of Christ and by being thoroughly involved in the life and ministry of the church.

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Sunday School Director

Basic Role
The Sunday School director serves as the general administrative leader of a church’s Sunday School ministry.  This person is responsible for coordinating the work of all Sunday School classes, departments, and other Bible study groups toward the overarching objective of Sunday School.  He leads the Sunday School Planning Team in planning, organizing, enlisting and equipping leaders and in mobilizing members to achieve goals toward the stated objectives.

Major Responsibilities

• Meet regularly with the pastor and staff to evaluate the work of the Sunday School and set agenda for Sunday School Planning Team Meetings.
• Lead the Sunday School Planning Team Meetings.
• Communicate goals and actions to leaders and participants and evaluate progress.
• Lead in developing an effective organization that facilitates spiritual transformation.
• Lead in efforts to call participants into service and in enlisting and developing new leaders.
• Lead in evaluating needs related to space, budget, Bible study curriculum, supplies, and other resources; recommend needed actions.
• Set a positive example for others by living as an authentic witness of Christ and through full involvement in the life and ministry of the church.

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Outreach-Evangelism Director (FAITH Director)

Basic Role
The outreach-evangelism director provides overall direction and leadership toward involving unreached people in Sunday School classes and departments.  This person gives essential leaders to keeping the focus on evangelism.  The Sunday School director assumes this role in churches without an outreach-evangelism director.  In churches using FAITH, the FAITH Director should full this position.

Major Responsibilities

• Meet regularly with the Sunday School Planning Team.
• Assist in discovering, enlisting, and training age-group division outreach-evangelism directors and outreach-evangelism leaders for youth and adult departments and classes.
• Promote outreach and evangelism objectives with other leaders and members.
• Guide all actions for outreach evangelism through Sunday School ministry, and coordinate those efforts with other church outreach and evangelism efforts.
• Lead in keeping the focus on evangelism.
• Ensure that accurate records are kept so that contacts with visitors and prospects can be effectively maintained and Sunday School classes and departments can effectively work to meet needs.
• Lead in evaluating outreach and evangelism efforts made through the Sunday School ministry.
• Set a positive example for others by living as an authentic witness of Christ and by being thoroughly involved in the life and ministry of the church.

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The Sunday School Secretary

Basic Role
The Sunday School secretary assists the Sunday School Planning Team by providing vital support related to record keeping, reports, and other communications; securing Bible study curriculum, supplies, and other resources; and coordinating the distribution of resources.  The Sunday School director or outreach-evangelism director assumes this role in churches without a Sunday School secretary.

Major Responsibilities

• Meet regularly with the Sunday School Planning Team.
• Process and maintain general records for Sunday School and compile reports, including prospect information.
• Coordinate ordering and distribution of Bible study curriculum materials, supplies, and other resources.
• Set a positive example for others by living as an authentic witness of Christ and by being thoroughly involved in the life and ministry of the church.

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Responsibilities of Preschool Sunday School Leaders

Depending on the needs and size of your church, the Preschool Leadership Team may be small or large. This team will have an impact on the lives of preschoolers and their families.

Common Tasks for All Preschool Leaders

1. Participates in prospect discovery, outreach activities, witnessing, and ministry.
2. Prepares in advance, arrives on time, and evaluates and participates in age-appropriate Bible teaching.
3. Serves in extended session/ETC.
4. Ministers to preschoolers and their families.
5. Participates in leader training events.
6. Participates regularly in both corporate and personal worship.

Back to TopPreschool Teacher

1. The preschool teacher is key to learning for the preschooler.
2. Obtains teaching materials and supplies prior to a session.
3. Plans and prepares in advance for individual and small group Bible-learning experiences.
4. Visits, contacts, and ministers to preschoolers and their families assigned for ministry.

Back to TopPreschool Department Director

1. The department director is responsible for planning, conducting, and evaluating the work of the department.
2. Greets preschoolers and their parents at the door as they arrive and maintains department security system.
3. Enlists and assists in training teachers and substitutes for the department.
4. Leads in planning and preparation.
5. Leads the Bible teaching sessions.
6. Leads group time (in three-year-old and older departments).
7. Assigns responsibilities to teachers for teaching, outreach, and ministry.
8. Maintains department records.

Back to TopPreschool Division Director

1. A Preschool Division director is needed when there are two or more preschool departments.
2. Coordinates the work of the preschool departments and determines the organizational needs.
3. Determines and enlists preschool department directors and assists with enlisting other team members.
4. Develops a training plan for preschool leadership.
5. Works with leadership team to develop the preschool budget.
6. Coordinates the use of resources by obtaining needed supplies.
7. Orders curriculum.
8. Leads in evaluation of the work of the division.
9. Assists in the coordination of extended session/ETC.
10. Represents the preschool area on the Sunday School Council.

Back to TopPreschool Division Outreach Leader

1. The division outreach leader works with the division director in coordinating the reaching ministry of Preschool Sunday School.
2. Participates in weekly visitation, outreach, and witnessing.
3. Maintains and/or assists in maintaining active division and department prospect records.
4. Greets visitors on Sunday morning and ensures that preschoolers are placed in the appropriate departments.
5. Obtains and records department assignments, addresses, phone numbers, and names of parent(s) or caregivers.
6. Coordinates all the reaching activities of the Preschool Division.
7. Coordinates prospect discovery projects for the division.

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Children’s Teacher

1. Teaches a small group of children during Bible-study time.
2. Reaches out to find and enroll children who need to be in Sunday School.
3. Contacts absentees weekly and all children in assigned groups regularly.
4. Cares for and ministers to assigned children and their families.
5. Witnesses to children and their families.
6. Fellowships with children and their families.
7. Participates in regular planning.

Back to TopChildren’s Department Director

1. Leads teachers in all work of department including planning and evaluating.
2. Guides the large-group activities on Sunday morning.
3. Enlists all department workers.
4. Determines training needs for workers.
5. Secures literature and resources with secretary.
6. Maintains department records (if there is no secretary).
7. Represents department on Sunday School council (if there is no Children’s Division director).

Back to TopChildren’s Secretary

1. Maintains department attendance records.
2. Maintains department reaching contact records.
3. Orders literature and other supplies and resources.

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4. Children’s Outreach-Evangelism Director
5. Leads department workers in evangelistic visitation and prospect discovery.
6. Cooperates with the Sunday School outreach-evangelism director, as appropriate.

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Responsibilities of Youth Sunday School Leaders

Student Leader

Youth who serve as student leaders should:

1. be disciples and conduct themselves in a way that honors God.
2. witness to peers, lead them to faith in Jesus Christ, and church membership.
3. help plan, promote, and participate in fellowship opportunities; encourage group members to participate in building fellowship.
4. assist the teacher in reaching youth through personal and group visitation and encourage the involvement of class members in personal visitation and group outreach events.
5. be personally involved in the Bible studies, encourage peers to be personally involved, and enlist class members to accept assignments in the Bible studies.
6. maintain a personal quiet time, participate in corporate worship, and encourage other youth to do the same.
7. assist the teacher in leading the class, and serve as a link between the teacher and class members. (Occasionally, the class leader should participate in weekly leadership meetings.)
8. be a member of a Student FAITH team, if in a FAITH church.

Back to TopStudent Teacher

A teacher’s responsibility is:

1. to live by the principle that the leader is the lesson and Sunday School is a seven-day-a-week strategy.
2. to administer the growth of a Youth Sunday School class by planning weekly for effective Bible study, and to participate in training opportunities.
3. to evangelize youth and the adults who influence them through regular contacts, participation in personal visitation, and class outreach events.
4. to disciple teenagers in their relationship with God and to enlist and train youth to serve as class leaders.
5. to guide youth to fellowship with each other as well as with the entire church.
6. to minister to teens and their families and to lead youth to care for one another.
7. to lead youth to worship by helping them develop a lifestyle that includes personal quiet times and participation in corporate worship.
8. to teach youth the Bible using a variety of teaching-learning approaches and prayerfully guiding youth toward spiritual transformation.

Back to TopStudent Department Director

In addition to the teacher’s responsibilities, a department director:

1. participates in the growth of Youth Sunday School in the church through annual planning, communication, organization, and evaluation of the work of the department; leads weekly leadership meetings.
2. works with the department outreach-evangelism director and/or division director to plan department outreach events for youth and leaders.
3. guides the department (large group) time during Sunday School. The department director also relates the department’s training needs to the Youth Division Director.
4. plans evangelism training opportunities for department members and leads all members of the department to become involved in witnessing to the unsaved.
5. promotes fellowship among youth class members and others on the leadership team by planning quarterly fellowship opportunities.
6. encourages youth and leaders to develop personal quiet times and participate in corporate worship, including leading department worship experiences.

Back to TopStudent Department Outreach-Evangelism Leader

The department outreach-evangelism leader’s job responsibilities include:

1. administering the planning and conducting of department outreach and evangelism activities through annual planning events, communication, and weekly leadership meetings.
2. evangelizing youth through participation in personal visitation and group outreach events and equipping all other Youth Sunday School members and leaders in developing their evangelism skills.
3. functioning as a leader in Student FAITH, if the church is a FAITH church;
4. ministering to leaders, members, and nonmembers, and leading youth and leaders to care for members and nonmembers and their families.

Back to TopStudent Department Secretary

The responsibilities of this job include:

1. to process and maintain department records and to compile reports for department leaders.
2. to reach and witness to youth and their families through participation in personal visitation and group outreach events, to process and maintain visitation records, to maintain an up-to-date prospect file.
3. to participate in weekly leadership meetings by providing record information.
4. to maintain all department supplies, including ordering and distributing periodicals.

Back to TopStudent Division Director

(The youth minister may, in some cases, serve as division director.) The responsibilities include:

1. to coordinate the work of multiple departments, guiding them to set goals, and evaluate progress.
2. to coordinate annual planning, communication, training opportunities, and generally coordinate the work of youth department directors and any youth division-level leaders.
3. to lead the youth division to develop and maintain an effective evangelism strategy. to promote fellowship among youth and the leadership team, and among the adult members of the leadership team.
4. to plan and participate in ministry to youth leaders, youth, and the families of youth.
5. to lead all or part of the weekly leadership meetings.
6. to teach as a substitute when needed, to stay in touch with the needs of youth, and to serve as a model for other Youth Sunday School leaders; to plan special youth Bible study groups and projects (Youth Vacation Bible School, Youth January Bible Study, and so forth).
7. to communicate regularly with the minister of youth to plan, organize, evaluate, and conduct the work of Youth Sunday School.
8. to lead youth to worship by coordinating the planning, training, and implementation of emphases that encourage personal quiet times and participation in corporate worship.

Back to TopYouth Minister

Sunday School responsibilities of the minister of youth include:

1. providing administrative support and resources, including budget, for Youth Sunday School leaders.
2. participating in personal visitation and group outreach events; equipping youth and leaders to become involved in evangelizing the unsaved.
3. modeling sound Youth Sunday School methods and principles in all training opportunities for members of the Youth Sunday School leadership team.
4. promoting fellowship among the youth and the youth leadership team.
5. ministering to leaders, members, nonmembers, and their families, and leading youth and leaders to minister to members, nonmembers, and their families.
6. discipling youth by helping them develop personal quiet times and participation in corporate worship; involving youth and Youth Sunday School leaders in planning and conducting special youth worship opportunities.

Back to Top

Responsibilities of Adult Sunday School Leaders

The Sunday School Leadership Team

Every Adult Sunday School leader has the right to know what expectations and responsibilities come with the job. When leaders understand expectations and their role as part of a leadership team, they are more likely to respond positively to the call to lead or serve and to be effective in their jobs.

The majority of leaders in a church´s Bible teaching ministry relate to specific age groups. These leaders relate to one of the following basic roles: (1) division directors, department directors, and others who provide administrative leadership for the work of an age group; (2) teachers, coordinators, apprentices, and class leaders who guide participants in Bible study and engage them in evangelism, discipleship, fellowship, ministry, and worship.

Back to TopAdult Division Director

An Adult Division director is responsible to the Sunday School director for the total ministry of the Adult Division, which includes planning, organizing, enlisting department directors, and evaluating the work. The division director serves on the Sunday School Leadership Planning Team/Sunday School Council and works closely with other members of that team as well as with the Adult Division and department leaders.

The primary responsibilities are to:

1. meet regularly with the Sunday School Council.
2. coordinate the work of the division and determine organizational needs.
3. discover, enlist, and train new leaders.
4. evaluate, encourage, affirm, and direct adult leaders in their ministries.
5. meet regularly with department leaders for planning and evaluation.
6. evaluate needs related to space, budget, Bible study curriculum materials, supplies, and other resources; recommend actions related to needs.
7. set a positive example for others by living as an authentic witness of Christ and being fully involved in the life and ministry of the church.

Back to TopAdult Division Outreach-Evangelism Director

The Adult Division outreach-evangelism director works with the Adult Division director and the Sunday School outreach-evangelism director to lead the Adult Division in outreach and evangelism. This leader works closely with adult department leaders. In churches using FAITH Sunday School Evangelism Strategy®, this person should be a FAITH group leader or team leader.

The primary responsibilities are to:

1. coordinate all evangelism and outreach activities of the division.
2. coordinate prospect-discovery efforts for the division.
3. assist in training division and department leaders and members in evangelism and outreach.
4. evaluate, encourage, affirm, and direct adult leaders in their evangelism and outreach efforts.
5. promote outreach and evangelism objectives with other leaders and members.
6. maintain active division and department prospect records.
7. greet visitors and guide them to the meeting place for their Bible study group.
8. set a positive example for others by living as an authentic witness of Christ and being fully involved in the life and ministry of the church.

Back to TopAdult Division Secretary

The Adult Division secretary provides vital support related to record keeping, reports, and other communications; ordering Bible study curriculum materials, supplies, and other resources; and coordinating the distribution of resources.

The primary responsibilities are to:

1. meet regularly with the division leadership team.
2. process and maintain general records for the division and compile reports as requested, including prospect information.
3. coordinate ordering and distributing Bible study curriculum materials, supplies, and other resources.
4. set a positive example for others by living as an authentic witness of Christ and being fully involved in the life and ministry of the church.

Back to TopAdult Department Directors

An adult department director is responsible to the Adult Division director for the total ministry of the department. The department director works closely with teachers, encouraging them and assisting them in fulfilling their responsibilities.

The primary responsibilities are to:

1. lead in planning and administering the total work of the department.
2. meet regularly with teachers for prayer, planning, and making assignments related to evangelism and outreach, fellowship, ministry, and Bible teaching.
3. serve as a greeter or host for the department.
4. evaluate needs related to space, budget, Bible study curriculum materials, supplies, and other resources; recommend actions related to needs.
5. set a positive example for others by living as an authentic witness of Christ and being fully involved in the life and ministry of the church.
6. in nondepartmentalized Sunday Schools, maintain attendance records and other participant information that strengthens the group’s pursuit of the overall purpose and mission of the Sunday School.

Back to TopAdult Department Outreach-Evangelism Leader

An adult department outreach-evangelism leader works with the Adult Division outreach-evangelism director, adult department director, and adult teachers to lead an adult department in outreach and evangelism. In churches using FAITH Sunday School Evangelism Strategy®, this person works with the division outreach-evangelism leader to administer the department’s involvement in FAITH.

The primary responsibilities are to:

1. coordinate all evangelism and outreach activities of the department.
2. coordinate prospect-discovery efforts for the department.
3. assist in training department leaders and members in evangelism and outreach.
4. evaluate, encourage, affirm, and direct adult leaders in their evangelism and outreach efforts.
5. promote outreach and evangelism objectives with other leaders and members.
6. maintain active department prospect records.
7. greet visitors and guide them to the meeting place for their Bible study group.
8. set a positive example for others by living as an authentic witness of Christ and being fully involved in the life and ministry of the church.

Back to TopAdult Department Secretary

An adult department secretary assists department and class leaders by providing vital support related to record keeping, reports, and other communications; ordering Bible study curriculum materials, supplies, and other resources; and coordinating the distribution of resources.

The primary responsibilities are to:

1. meet regularly with the department leadership team.
2. process and maintain general records for the department and compile reports as requested, including prospect information.
3. set a positive example for others by living as an authentic witness of Christ and being fully involved in the life and ministry of the church.

Back to TopAdult Teacher

An adult teacher is responsible for leading people toward faith in Christ and guiding them to serve Him through evangelism, discipleship, fellowship, ministry, and worship. In pursuing this mission, a teacher must understand that teaching moves beyond the Bible study session into the daily living of participants. A teacher must look for opportunities to mentor participants before and after Bible study sessions; ensure that a positive ministry environment is provided during the session that facilitates the work of the Holy Spirit; invest himself or herself in building positive relationships with participants; and involve learners in meaningful Bible study.

The major responsibilities are to:

1. lead a small group of adults in meaningful Bible study.
2. build positive relationships with participants and prospects and ensure that they are contacted regularly in order to meet their needs.
3. maintain attendance records and other participant information that strengthens the group´s pursuit of the overall purpose and mission of Sunday School.
4. lead participants toward faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and guide them to serve Him through evangelism, discipleship, fellowship, ministry, and worship; organize the class to support that work effectively.
5. enlist an apprentice from the group for the purpose of teaching a new adult class or working in another age group as a teacher within two years.
6. set a positive example for others by living as an authentic witness of Christ and being fully involved in the life and ministry of the church.

Back to TopAdult Class Coordinator

An adult class coordinator may be enlisted to direct the overall work of the class, relieving the teacher of administrative responsibilities. A class coordinator works closely with both the teacher and class team leaders to ensure that all key areas of work are addressed appropriately and that the class is properly organized and mobilized for its mission of leading people to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and building Great Commission Christians through involvement in evangelism, discipleship, fellowship, ministry, and worship.

Adult Class Outreach-Evangelism Leader

An adult class outreach-evangelism leader works with the department outreach-evangelism leader to lead the class in outreach and evangelism. In churches using FAITH Sunday School Evangelism Strategy®, this person works with the department outreach-evangelism leader to administer class involvement in FAITH.

The primary responsibilities are to:

1. coordinate all evangelism and outreach activities of the class.
2. coordinate prospect-discovery and prospect-enlistment efforts of the class.
3. lead members to create an atmosphere that encourages unsaved people to place their faith in Christ and encourages believers to lead others to Christ.
4. maintain prospect records for the Bible study group.
5. set a positive example for others by living as an authentic witness of Christ and being fully involved in the life and ministry of the church.

Back to TopAdult Apprentice

An adult apprentice is enlisted from an adult Bible study group to assist a teacher in his or her major responsibilities and/or to prepare to start a new Bible study unit within two years. An apprentice serves as a substitute when the teacher is absent.

Adult Class Secretary

An adult class secretary provides vital support related to record keeping, reports, and other communications; ordering Bible study curriculum materials, supplies, and other resources; and coordinating the distribution of resources.

The primary responsibilities are to:

1. meet regularly with the Bible study group leadership team.
2. process and maintain general records for the Bible study group and compile reports as requested, including prospect information.
3. coordinate ordering and distributing Bible study curriculum materials, supplies, and other resources.
4. set a positive example for others by living as an authentic witness of Christ and being fully involved in the life and ministry of the church.

Back to TopAdult Class Leaders

Bible study group leaders are enlisted by the teacher of an adult Bible study group to assist with the total work of the group. Group leaders work in one or more of the five key areas of Sunday School work in either a leader-based approach or a team-based approach. The five key areas of work follow. (Generally, the Bible study group outreach-evangelism leader leads the key area of evangelism.)

1. Evangelism: Create an atmosphere that encourages unsaved people to place their faith in Christ and encourages believers to lead others to Christ. (In churches using FAITH Sunday School Evangelism Strategy®, this group leader or members of this team also should be on a FAITH team.)
2. Discipleship: Create an atmosphere that encourages believers to grow in maturity in Christ; monitor the discipleship needs of believers and work with the church’s Discipleship Training director to provide learning opportunities focused on addressing those needs.
3. Fellowship: Create an atmosphere conducive to members building relationships with one another as together they build on their relationship with God; and lead actions that help new members be assimilated into the fellowship of the Bible study group and the team to which they are assigned.
4. Ministry: Create an atmosphere in which members and prospects can experience direct care and concern for life´s needs and avenues through which they may identify and implement ministry and missions projects that utilize the gifts and abilities of members; and lead out in intercessory prayer as an integral part of the ministry and missions activities of the class.
5. Worship: Create a worshipful atmosphere; encourage participation in the church’s corporate worship events; lead small-group worship experiences; and encourage personal worship in home and family settings.

Back to TopParticipants

Adults who attend Bible study groups are not merely the intended recipients of Sunday School´s Great Commission ministry. They are the grass roots ministers. Adult Sunday School is all about building Great Commission Christians. All Bible study group leaders, teachers, directors, and pastoral leaders needed now or in the future may be found on the membership or prospect lists of Bible study groups today. Every participant should receive the opportunity to serve according to the leadership of the Holy Spirit. We can offer those opportunities through Adult Sunday School.

The primary responsibilities are to:

1. participate in personal and group Bible study regularly, giving attention to the leadership of the Holy Spirit in one’s life.
2. be receptive to God´s efforts to draw people to faith in Christ through His Word, His Spirit, and His people.
3. actively participate in efforts to lead others toward faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
4. participate individually and with the Bible study group to serve Christ through evangelism, discipleship, fellowship, ministry, and worship.
5. follow God´s leadership in responding to opportunities to grow spiritually and to serve God´s people in leadership roles.

Cliff,

It was (is) a bit hard for me to give this up. Being “the director” sometimes makes me feel there are certain things that I “have” to do – that are “my” job. While that may be true, I also think there are things like this, making these personal phone calls and contacts, that maybe I’m not the best guy to be doing all the work. I appreciate your willingness to get in touch with these people about this ministry, and hope this will continue to be a good way to use you in our SS Leadership Team, even as we get you out of a few of the other jobs that require more meetings and hands-on planning. You are excellent at this, it comes naturally to you, and people really appreciate you. I again thank you for your willingness to help me with this. I hope the information below will give you an idea of what we are doing and help you with these contacts.

Sunday School Outreach Ministry Notes

We are planning to start a more organized and effective Sunday School outreach ministry. We are going to purposefully avoid certain church-wide programs and instead focus on utilizing the effectiveness of the small groups and personal relationships we have in Sunday School. Some ideas we are throwing around are:

1. We may redesign the Sunday School attendance sheets to provide classes a more effective and easy-to-use method of communicating back and forth to the SS Outreach team about prospects, missing members, and visitors. We may test this out with a few classes in each or our divisions before rolling it out to entire Sunday School. We will also probably incorporate personal visits from Chet, or our Outreach leaders, to explain what, why, and how we are doing.
2. We hope to allow each class to personalize their own outreach ministry. This will include things like encouraging them to find a way to reach out and minister to prospects or unsaved people in their circle of influence, but in the end, allowing and counting on them to do the work themselves.
3. We will need to raise up leadership within each SS class. In a very small class, this could (but hopefully will not be) be the teacher. In most classes, however, we will encourage and find outreach leadership outside of the teacher. We want to create ministry teams from our classes, and we will model this in our own Sunday School and SS Outreach teams.
4. We need to come up with an effective way of reaching out to the families of our preschool, children, and youth as well. Adults are “easier,” or at least more direct, because the members of the class can do the work themselves. This is not the case with our younger SS members, as they often rely upon their parents to bring them to church. For this reason we will need to help our teachers in these areas come up with an effective way to follow-up with not just their children, but also the parents of those children. This could involve teaming up each adult class with a younger member class, or getting the regular member parents of kids in the same class to help with the outreach.
5. Two things we are going to emphasize are communication and ownership. We are thinking of various ways to do this, including giving more personal names to our SS program, classes, and ministries.

We are looking for a team of 2-3 people, and those people will work alongside our SS leadership team to make this happen. Here are some brief, tentative job descriptions. We will iron these out further as we develop this ministry.

1. “SS Outreach Director:” We need one person willing to help lead, visualize, and pioneer this ministry. This person will work closely with Chet, Pastor Mike, and our division directors.

2. “SS Outreach Secretary:” We need another person willing to do the week-to-week leg work of coordinating communication between leadership and classes. Depending on what we do.

3. “SS Outreach Communications Coordinator: If we found a third person, a good job description might be someone willing to make phone calls to leaders & teachers, set up visits, and perhaps even train / help others on how to do the same.

Listed below are a list of the people I am thinking of for this ministry. We will plan to have a brief informational meeting next Sunday (3/9/2008) after the morning service for about 20-30 minutes to discuss this ministry. We will also be discussing the Adult Director position; several of the people I’m interested in talking two will be on both lists. I will lead the meeting. We will pass along most of the information contained here, talk about hearts, and encourage them to think about their place in this ministry.

Cliff, please contact these people this week (you can add or drop any names you feel don’t “fit”) about the meeting next Sunday. If you can also get a sense of their interest and heart for this type of ministry, that would be even more excellent.

Names Removed

Thank you so much, Cliff. Please let me know how this goes and if there is anything I need to do.

Chet

P.S. Anybody with an interest who can’t make the meeting or who wants more information… put them in touch with me or talk to them yourself. I think you know my heart enough to know where we are going with this.