January 26, 2006

The STEP Leadership Team, which helps organize ecumenical events for college students and is the primary national ministry for Disciples and United Church of Christ college students, has added three new students.

• Sarah Lohrbach, a sophomore at Elmhurst College, is majoring in theology and GLBT studies. Sarah is a member of St. John United Church of Christ in her hometown of Bourbonnais, Illinois.

• Kelly Rand, a sophomore at Texas Christian University, is majoring in social work and religion. Her home church is St. Andrew Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Olathe, Kansas.

• Trayce Stewart, a junior at Hiram College, is majoring in early childhood education. She is a member of Bethany Christian Church in Cleveland, Ohio, and, grew up in suburban Willoughby.

"In the last few years, when these students signed on to the Leadership Team, STEP's mission was unclear. Staffing at the national level was in transition, funding was low, and it would have been easy for the students to say, 'forget this' and walk away from their obligations," says Brad Lyons, the Disciples' co-coordinator for STEP.

"But they didn't walk away. They stuck with it and jumped into the fray, and that's a testament to the determination of college students who want strong student ministries. It didn't take long for new energy to get STEP moving again. Our students may have signed up for a different experience than the one they had, but they've done a fantastic job of being creative and enthusiastic and realistic. It's pretty clear to all of us who have seen STEP's transformation this year that God is at work in this group. It's an amazing time and a great example of how our churches are revitalizing and finding new ways to express God's mission in our world."

Kimberly Whitney, the UCC's co-coordinator for STEP, adds, "there is a vision and passion for diversity in a world in which God is still speaking that young leaders are running with here. This is a renewal to support, along with campus ministries, colleges and universities, and local churches committed to education with soul. The intersection of spirituality-- the life of mind -- and community practice bring us all closer to a more just, diverse and sustainable world."

Stewart, Rand, and Lohrbach will join five returning members of the STEP Leadership Team whose terms will expire at the end of 2006:

• James Darnell (Illinois State University) is a senior theater major from New Church United Church of Christ in Peoria, Illinois.

• Katie Griffin (Eastern Kentucky University) is a senior elementary education major from Bethany Christian Church in Evansville, Indiana.

• Justin Lyman (Lakeland College) is a senior religion major from North Parish Congregational Church in Sanford, Maine.

• Nandi Shareef (Hampton University) is working toward a 5-year master's in business administration. She is a member of St. Stephen's Community Church in East Lansing, Michigan.

• Beau Underwood (Eureka College) is a senior religion, philosophy, and political science and history major from First Christian Church in Princeton, Illinois.

• Natalee Cayton (Webster University) is a photography major from Oklahoma City who is now a member of Webster Groves Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in St. Louis;

• Carl Cuffee (Norfolk State University) majored in entrepreneurial studies and is a member of Providence United Church of Christ in Chesapeake, Virginia;

• Leslie Dobyns (Culver-Stockton College) is an arts management major from First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) of Peoria, Illinois;

• Jon Hall (Transylvania University) is a religion, sociology and anthropology major from First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) of Huntsville, Alabama;

• Sharlissa Moore (Smith College) graduated with a degree in astrophysics and is a member of First Congregational United Church of Christ in Rapid City, South Dakota.

STEP also serves as a link between the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and other ecumenical affiliations. STEP Leadership Team members also serve on the Council for Ecumenical Student Christian Ministry (CESCM) and the World Student Christian Federation (WSCF). They are also involved in planning Celebrate, an ecumenical student gathering scheduled for this December in New Orleans, Louisiana.

STEP's web site, www.stepnetwork.org, hosts a listserv with more than 100 subscribers and provides a forum to discuss issues facing the church and opportunities to interact with other college Christians and to find service opportunities. Information and promotional materials for STEP can be ordered online at www.helmdisciples.org/orders.

Civil rights and education are two areas college and high school students and campus ministers want to see the church addressed, according to a survey completed this summer and fall by the Student Ecumenical Partnership (STEP).

The national college ministry of the United Church of Christ and Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), STEP clarified its vision this spring by calling college students to social activism and theological dialogue. To determine the next action to answer that call, STEP collected more than 120 surveys asking college and prospective college students about the social issues they feel STEP is most capable of addressing.

Members of the STEP Leadership Team distributed the survey at the UCC's General Synod in Atlanta and the Disciples' General Assembly in Portland, Oregon. The survey also was available online until the beginning of October so students returning to campuses could participate. Participants were asked to choose their top three choices from a list of thirteen choices.

Civil rights - including GLBT rights, racism, indigenous rights, and human rights in general - was included in 46% of all responses, followed by education in 37%. The categories were selected and defined by the 10-member STEP Leadership Team. Here are the complete results:

"First and foremost, they demonstrate how much college students care about the life of the church and how seriously they take the challenge to put their faith into practice," said Leadership Team member Beau Underwood, a student at Eureka College. "These responses also remind all of us how varied the passions of college students are and give us a responsibility to make sure every individual is ministered to, and encouraged by, the work of the Student Ecumenical Partnership."

Kimberly Whitney, the Minister for Higher and Theological Education for the United Church of Christ, saw students and campus ministers thinking imaginatively about education, civil rights, and other issues the church faces in contemporary life.

"In the end, I would say this survey data is revelatory of a bold affirmation of the life of mind and spirit in which God is still speaking. It displays a passion for religious imagination in the church and world, with a role for young and old alike to sustain and shape creatively." Jonathan Hall, a senior at Transylvania University, was surprised that the E in STEP ranked lower than he had expected..

"One thing that is surprising is that a prime component of STEP - ecumenism - is far down on the list," Hall said. "I believe that we should keep it as a mission, but perhaps the mission of STEP should be mobilization: using our hands to feed the homeless, our feet to march and protest for civil rights, and our mouths as prophetic voices that are not apologetic, but prophetic."

The survey also included short-answer opportunities for feedback on denominational programs and brief demographic information. Reviewing those answers and discerning the next action for STEP will be on the agenda when the STEP Leadership Team gather in St. Louis November 4-6. Check www.stepnetwork.org for a report on that meeting in mid-November.

What's the next step for STEP?

This summer the Student Ecumenical Partnership (STEP), the national college ministry of the United Church of Christ and Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), is surveying young adults, campus ministers, and chaplains online and at denominational gatherings. These surveys will measure what social justice issues college-aged Disciples and UCCers are passionate about and what other needs STEP can address.

This spring, STEP clarified its vision calling college students to social activism and theological dialogue. Focusing on a specific issue will build momentum for future projects.

"Through these surveys and through the topics presented at Synod and Assembly, the STEP Leadership Team hopes to garner a sense of where God is calling STEP and what resources it needs to provide to campus ministry," said James Darnell, a STEP Leadership Team member and a student at Illinois State University.

"College students have such wide-ranging interests when it comes to issues of social justice. Our hope is that with input from the students who are the Student Ecumenical Partnership, we will learn which issues can rally the most students and, subsequently, which issues we're best equipped to address."