What Is Student Leadership, Really?
[ym360 Note: Doug Franklin is someone we look up to in the youth ministry world. Doug is the founder of LeaderTreks, a great organization providing student leadership resources and experiences. Doug has written a short e-book he is making available for free attached to this post. Read Doug's thoughts, then click the link at the end of the post to jump to Doug's site and download the free book.]
Every youth ministry has a different definition of what a student leader is:
- Some youth pastors say they have a comprehensive student leadership development program. But their program consists of students coming early to youth group to hang out with the youth pastor and set up the chairs . . .
- Others tell me their program focuses on character development and becoming a person of influence . . .
- Still others tell me they have strong student leaders who love the Lord and love getting together for Bible study and personal accountability. They make up the spiritual core of the group . . .
Not all these models of ministry can be leadership development. So what model of leadership development is really developing leaders? At LeaderTreks, we are convinced that leadership development is a combination of principles and experiences:
Leadership Principles + Leadership Experiences = Transformational Leadership.
Students must understand universal truths about leadership. They must also have the opportunity to put those principles into action, realizing the consequences for their decisions and seeing projects through to completion. I explain all this in my new e-book called Student Leaders are Church Leaders and I’m giving it away for free. Student Leaders are Church Leaders provides a simple way to weave student leadership development into the fabric of your ministry. You don’t have to start over, add another program to your already long list, or scratch your current plan. Youth ministry is still about outreach, evangelism, discipleship, missions, and worship; it’s just better when led by students.
Cick here to visit LeaderTreks.com to download a free copy of Student Leaders are Church Leaders.
This book will help you understand the theory of student leadership while giving you practical steps you can take to give your students ownership of the ministry. Whether you have a student leadership program or you want to start one, this book will help your students lead now.
Doug Franklin is a veteran youth worker and the founder of LeaderTreks, a ministry dedicated to creating exceptional resources and experiences that lead students to grow into leaders. Check out Leader Treks, stop by their Facebook page, or follow Doug’s blog.
