Students are on a journey to find their community in college. There are three important points when we can meet them and welcome them into our fellowships:
- 1. How will you and returning students prepare spiritually for NSO?
- 2. How will you lay a foundation of prayer for the incoming new students?
Include who is participating, prayer strategies, and when.
InterVarsity will be running ads over the summer to invite students to submit online contact cards. How will you follow-up with interested students?
Students browse Instagram to see club opportunities and create a priority list they want to check out. How can you be present digitally to meet these students?
We’ve found that chapters who run a 15-20 hour sprint during one week of the summer (following and messaging new students) see some of them become in-person members in our chapters.
A link to “Welcoming New Students on Instagram will be emailed to you after you submit your plan.”
How will you meet people? Will you table, proxe, pickleball, or some other fun event?
Your goal is to meet [xx] students.
Make sure to consider events both for Christians and events accessible to non-Christians.
Follow-up is the most important step– the moment when strangers become friends. How can you make follow-up a great experience for you, your students, and the new students?
To hit your growth goal, you will need to follow-up with xx students. Good follow-up is first building a relationship with each new contact, then inviting them to an InterVarsity event. Students who are joining the NSO effort can reasonably follow-up with 10-15 contacts.
How will you foster friendships between new people who are checking out your fellowship?
Non-Christians tend to be the most open during the first weeks of school. When will you make two invitations to faith in the first six weeks of school?
You are praying for [xx] decisions in your chapter. Over half of all new faith decisions happen in the first semester, and most of those come from the first weeks of school and fall conference.
In your own words, why is Fall Conference potentially life-changing for everyone? How will you motivate your leaders and core students to want to sign up early? What stories can you tell to help new students get excited?
Casting vision for Fall Conference will help interpret why it is more than just another InterVarsity event.
What are the barriers that might keep students from wanting to come to fall conference? How can you address those?
The three common barriers for students include: too busy, conflict with work or other events, and not sure what to expect.
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