Collegiate Collective

Today, Caleb Craft joins us to talk about how we can partner with student affairs and the retention benefit it can bring. Craft currently is a pastor at Newlife OSU and works in student affairs at the Ohio State University.

Caleb Craft // Learning and Development Specialist at The Ohio State University & Pastor at NewLife OSU // @caleb_a_craft

Notable Points:

• How student affairs sees students.
  • They see their department as a part of the education of students outside of the classroom.
  • In a sense student affairs plays a quasi pastoral role in students lives.
• How can we work with student affairs?
  • We need to respect the rules and expectations that they have in place if you want to have a good relationship.
  • Student affairs may see interfaith events as a positive and achieving their goals for students.
  • Meeting with the people at the office is a great opportunity to learn about expectations and how the whole system works.
    • You may have more opportunity here than you think.
• How to build the relationship?
  • Show them you are interested in student development and giving them responsibilities.
  • Ask them what they would like to see out of the relationship.
  • Love them.
• What do they look for in a partnership?
  • They want the students to actually be in leadership positions and be involved.
    • Don’t use students to get in the door.  Student Affairs will see this as being dishonest.
    • This will be difficult.
• Why is this important?
  • This forces you to build student leaders who can help lead the next generation.
  • This relationship can help give you access to facilities and funding.
  • This can help build the reputation that you have on campus.
  • You may be able to be involved in welcome and other campus events.
  • Retention benefit.
• What to do if there is hostility?
  • Ask if it is due to being Christ followers or due to you breaking the rules.
  • Ask them if you are doing anything wrong or if you can be doing anything better.
• Social Change Model of Leadership
  • Sociocultural conversations
  • Mentorship
  • Community Service
  • Membership in an off-campus organization
• It’s all about communicating what we are doing in a way that is understandable.

Recommended Books

Confident Pluralism

Religious Pluralism in the Academy

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