Indian Academy for Campus Ministry (IACM)
Organized by
The Senate of Serampore College (University)
July 21-31, 2023
Sponsored by the United Board for Christian Higher Education in Asia (The United Board)
Call for Application
Rationale:
Campus ministry services are being offered in secular settings in many higher education
institutions today these services centre on life's intellectual, emotional, social, interpersonal,
and spiritual dimensions. Through them, campus ministry staff seek to assist students with
personal awareness, understanding, growth and integration. For this reason, campus ministry
has always been called the 'ministry of presence.' Presence is physical and emotional: first, the
campus ministers are to be physically present with the students when the latter seek them;
second, the campus ministers are to be emotionally present with the students through
empathetic listening. These instances make campus ministry a significant aspect of university
life.
Chaplaincy is often the first point of call for students of faith, as well as for non-religious
students, staff, international students and those seeking a supportive, listening ear. In the 21st
century, university chaplaincy is often organized around a multifaith model under the auspices
of a full-time coordinating chaplain who is primarily a Christian chaplain in the case of
Christian colleges and universities. While Christian students may still be of a significant
number in Christian colleges and universities in Europe and America, the context in Asia is
different. In many Asian countries, the majority of students come from faith traditions other
than Christianity, while the chaplains, usually Christians, would need to cater to the needs of
the students of all faiths.
In this context, chaplains and other staff in the campus ministry team need to be sufficiently
equipped so that they can play or her role effectively in the spiritual development of the students
and for the extended and new roles of campus ministry. This need involves several skills,
including counselling skills and many others. Therefore the campus ministry has to be a team
with expertise from different fields. Education and training opportunities for chaplains are
necessary and important so that they understand the new roles and get equipped with the
training to be effective in their workplace.
The program will be an entirely in-person residential program for ten days at The Senate of
Serampore College (University) from July 21 to 31, 2023
The learning outcomes of the program will include
→ To strengthen campus ministry work;
→ To establish a summer institute to cater to the needs of the campus ministry
→ To understand the multi-religious context in Asia and to be enabled to cater to the
needs of the students from other faith;
→ To understand the role of campus ministers in the spiritual development of the students
and the role in fostering whole-person education;
→ To understand the new and extended role of campus ministry;
→ To equip the members for the new and extended roles;
→ To nurture the culture of care;
→ To understand mentoring skills and their importance;
→ To develop the required skills to foster spirituality on campus;
→ To give opportunity for continuous learning;
→ To give training on different skills needed for the new roles of campus ministry.
Expected participants:
Chaplains, spiritual directors, faculties, or staff engaged in campus ministry for spiritual
formation or counseling in colleges and universities in India. An institution may nominate more
than one representative; however, the United Board reserves the right to select the participants
based on regional balance. The maximum number of participants is 30.
Application:
The online application is open now. Click here for the application. The deadline is the June
24, 2023 (Saturday). The selection result will be announced in early July 2023.
For any inquiries, don't hesitate to contact Ms. Pray Eucha, Program Associate, at
Website: https://unitedboard.org/