Director of Family and Student Ministries

Director of Family and Student Ministries

Direct Supervisor: Pastor

Hours per week: ~20

Classification: Half-time, exempt

Compensation: $19,000-$22,000/year

Purpose: Lakewood UMC is seeking a creative outside of the box thinker who can help the congregation better serve and be in ministry with families who have children as well as steward the discipleship of young christians ranging from children to youth. The candidate we are seeking believes that everyone is a beloved child of God, despite one’s gender, sexuality, status, wealth, neurodivergence, or age. 

This candidate is versed in methodist theology, is comfortable with public speaking, has skills in teaching and mentoring, and is not trapped in stereotypical approaches of ministry toward families and young people. 

This candidate recognizes the inherent leadership that young people can provide congregations and earnestly seeks to cultivate it in the young people they are in ministry with while serving in this role. 

This candidate is also willing to work collaboratively with the rest of the church team and with the community at large. 

This candidate believes in the importance of the broader methodist connection and connecting young people to the connectional ministries of the Mountain Sky Annual Conference. 

This candidate is also conversant with the operational needs of a church preschool program and is willing to partner with the Pastor in being a liason between the program and the church as well as developing creative approaches in connecting the church with the preschool program. 

This candidate will model an authentic journey of discipleship (a journey to perfection in love and growth as a follower of Christ) in they way they live and in how they interact with those whom they come across–especially the poor, people experiencing forms of homelessness or systemic oppression, and people outside of cultural “norms.”

Job Responsibilities

• Create and develop a program of ministry that addresses the developmental needs of children and youth, keeps them connected to the worship life of the church, and encourages their personal and spiritual growth while also teaching them the fundamentals of our Christian and United Methodist faith.

• Maintain relationships with families as a whole, partnering with the pastor and staff to create opportunities for connection between families with children and the community as well as the church. Intergenerational approaches are strongly desired here.

• Prioritize ministry with families with young children and curate opportunities for these families to gather in ways that meet their specific needs (childcare, etc.)

• Help guide the congregation to be strongly involved with the spiritual formation of children and youth, and empower them to lead in teaching, mentoring, and other forms of service that pertain to children and youth ministry.

• Develop programming that connects with children and youth that aren’t inside the walls of the church on Sunday, but who might still be able to connect with the ministry of LUMC.

• Occasional worship leadership and participation–as well as cultivating worship leadership from young people.

• Oversight and recruitment of volunteers to teach Sunday school or other teaching ministries for this ministry area of the church.

• Creation, development, and/or curation of curriculum that meets developmental needs of young people across a broad range of age for Sunday School and other gathering times.

• Develop and maintain a Safe Sanctuary policy that meets the standards of Mountain Sky Annual Conference, and creates multiple forms of protection against potential abuses of children which includes maintaining and initiating background checks of volunteers. This is to be done in partnership with the Director of Operations and Outreach.

• Develop and oversee a budget for Family and Student ministry in partnership with the Pastor.

• Attend weekly staff meetings and monthly Church board meetings.