3.31.2008 LCMS News
THE LUTHERAN CHURCH Missouri Synod
March 31, 2008 .................... LCMSNews -- No. 23
Schools 'driven by mission' are reaching unchurched
By Roland Lovstad
The post-Easter proclamation "Christ is risen!" will be heard regularly from now through the end of the school year during chapel at Unity Lutheran School, East St. Louis, Ill. In a school where just a fourth of the students are members of any church, responses will be no less enthusiastic: "He is risen indeed! Alleluia!"
Lunchtime highlights the diversity at Sunbeams Lutheran School in Kent, Wash., where one kindergartner may eat seaweed and rice with chopsticks, another will have vegetables in a wrap, and another eats a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Their native languages may be different, but they all thank one God for their food.
"These testify to the Ablaze! movement in Lutheran schools," observes Terry Schmidt, associate director of School Ministry with the LCMS Board for District and Congregational Services. "They provide a safe, high-achievement learning environment where there is opportunity to share the love of Jesus Christ."
Schmidt refers to the "M&M principle" -- mission and ministry -- in Lutheran schools. Mission reaches to nonbelievers and unchurched school children and their families and in service to the community. As ministry, schools nurture students through quality education and Christ-centered relationships.
In presentations on Lutheran schools, Schmidt often emphasizes the principle by tossing small bags of M&M candy to his audiences.
He also is a collector of facts about the effects of Lutheran schools: six children baptized at a service at Hephatha Lutheran School in Anaheim, Calif.; nine school families completed adult instruction and joined Christ Lutheran Church in Costa Mesa, Calif.; and how the Holy Spirit brought a reluctant little boy to confess his faith at Grace Early Childhood Center in Houma, La.
"As we provide Word and the Sacrament of Baptism to children, they bring the Word home to their parents," Schmidt comments. "We have even seen the Holy Spirit working in teachers who previously had no faith."
In its compilation of statistics from the 2006-07 school year, the LCMS Schools Department reports 3,910 children baptized, and 3,232 adults baptized or confirmed through the influence of Lutheran schools. It reports 1,368 early childhood centers, 1,018 elementary schools, and 102 high schools.
Schmidt said he received "many reports of mission-and-ministry-related activities from our schools" during this year's March 2-8 National Lutheran Schools Week.
Principal Paul Miller emphasizes that Unity Lutheran School, now in its fifth year, is a mission school. "Everything we decided about school policies, location, and tuition are all driven by that mission goal," he says. "Of our 68 students, we have two Lutherans and about a fourth of the students belong to other Christian churches. But most would be considered unchurched.
"We wanted families without church homes so we could teach those kids about Jesus -- and reach parents as well," Miller continues. "We pray all the time that the right students would enroll. We spend a lot of time inviting them to church and to be involved in church."
Unity was begun by the Southern Illinois District. Its principal and six teachers are called or contracted through the district mission board. The district provides a subsidy, but the school also receives financial support from congregations and individuals.
The school also charges tuition. Miller says, "I tell parents we charge tuition because when you get something for nothing, that's what you figure it's worth." Tuition is based on a sliding scale and all families receive financial aid.
Unity Lutheran Church, Miller says, "was not built to be a school." The 68 students -- in kindergarten through fourth grade -- meet in various locations. The fourth grade, for example, meets in the church balcony. The school is adding one grade per year, so next year's fifth grade may have their classroom in a corner of the church's gymnasium, unless the school finds an alternative site. Miller says the school is currently negotiating to purchase a former Roman Catholic school a few blocks from Unity.
Denise Pacilli serves half-time as director of Sunbeams, operated by Lutheran Church of the Cross in Kent, Wash. Sunbeams enrolls nearly 70 students -- from at least 14 cultural backgrounds -- in preschool and kindergarten. English is a second language for most students.
"Communicating with parents is a constant challenge, yet we are given the opportunity and privilege to share Jesus with children from many backgrounds," she says. "The first thing we try to do is warm acceptance of families."
Pacilli also serves half-time as director of the New Hope Early Childhood Center in Pacific, Wash., where the community is lower-income but no less diverse. The preschool enrolls 18 children who come from Hispanic, Russian, Ukrainian, and Anglo households.
While communicating in a wide variety of languages is difficult, Pacilli says the ministry is easy. "Jesus takes care of that. All we do is love these children and their families, help them feel comfortable and accepted, and take the time to listen to them carefully for understanding."
Schmidt's "M&M principle" is echoed in the Milwaukee area, where Lutheran Urban Mission Initiative, Inc. (LUMIN) owns one school and manages two other Lutheran schools. All three reach to students through the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program, which allows students from low income families to attend a school of their choice
"Out of our 350 students, more than 300 attend under the Choice program," comments Dick Laabs, LUMIN president. "We consistently find that approximately 30 percent are completely unchurched and 50 to 60 percent may claim a variety of church affiliations from recognized denominations to storefronts. Frankly, we view all of them as an outstanding outreach opportunity."
Laabs says LUMIN has two objectives: One is to present a high quality academic program in an urban community where kids generally perform below grade level. The second is to reach out with the Gospel message of God's love in Jesus Christ.
LUMIN conducted a survey earlier this year and received a 60 percent response from parents. Giving "yes," "no," or "unsure" answers to 30 questions, they only gave a 100 percent response to two questions -- one pertained to the school environment helping to develop the faith life of students.
"We were very pleased with that feedback because we consider that mission opportunity is what we're all about," Laabs says.
LUMIN took over what has now been named Concordia University School in 2005 after a congregation closed and deeded its property to the South Wisconsin District. LUMIN purchased the property in 2007 and is adding eight more classrooms to the building. The expansion will double enrollment to 200 students with separate classrooms for kindergarten through eighth grade.
Noting that the community has ongoing issues with single-parent families, substance abuse, medical care, and nutrition, Laabs comments, "Sharing the Gospel and providing education becomes much more complicated. There are barriers to learning and we need to penetrate those barriers, whether we go through them, around them, or over them to accomplish our Gospel and educational objectives."
Lutheran schools also extend outreach in affluent, suburban neighborhoods where parents have a choice of where they send their children.
In Sanford, Fla., Holy Cross Lutheran Academy has a growing enrollment that has now reached 100 students in kindergarten through eighth grade. Principal Betty Hoyer says 20 percent of the students are members of the congregation. However, she notes that another 10 percent are coming to church regularly and, although they have not joined, their families are getting involved in church activities. And another 10 percent have begun to visit regularly.
"We see more of our school families visiting the church and making a decision to join," she says. "If they make a commitment to join the church, it shows their faith is growing."
Hoyer says parents like the small class sizes at Holy Cross Academy. She adds, "We have strong academics and loving, caring people who try to exemplify the Gospel."
A mother recently expressed gratitude for how the school has helped her son, mentioning Bible stories, prayer before meals, and help with a difficult family situation.
"When we hear that, we know we're doing what we want to do," Hoyer observes. "Our church's goal has always been to meet the needs of the community. It began with child care and then moved on to educational needs. Somehow, God has blessed that and we continue to grow."
Hoyer observes that parents do want a Christian influence in their children's lives and, for some, the school is their only connection with the Gospel.
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