Our first year with our school we were lazer focused getting people inside the school.  One of the school’s answers to our “how can we help” question was a need for mentors and reading buddies.  Over 50 of our people commit wanted to serve in the school as a reading or math buddy.  There was a lot of admin work to line up schedules andmake sure volunteers didn’t come in when a class was at gym or lunch.
And while we were lazer focused on getting people inside the school for these volunteer opportunities, we failed to see the elementary school day is a less than ideal time for people to get to a school when they have . . . jobs!  Additionally many schools can be hard to get to from places people work. 
So we unintentionally left out a whole group of people who wanted to participate in this new partnership, in this new service to our local community, but couldn’t because how we designed it. 
It was our fault.
That was a miss on our part.
Here’s how one fix helps you avoid this mistake.  When you partner with a school, create opportunities outside the school day:

• How can you provide opportunities during the summer?
• What administrative or church-side work (clothing drives, appreciation drives, making meals, etc) can people do outside of the school day?
• What affiliate programs can you work with to provide people evening opportunities to serve the school?  Bonus: here’s one program we partner with in service to our school

You can learn from my mistake.  From my short-sightedness.  When you partner with your school, you’ll go into it with how you can include all of your people and invite everyone to participate in some way and not leave someone out.
 

​DTR.

Define The Relationship.

I am in my 40s so I really have no idea if DTR is still a relevant or hip cultural acronym.  But with two teenagers and two more who will become teens this next year, I can tell you a bulk of our parenting conversations center on DTR. 
Or waiting to DTR . . .

Or advising to wait to DTR . . . !

Why would a principal speak at church?  Why would a pastor speak at a school?

To define the relationship. 

One thing defines your church-school relationship.

• Do you wonder how to define the relationship of your church-school partnership?
• Do you have the one tool that can immediately impact your partnership?
• Do you know the one thing that will rally people around your church-school partnership?

It’s story.

Having a story.

Telling a story.

For churches, invite the principal or a school leader to share a story.

For schools, invite the pastor or church leader to share a story.

One partnership did this a couple weeks ago and the principal gave the Sunday morning message!  You can listen to Nancy’s story here of working as an educator and having a church partner support her and her school.

I admit this is a risky and daunting idea.  And you can certainly have successful church-school partnerships without the principal speaking in church or without the pastor speaking at a school staff meeting. 

But these opportunities to share stories with one another galvanize a church-school partnership. 

They solidify it. 

They demonstrate an incredible level of trust between the school and the church.  They remind one another of the partnership’s mission.  Why we’re working together.  The good things that are happening and the challenges being faced.

Define your partnership with story. 

And if you need some coaching with your story, reply to this email.  We’ll guide you so you can continue to impact your school and community. 
 
Until next week,

B