Chapter Planting at UW-Madison School of Journalism

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This document is part of a larger cluster of articles about InterVarsity
chapter planting at https://www.intervarsity.org/mx/page/chapterplanting

The Campus

The UW-Madison is the mothership for the University of Wisconsin system,
with about 40,000 students. I am not normally on campus. I work in the NSC
Advancement Department as InterVarsity’s Public Media Content Coordinator.

The Challenges

The UW gives the appearance of being a very secular campus and journalism
is among the most secular of disciplines. So beginning a new InterVarsity
chapter focusing on journalism students faces a lot of inertia. However,
diversity is very important to journalism and I think that may be one of
our strongest appeals.

Campus Contacts

One staff and one lecturer have been very cooperative. One student, a
leader in Campus Crusade, is very interested in this group and has contacts
with others.

What We’re Doing

We’re working on connecting with new students in the fall of 2006 and then
we hope to begin meeting on a twice-a-month basis.

The Vision

My vision comes from my involvement with Gegrapha, a global fellowship of
Christians in journalism. I feel there needs to be more networking and
mentorship among Christians in journalism so they don’t feel so isolated,
which seems to be pretty common. I am very hopeful, having seen how God has
been leading in this effort so far, even though it’s been difficult.

God is Working

Last fall, Rich Sicard (GFM) and I prayer-walked the journalism school on a
weekly basis. Despite our efforts, we were unable to connect with any
students. But we had several direct answers to prayer, and in the second
semester we made contact with a student who is very much interested in
working with us.

Help Needed

The mentoring I’ve received from Rich Sicard has been very helpful. I feel
like I need more training in how to lead a small group.

Chapter_Planting_Targeted_UW-Madison_School_of_Journalism.doc