Anchorsaway Roles

Program Administrator

Have you caught the vision of what an Anchorsaway program could do in your community? Are you excited about the possibility of seeing young men and women leave high school with confidence in their identity, and in what God is calling them to do and to be on their college campus or in the workplace? Are you connected in your community and known as someone who is respected by the life that you lead? Are you a detail oriented person? If so, this ministry opportunity is for you! Your role would not be that of a teacher, but rather as a leader of people and an overseer of your site. You are critical to the group’s success. If you sense God has led you to accept this position, you can trust Him to equip you to meet the challenge!

To be a successful program administrator, you must be a person with excellent organizational abilities. You will have authority over the program and help choose the leadership team. This core group of leaders would include, for example, the teacher(s) and men and women serving as small group leaders. You may also choose others to help with some of the duties specified in the section “Timeline for Establishing a New Anchorsaway Site.”

• Choose a team to launch Anchorsaway into your community. This would include a Teacher, Assistant Teacher, Small Group Leaders and community support helpers.
• Secure a meeting location.
• Assist the teaching leader in training the small group leaders.
• Print off the Statement of Faith from the Resource CD-ROM. Be sure to have the Teacher, Assistant Teacher, Small Group Leaders read and sign the form.
• Meet with prospective senior high school students in churches and tell them about Anchorsaway. The teaching leader and the small group leaders will do this also.
• Two to three weeks before the start of the program, meet with one or two students from each of the high schools in the area who are willing to serve as point people for Anchorsaway in their schools to answer questions and invite their friends.
• Order the Student Worldview Handbooks, the Small Group Leaders Worldview Handbooks and obtain the other necessary supplies, such as name tags, 3 x 5 cards, pens, etc.
• Oversee the Teacher. Make sure that he/she has all that he/she needs to teach effectively. Communicate regularly with the Teaching Leader.
• Manage the finances of your group, or enlist a volunteer to handle this responsibility.
• Create and maintain an up-to-date record system of the student’s attendance, in order to follow up with them once they have completed the Anchorsaway program and have transitioned to college or the workplace. Check the Resource CD-ROM for our Microsoft Excel attendance template. Please be sure to email the student and leader roster to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
• Print name tags for each upcoming week. For the first week, put colored dots or numbers on the name tags, with each color or number designating the assigned small group. They will remain with the same small group throughout the entire Anchorsaway program unless they are adamant about changing to another group. Use your own judgment as to how to deal with such situations.
• Find someone willing to bake cookies or bring water every week (optional).

Teacher

The teaching leader is the primary teacher and resource person. He/she ought to be well read and prepared to speak Truth. The teaching leader should have an assistant/substitute who can fill in when he/she cannot be present. The teaching leader and the assistant teacher leader (if there is one) may be enlisted from within a church, school, or the community. It is strongly recommended that neither the teaching leader nor the assistant teaching leader be a pastor or youth minister. It is important that students leave their familiar comfort zones as they begin to own and to personalize their faith.

The following key characteristics are essential for a Teacher:

• The gift and passion to teach Truth (this is not a preaching ministry).
• A personal relationship with Jesus Christ, a strong foundational in the Christian worldview, and the energy necessary to meet the challenges of the ministry.
• The motivation to prepare adequately to teach the Christian worldview. (All leaders are strongly encouraged to read Chuck Colson’s book, How Now Shall We Live?, Nancy Pearcey’s book Total Truth and/or J. Budziszewski’s book, How to Stay Christian in College).
• A passion for cultivating spiritual growth in young people, and a vision for their potential to impact their culture.
• Listening, learning, and communication skills with students and adults.
• The ability and desire to recruit a support team of people who are committed to help and pray.
• The administrative ability to plan tasks and follow them through to their completion.
• Mentoring skills. It is important to speak to the needs of students and small group leaders as a coach and mentor, never in a way that is condescending.
• Flexibility in meeting the needs of students and leaders.
• Demonstrated servant leadership.

All those planning to be a teaching leader must attend an Anchorsaway training seminar in order to serve in this position. Please view the conferences page to register for an upcoming training seminar or click on the link for online training.

Small Group Leader

Small Group Leaders must be high school graduates who have a vision for Anchorsaway ministry and a passion for encouraging young people to build a solid Christian worldview. They play a vital role in the leadership team as they are the primary ones who will be developing personal relationships with the students. The following key characteristics are essential to maximize the effectiveness of the small group leader:

• Calling by God for service as a small group leader, and the vision for what God can do through this ministry.
• Diligence in prayer for each student, the facilitator and teaching leader as well as the details of the ministry.
• Demonstration of a consistent Christian witness, and credibility with students.
• A servant’s heart that gives time, love and energy. This ministry is not about any specific teacher or small group leader. It is solely about allowing God to use all leaders to accomplish His purposes in the life of each and every student.
• Emphasis on spiritual disciplines, such as prayer and daily bible reading.
• Good listening and communication skills are essential. Responding promptly when someone asks for information regarding the ministry.
• Interest in developing a strong foundation and understanding of the Christian worldview. All leaders are strongly encouraged to read Chuck Colson’s book, How Now Shall We Live?, Nancy Pearcey’s book, Total Truth and J. Budziszewski’s book, How to Stay Christian in College.
• Commitment to weekly preparation by reviewing the small group leader’s notes and completing the weekly student devotionals found at the end of the written lessons.
• Willingness to arrange personal schedules to miss no more than one or two classes a semester as well as scheduling time away from class with a student or students if necessary.
• Discernment as to when and what to share in a small group discussion.
• Planning and administrative abilities for small group outings, such as hosting a meal, meeting at an ice cream shop, having pizza together, or attending a sporting event. (It is strongly recommended that small group leaders plan an outing with their small groups within the first three weeks of class, in order to begin building group cohesiveness).
• Perseverance and persistence in making contact with the students each week by phone, email or in person. (This will include contacting students who were unable to attend a session, offering encouragement and assistance, letting them know they were missed, and meeting with them outside of class.)
• A time commitment to coach students. (A coach’s role is to speak truth to each student. This involves helping students see where they are, where they need to be, and how to get there.)
• Interest and self-discipline to follow-up with students, in some capacity, throughout the college years. (For example: Send care packages or emails, make phone calls or personal visits).
• Ability to communicate, not only with the students and teacher, but also with the other small group leaders.

Community Connectors/Networkers

A key person who has caught the vision of Anchorsaway and will add to the success of a site is the community connector/networker. The most successful Anchorsaway sites are those that are filled with students from different schools, churches, socio-economic backgrounds and people groups. A community connector/networker must be a person that is well-known and respected not only in the Christian community, but also in the schools, among parents, and in the community as a whole. Essentially, this person will work with the Teacher and the Administrator to bring in a variety of people to make this a vibrant group that will impact the culture for Christ.

• Must be active in the Christian community.
• An encourager and works well with other people
• Good communicator with others and within a group situation
• Detail oriented and organized
• Self-starter and project completer