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Sharing the Vision: Youth Ministry Training

Click here for a schedule of upcoming workshops.

Overview of Youth Ministry
Purpose
This workshop helps parish leaders come to fuller understanding of comprehensive youth ministry as outlined in Renewing the Vision: A Framework for Catholic Youth Ministry(USCCB, 1997). The workshop explores the ways that a parish can effectively minister to young people within the context of the parish, including the family and wider community.
Audience
This workshop is for parish staff, parish leaders, and interested youth ministry volunteers, including young people. This will work best with parishes that currently have no youth ministry, or who have a limited approach.

Organizing a Team for Youth Ministry
Purpose
This workshop helps parish leaders create a leadership structure for youth ministry that includes youth and adults. The workshop explores the need for a variety of leaders and the reasons why different roles are necessary and helpful in sustaining youth ministry over many years.
Audience
This workshop is for parish staff, parish leaders, and interested youth ministry volunteers, including young people. 

Developing Volunteer Leaders for Youth Ministry
Purpose
This workshop will assist parish leaders in recruiting, training, and supporting adults and youth for volunteer leadership in youth ministry. Included in this workshop are the tools necessary to create the roles descriptions that will assist these volunteers in knowing what they are being asked to do and will help parish leaders in recruiting volunteers based on interests and gifts.
Audience
This workshop is for parish staff, parish leaders, and interested youth ministry volunteers, including young people. It can be used in helping to create a youth ministry team in a parish with no current youth ministry, or for creating a team to support an on-going youth ministry.
 
Planning for Dynamic Youth Ministry
Purpose
This workshop helps parishes assess their current strengths and weakness, identify resources for youth ministry, and develop a practical plan for developing more effective ministry with adolescents.
Audience
This workshop is designed for youth ministry leaders, including young people. This workshop is targeted at a group that wishes to plan for a season of ministry.
 
Becoming a Youth Friendly Parish
Purpose
This workshop helps parish leaders imagine together the parish’s ability to minister to young people throughout all of parish life. Participants will discuss ways to include youth throughout parish life and discover ways that they can collaborate more fully to make young people feel welcomed in all ministries. Parish leaders will discover new ways that they can have a positive effect on youth and on the parish’s youth ministry.
Audience
This workshop is for parish staff, parish leaders, parish councils, and youth ministry leaders. It will work best with a variety of parish leaders in attendance. This workshop is not designed to do only with youth ministry leaders.
 
Empowering Youth for Parish Leadership
Purpose
This workshop helps parishes develop strategies for involving youth in leadership within youth ministry and other parish ministries. Participants will explore ways to open up parish organizations and ministries to youth and to prepare the adult community for youth involvement.
Audience
This workshop may be offered for two distinct audiences. In the best case, the audience would be a variety of parish leaders (staff, pastoral council, heads of committees, members of the youth ministry team, etc.). If this is not possible, youth ministry leaders can participate in the session to serve as advocates within the parish to encourage staff, pastoral council, heads of committees, etc. to involve youth more fully in their work.
 
Hiring and Supporting a Coordinator of Youth Ministry
Purpose
This workshop assists a parish in preparing to hire a Coordinator of Youth Ministry (CYM). The session includes creating a job description and budget for the CYM, a guide through the search process, and a plan for orientation, support, and supervision.
Audience
This workshop is for a hiring committee from a parish, empowered with hiring a coordinator of youth ministry. This can include parish staff, pastors, youth ministry volunteers, parish council members, youth, parents, etc.
 
Understanding Youth Today
Purpose
This workshop helps parish leaders understand the developmental changes that young people are experiencing during early and older adolescence and how these changes affect the type of ministry that we offer. Participants will also explore how faith changes during these adolescent years and ways that ministry can address and support these changes.
Audience
This workshop is youth ministry volunteers, and other adults who are interested in knowing about adolescent development. This might include parents and catechists, as well as parish staff and leaders.
 
Planning for Retreat Ministry
Purpose
This workshop assists parishes in understanding more about the basic structures of retreats, the different elements that are necessary for effective retreats, and provides the opportunity to design a retreat.
Audience
This workshop is for youth ministry leaders, including youth.
 
Ministering to Middle School Adolescents
Purpose
This workshop helps parishes know and understand how to minister with young adolescents. The workshop includes information about the developmental and faith needs of young adolescents and models for Middle School Youth Ministry that are effective.
Audience
This workshop is for parish staff, parish leaders, and youth ministry leaders, including young people. This workshop should include those who are currently involved in catechetical efforts with young adolescence.
 
Engaging Youth in Liturgy
Purpose
This workshop helps parish leaders explore ways that they can more fully involve adolescents in the Eucharistic celebrations of the parish. The workshop focuses on ways that youth ministry can prepare young people for their involvement in liturgy and ways that the parish community can ensure that young people are engaged, involved, and welcomed at Mass.
Audience
This workshop is for parish staff, parish leaders, liturgy committees, and interested youth ministry volunteers, including young people.
 
Many Faces in God’s House
Purpose
This workshop helps parish leaders come to a fuller understanding how Catholic Youth Ministry can minister effectively with all of the cultural groups represented within their parish community. Participants will explore the importance of creating room for all the cultural differences while maintaining unity within diversity in youth ministry and learn how to engage all young people in appreciating the richness of other cultures.
Audience
This workshop is for parish staff and youth ministry leaders, including young people. It is essential that leaders from all cultural groups of the parish participate within the workshop.
 
Involving Youth in Service
Purpose
This workshop helps parish leaders develop a stronger justice and service component within youth ministry by teaching strategies to involve youth in direct service in meaningful ways. This workshop will also examine how to do intentional justice education and infuse Catholic social teaching into all youth ministry efforts.
Audience
This workshop is designed for use with youth ministry leaders, including youth.

Creating Gathered Youth Events
Purpose
This workshop helps parish leaders plan successful youth ministry programs. Workshop participants will learn how to create a focus for the program, put together the needed program element, and plan for success. Additionally, participants will learn how to evaluate resources and program designs. 
Audience
This workshop is for youth ministry leaders, both youth and adults.

Planning Meaningful Prayer Experiences
Purpose
This workshop helps parish leaders come to fuller understanding of the elements of a meaningful prayer experience. Participants will have the opportunity to learn effective ways to plan for prayer within youth ministry and to preside at prayer.
Audience
This workshop is for youth ministry leaders, both youth and adults.

Testify: Core Team Training/Retreat
Purpose
Part training day, part retreat. We want to equip middle school and high school youth ministry core team members with the tools and techniques that their ministry needs to not just survive, but to thrive. We'll cover essentials like relational ministry, planning and executing youth nights, and small group facilitation. We'll also spend time reflecting on our own lives as disciples of Christ, and hone our ability to speak to that message.
Audience
This day is for both new and veteran core team members, including young people. 

Bringing Hope and Mercy to Youth
Purpose
Learn how to identify and support youth when they face life's toughest issues (ie. homelessness, LGBTQ, suicide, bullying, and others) by developing and implementing a comprehensive pastoral plan using parish and/or outside resources.
Audience
This workshop is for parish staff and youth ministry leaders. This workshop should include those who are currently involved in catechetical efforts with adolescents.

Misunderstandings and Truths: A Pastoral Approach to Ministering with Youth and Young Adults on the Topic of Homosexuality
Purpose
This workshop provides participants with an introduction and overview of the Church's teaching on homosexuality and brings clarity to misconceptions on the topic. Participants will also be presented with some practical approaches to the topic in their ministry to youth and young adults.
Audience
This workshop is for parish staff, parish leaders - to include youth ministry leaders and young adult ministry leaders. 

If you are interested in scheduling a workshop at your parish or school, please contact the Office of Youth and Young Adult Ministry at 808-203-6763 or email us.