Annual Report of the Associate in Ministry for College-Age and Young Adult Ministry ~ Allison Maus

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Thank you for all of your support this year! We could not have cared for college-students and young adults as well as we did without your input. This year has looked very different than my previous years here at SCPC, and yet I was encouraged by the energy, generosity, and commitment given to all the programs I oversaw. A special thanks to the CAYAM committee: Barbara Cox, Nancy Dreschel, Laura Essinger-Hileman, Sharon Manno, and Tracy Massaglia. Here’s a little about what we did this year.

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Presbyterian Student Fellowship and College-age programs
PSF is our congregational supported ministry for college students. This group typically meets regularly for Dinner and Fellowship with meals provided by volunteers every week (Thank you!!). The Spring semester started off just this way, but after Spring Break we went virtual for the rest of the Spring 2020 semester. Normally these meetings conclude for the summer, but with everyone needing a little more connection we continued through the month of June. During the Fall 2020 semester we gathered at a distance outside of the church adhering to all of Penn State’s pandemic protocols and eventually spent our last few weeks virtual again. This weekly ministry allows students to take a breather from their busy academic lives to find some peace and belonging which felt all the more crucial in this time of less human interaction for students often living alone in the dorms.

Before quarantine started, PSF was travelling with Lutheran Student Community and Wesley Penn State in Alabama, working with Alabama Rural Ministry. The team of students and campus ministers helped to rebuild homes from tornado damage, exploring racial justice at the intersections of housing, economy, education, faith, politics, and more. We continued this conversation through Summer and Fall 2020 in the form of a Racial Reconciliation Small Group.  PSF, with Lutheran Student Community and Wesley Penn State,  met via zoom monthly to discuss the future of racial justice as people of faith. We used resources from Dr. Ibram X. Kendi, Nikole Hannah-Jones, Ta-Nehisi Coates, Robin Diangelo, and a few others. We hope to continue this offering through 2021 culminating with welcoming Nikole Hannah-Jones to campus for a co-hosted event (Fingers-crossed after many rescheduled dates). Alongside this ecumenical work, PSF has begun a partnership with Hillel. Rabbi Rob and I hope to start more structured offerings in 2021, but this year we have created space for the two student groups to begin building relationships and PSF was able to attend a virtual Shabbat meal.

To support our college students connected to SCPC CAYAM sent out Christmas cards with a message and Starbucks gift card to give them the energy we all need after this long year. We also invited them to a virtual Christmas Game Night to fill the space of the Open House event we created last year.

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Young Adult Ministries
Our Young Adult group has been consistent throughout the year! We started this year off strong with small group and regular Theology untapped gatherings, and the transition from in-person to virtual didn’t phase us much. While the weather was nicer this summer and Fall we were able to meet at a local park for some distanced picnicking. Our Young Adult Small Group is still going strong, with studies this year that included a look at passages from Joshua and Judges, The Book of Confessions, mentions of God in various national anthems, and You Are What You Love by James K.A. Smith. Theology untapped continued with less consistency, but we were able to gather about every month for a casual, virtual hangout or game night. I am so grateful for this group of friends that checks in with each other, offers support and friendship,  and celebrates the accomplishments of all those in the group even when we can’t be together in person.
 

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Other Ministries
I have the privilege to serve as the staff person who collaborates with the Spiritual Life team at SCPC, and we worked on new programming this year as well as offered existing programming with a virtual twist. Please see their report to read about the new ways they encouraged our congregation this past year to find meaning and further their spiritual journeys. As part of the Spiritual Life small group program, I lead a weekly Bible Study for a group of awesome people and we’ve also been meeting virtually throughout this pandemic season, studying the Book of Revelation, part of Exodus, and finishing the year with women of the Christmas story. Worship leadership was also a new experience this year, with its virtual aspect! I loved inviting y’all into my home for my recordings and loved the times when we were able to gather outside together even more. I pray this next year more of us will be able to safely worship in the same space again.
 
Peace,
Allison Maus, Associate in College-Age and Young Adult Ministry