Tori Espinosa, a sophomore at Concordia University (CU) in Portland, Ore., is Transforming Campus Ministries' (TCM) new office assistant.  Tori is a business major with an accounting minor, and she will help with a variety of duties including recordkeeping, nonprofit corporation forms, and communications.

Tori, who is from Hermiston, Ore., is a member of the university's athlete corps, a sports and physical fitness program where students learn about good sportsmanship and teamwork and serve as role models for middle school children.  She is also a CU cheerleader and concert choir member.  In addition, Tori is an audio/visual technician for CU's weekday chapel services.

Welcome, Tori!
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"State Support for Colleges Falls 7.6% in 2012 Fiscal Year," is the headline of an article by Eric Kelderman in today's The Chronicle of Higher Education.

While less state support for higher education is problematic for colleges and universities that depend on such support, it also opens doors for churches to help fill the gap by providing services that have been, or will be, cut.

Porividing needed services builds positive relationships that open doors to share the Gospel.

Go to http://chronicle.com/article/State-Support-For-Higher/130414/?sid=at&utm_source=at&utm_medium=en to read the article.

Contact me at gfairow@cu-portland.edu or 319-338-4692 to learn how your church can discover open doors at a nearby college or university.
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Brie Richards, a student at Concordia University Portland, has joined the Transforming Campus Ministries team as an intern this fall.  Brie is helping with development and communications, and her internship is partially funded by the Association of Lutheran Development Executives' College2Career initiative.  She's also a newlywed, having married Jeremy Richards last month.  Welcome, Brie!
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The Fall semester has started, or will start soon, at colleges and
universities throughout the United States.  This is a good time to remind churches  that a ripe harvest field may be nearby on campus.

As a certified mission coach who has provided training, consultation and/or
coaching for about 200 churches in more than 30 states, it would be my privilege  to help you seize your opportunity, regardless of whether your church:
  • is not, and has not previously been, activley involved in campus ministry
  • previously was actively involved in campus ministry but is not at this time
  • is actively involved in campus ministry but has plateaued, is declining, has identified a new opportunity, needs to develop new funding sources, etc.

    • Please contact me at gfairow@cu-portland.edu or 319-338-4692 to learn more.
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I recently received certified mission coach status from the Center for United States Missions.

"A certified mission coach is a missional leader who is effectively engaged in a coaching ministry, understands and has mastered the art of mission coaching, and has successfully met and fulfilled the established requirements of coach certification," according to the Center's website.

A coach "comes alongside a person or team in order to help them discover God’s agenda for their  life and ministry, and then serving the Holy Spirit to see that agenda to become reality."

It would be my joy and privilege to serve as your coach.  Contact me at gfairow@cu-portland.edu or 319-338-4692 to learn more.
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Transforming Campus Ministries has moved to the campus of Concordia University in Portland, Ore.  Click here for more info.
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 "She will give birth to a son,
and you are to give him the name Jesus,
because he will save his people from their sins."
(Matthew 1:21)

 Have a blessed Christmas and New Year!
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Campus ministry myths and mistakes will continue on Monday morning.  Here's a link to an article about the importance of campus ministry:

http://www.daily-chronicle.com/articles/2010/08/25/r_yqryy2ves86wzv1hulzwaa/
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Starting next Monday, Aug. 16, I'll use this blog over the next couple of weeks to expose some of the campus ministry myths and mistakes I've discovered - often from my own failures - while serving as a national campus missionary and previously as a campus pastor.

After all, there's no need for you to fall for a myth or make a mistake if you can learn from me and others.
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"More than 175,000 known victims of scholarship fraud exist in the U.S."

Click here for the complete article entitled Scholarship fraud: Welcome to the School of Hard Knocks.
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