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THE CHURCH’S ROLE

The Church’s Role

We believe the best way to equip leaders is in the environment of a healthy local church.
We partner with the local churches in which our students serve. Therefore, we only enrol applicants into our programmes who have been endorsed for ministry by their Pastor. Click on the headings below see how important the roles of Pastor, Supervisor, and Mentor in regard to recruiting and supporting interns, and enhancing their learning journeys.

Useful Tips

For identifying prospective interns in your congregation:

  1. Prayerfully decide which areas of your church you want to invest in for growth.
  2. Write down the vision you have for these areas, using as much detail as possible.
  3. Dedicate a Sunday morning to vision casting by preaching this subject. Share with your church your vision, what God is saying and your hopes for your community.
  4. Get congregation buy-in. Ask them to pray, to get involved, and ask for their ideas.
  5. Talk to your church about internship. Use the promotional material provided on the USB from Conference (contact us if you don’t have one).
  6. “Make the big ask” – Invite applications for internship. Define a clear process for people to share with you their interest.
  7. “Shoulder Tap” anyone you believe has the potential to be an intern.
  8. “Don’t say somebody’s no for them” – Don’t discount anyone! Don’t assume that because they have a job, a family or other plans, that they will say no. Some people are just waiting for an opportunity.
  9. Remember a new intern may not look like you expect – they won’t be a finished product, they will be a work in progress!
  10. Put the prospective intern through the selection process interview.

Selecting an intern

Once you have recruited a prospective intern, it is important to interview them carefully to ensure that their passion and vision are in line with yours. Supervising an intern is a large responsibility and you want to ensure that you are investing your time into the right person. Interviewing the prospective intern will help you to decide if they will be a successful ‘fit’ for the internship role you have in mind. Below are suggestions of areas for discussion:

  1. Work through the Application form questions, adding clarifying questions of your own where necessary.
  2. Ask the intern to explain what they think an intern’s role would be. Why do they think this role is for them? What strengths would they bring to the position?
  3. Review the position description together and describe what your expectations of the intern would be. Be very clear about the number of hours you are expecting an intern to work each week.
  4. Invite the intern to describe their ministry passion – where is their heart?
  5. Question the intern about their dreams and plans – where do they see themselves in 5 years’ time?
  6. Discuss with the intern what the greatest challenges will be for them in internship.
  7. Ask the intern what they love most about your church. What would they like to see changed?
  8. Discuss the degree of support the person would have for their internship – from spouse and other family members, potential mentor, friends etc.
  9. Ask the intern how they intend to support themselves financially. Are they intending to work? Note that ELC strongly recommends no more than 10 hours a week paid employment. The internship involves 15 hours a week practical ministry and approximately 13 hours a week self-directed learning (study, assessments etc).

When you have completed the interview, seek God for clarity on whether this is the right intern for your church.

 

Successful supervisors will:

  • Make time to invest in the training of their intern.
  • Be experienced in the area of ministry the intern is serving in.
  • Have a hands-on approach to training.
  • Complete the ELC online Supervisor training sessions.
  • Complete all reports on time and encourage the intern to do the same.
  • Follow up with their intern when advised by ELC that they have outstanding assessment work.
  • Partner with ELC, keeping open channels of communication.

Supervisor responsibilities include:

  • Helping the intern to plan ministry goals and steps to achieve those goals.
  • Giving clear instructions and overseeing the intern’s weekly work commitments.
  • Actively seeking to train and develop the intern in their ministry area.
  • Meeting with the intern weekly for the duration of the programme, to discuss the intern’s progress and activities within their role.
  • Completing a regular Supervisor Report (via Google Docs). These reports are essential in helping ELC to:
    • track intern wellbeing
    • identify issues that need to be addressed
    • verify information given by interns in their assessments
    • gauge the success of the programme content in equipping the intern for their practical ministry.
  • Maintaining open communication with ELC throughout the programme. It is important that the supervisor raises any concerns relating to:
    • an unexplained absence or prolonged absence of the intern
    • poor performance in the workplace or issues with learning progression

ELC will then offer resources to help with any issues arising.

Download the Supervisor and Mentor Handbook to learn more about the role of a supervisor.

Successful mentors will:

  • Make the time to invest in regular meetings with the intern and will keep confidential notes of key outcomes.
  • Help their intern evaluate and reflect on challenges.
  • Give honest feedback and lots of encouragement.
  • Keep an intern accountable for their own self-care.
  • Discuss the intern’s relationship with God and their devotional times.
  • Pray for the intern throughout the programme.
  • Complete the ELC online Mentor training sessions.
  • Partner with ELC for the duration of the programme, complete all reports on time and adhere to the College’s Code of Ethics.

Mentor responsibilities include:

  • Offering support, encouragement, advice and a caring sounding-board for the intern who will probably face many hurdles over the course of the programme.
  • Meeting with the intern every month and providing an opportunity for truthful sharing and feedback.
  • Praying regularly for the intern.
  • Holding the intern accountable to a self-care plan that the intern themselves have created.
  • Completing a quarterly report. This information, along with other feedback, is used to track the intern’s wellbeing, relationship with co-workers and self-care.

Download the Supervisor and Mentor Handbook to learn more about the role of a mentor.

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