Youth & Young Adults Resources

As the end of the academic year approaches, many parishes and Catholic high schools look for ways to recognize and thank exceptional young men and women. The Office for Youth and Young Adult Ministry can provide the parishes and Catholic high schools with everything needed to accomplish this with the Senior Recognition Award.

Four times per year, Youth Ministry professionals and volunteers have the opportunity to come together with our office to discuss relevant issues, have input on the offerings of our office and network with each other. One of the gatherings is designed to be a day of reflection or a professional development day.

The Office for Youth and Young Adult Ministry collaborates with the Education Secretariat to provide resources and support to High School Campus Ministers. Two times per year, High School Campus Ministers come together with our office to discuss relevant issues, have input on the offerings of our office and network with each other. This group is invited to the day of reflection together with the Parish Youth Ministry Coordinators.

Sponsored by the National Federation for Catholic Youth Ministry, the biennial NCCYM provides professional development, networking, and spiritual renewal for adults who work with young people in a variety of settings. Pastors, parish staff, religious education coordinators, youth ministry coordinators and volunteers, scout and Camp Fire leaders, and athletic coaches at the parish, school, and diocesan level can all benefit from the opportunities offered at NCCYM. For more information visit http://www.nccym.info/

The staff of the Office for Youth and Young Adult Ministry is often called upon to assist in the recruiting, training and maintaining of Parish Youth Ministry professionals. Toward that end we provide a monthly gathering for those who are in their first two years of this ministry so that we may resource, support and mentor those individuals.

The Certificate in Pastoral Ministry with a Concentration in Youth Ministry offers adults substantive learning with a solid foundation in academic disciplines relating to Church teaching and tradition. In addition, through specialized instruction, the essential components of effective ministry to, by, for and with young people will be a primary focus. Persons engaged, or interested in the following avenues of Catholic life, who could benefit from this program include: those seeking to become, or already serving as, parish coordinators of youth ministry, youth ministry volunteers in parish and school settings, high school campus ministers, catechists and parents.

While it is vitally important to have one clear leader, the Office for Youth and Young Adult Ministry encourages a team approach to Youth Ministry. Our goal for this training is to provide parishes with some of the tools and structures needed to have an effective youth ministry program. This training is based on the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops’ document, Renewing the Vision, A Framework for Catholic Youth Ministry.

The best format for this training is at your parish over three evening sessions with a team of youth and adults present, but other possibilities can be arranged. In fact, we typically contact neighboring parishes to see if they would like to go through the training at the same time.

The staff of the Office for Youth and Young Adult Ministry welcomes the opportunity to help parishes and schools develop a youth retreat. The goal of Retreat Team Training is to introduce the participants to the fundamental concepts and skills in planning youth retreats. This training includes such elements as identifying goals and developing a theme, large and small group dynamics, warmers and icebreakers, prayer and music, talks, legal issues and responsibilities. The best format for this training is a 24-hour period with youth and adult team members, but other possibilities can be arranged.

The staff of the Office for Youth and Young Adult Ministry is available to provide support, resources and training for those wishing to start a parish or a regional Young Adult Ministry Program. Our office also has copies of Sons and Daughters of the Light, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops document available, and would be happy to provide information and training on this document. We maintain a Young Adult Ministry contact list and act as a hub of information related to Young Adults within the diocese.