Youth spend far more time in school than church. Yet, most youth workers rarely set foot inside their local schools, leading some to argue that our schools are the church’s forgotten mission field.

Because of the demanding needs that schools have, in addition to their increasing influence on youth, youth workers no longer can afford to ignore the education system. To better equip youth workers to partner with their local schools, we talked with four ministry experts in church and school partnerships.

Introduced to the Christian faith by a teacher, Paul Gibbs knows firsthand just how important ministry with schools is. He is the founder of The Pais Project, which offers apprenticeships for young adults, training them to teach and serve in local schools while connecting their students to local churches.

Will Babilonia is the Colorado Community Church, Aurora Campus, youth pastor. Passionate about ministry to schools, he has led seminars, titled “Developing a Meaningful Relationship with Your Local School Campus,” at the National Youth Workers Convention.

After working on several educationrelated campaigns, Chris Butler is now the lay leader of Chicago’s 2020 Vision, an organization with the goal of transforming the culture of education, including the quality of instruction and the overall school experience, before today’s first graders graduate from high school in 2020.

Professor John Turner teaches at the University of South Alabama. His book, Bill Bright and Campus Crusade for Christ: The Renewal of Evangelicalism in Postwar America, analyzes evangelical efforts to restore American education to its “Christian roots.”

YouthWorker Journal: How big a deal is it for youth workers to build relationships with local schools? Why?

Will Babilonia: I think it’s a really big deal because God cares for the city to which He has called us. Schools are the place where our teens spend a large percentage of their time and form much of their worldview. We want our kids and their teachers to prosper. As Jeremiah 29:7 says, “Seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.”

John Turner: They’re important because a relationship of some sort is going to exist. Even if a school administration initially is hostile, youth workers should seek to improve the relationship over time by expressing respect for school administrators and by patiently explaining their approach to ministry. Often, Christians presume hostility or resistance is implacable; but as ambassadors for Christ, we have an obligation to seek reconciliation.

Chris Butler: I think it’s a huge deal. It’s getting increasingly difficult to get young people to the actual church building. It’s becoming necessary to get into the places where young people already are. What better place for this than schools? Getting involved with the schools is a great way to reach the youth in the neighborhoods where our churches are.