There are several opportunities for student leaders within Belmont on Mission, including serving as a student leader on a trip, leading a team of volunteers to serve locally in Nashville, or being one of our leaders on the Missional Engagement Council.
Every mission trip offers the opportunity for students to develop their leadership skills through serving as a trip leader. You’ll help your fellow students enter more fully into the immersion experience and the challenges caused by seeing the world from a new perspective. You’ll assist throughout the trip in logistics, spiritual reflection, and community. University Ministries will provide extensive training, so you don’t have to know everything or be an expert on social justice issues – you just need to be open to learning, walking with other students, and sharing from your own experiences.
Student leaders in Israel with Director of Missions & Outreach, Tim Wildsmith.
Student Leadership Roles
The MEC is a committed group of student leaders within Belmont on Mission who help to plan and promote short-term mission trips that help students find their purpose in God’s story. This unique year-long opportunity allows students to engage their educational background and interests with Christ-centered, service-oriented experience. It will involve a variety of work involving logistics, planning, education, marketing, and more. All majors, interests, and levels of experience are welcome. Students who are passionate about using their skills to serve and transform the student community and the greater community through Belmont on Mission are encouraged to apply!
Benefits of leading on the MEC:
- Trip subsidies
- Experience in all aspects of sending short-term mission trips
- Knowledge of sustainable mission ideology and practices
- Flexible scheduling
In addition to faculty/staff leaders, each mission trip (Fall Break, Spring Break, Summer) has student trip leaders that help coordinate and lead the trips, including the following responsibilities:
Before the trip:
- Participate in trip leader orientation trainings
- Help lead pre-trip meetings with participants
During the trip:
- Lead by example, embodying Belmont's values of integrity, inquiry, collaboration, service, and humility
- Help facilitate the needs and concerns of the student participants
- Facilitate reflection, prayer, and debrief throughout the trip
- Model an attitude of flexibility, maturity, and respect for the host partners and communities visited throughout the trip
After the trip:
- Help the group process and integrate their experience by leading one post-trip follow-up meeting within a month of returning
Participants in Service Year live together in an on-campus apartment and intern at a Christian non-profit in Nashville. This is an intentional community where students spend regular time together in fellowship, conversation, and prayer. They also plan and lead local service initiatives for Belmont students.
Service Year participants commit to:
- Eight hours per week of service in the local community.
- Intentional, ongoing, and Spirit-enabled process of growing into deeper relationship with Jesus.
- Development of intentional relationships with the purpose of personal growth for all community members.
- Creating space within our communities and ourselves to welcome and embrace the diversity others.
- The pursuit of justice and mercy in our broken world.